2016.07.29 - Camping World Stadium, Orlando, FL, USA

Jim Carchidi wrote:How Guns N' Roses' Camping World concert came together — literally

Before legendary rock band Guns N' Roses can take the stage at Orlando's Camping World Stadium on July 29 for their "Not In This Lifetime Tour," someone has to actually build a stage.

"Every night's an adrenaline rush," said production manager Dale Skjerseth during a July 28 press event. "It's a rush for us to see what we've accomplished."

Skjerseth, whose resume includes Guns N' Roses' 1992 "Use Your Illusion Tour," as well as tours for Ozzy Osbourne, The Rolling Stones and AC/DC, described the production with a cool demeanor that contrasted a flurry of activity from the 125-member tour crew working amid sweltering temperatures.

"We designed it around the venues," said Skjerseth of the massive stage structure taking shape behind him. "We start months in advance, fitting it all together, making sure it's user-friendly to all the venues.

Guns N' Roses' long-awaited reunion tour is one of several high-profile events in the wake of renovations that have made the former Citrus Bowl more attractive to the sports and entertainment industry.

"The building suits us perfectly," said Skjerseth of Camping World Stadium. "They built it for convenience, so setting up this show is even easier than an arena."

The stage is flanked by two 30-foot by 40-foot video screens and includes staircases, support systems for lights, speakers and pyrotechnics, and a piano lift where front man Axl Rose will perform the band's 1992 hit single "November Rain."

And to remedy the logistical challenges of the tour's current list of 32 host venues, it's all multiplied by three.

"We have three sets of steel," said Skjerseth, referring to the stage supports and framework that take about 36 hours to assemble. "And each set of steel has 16 trucks."

As the concert stage construction at Camping World Stadium was nearing completion on the afternoon of July 28, the steel from the previous night's concert in Atlanta's Georgia Dome was already on its way to Houston's NRG Stadium where the band will play on Aug 5. Steel only takes about 12 hours to break down after the show. Meanwhile, stage construction for the July 31 concert at New Orleans' Mercedes-Benz Superdome was just getting under way.

Skjerseth watched as soundboards were wired in the center of Camping World Stadium and as lighting was tested more than 40 feet above the stage. Pyrotechnics would soon be installed, and the giant video screens would later be turned on. But for all the tech and trappings, the most important part of the show is never lost on this industry veteran.

"Having the band members back together, that's what the fans are really looking for." said Skjerseth. "They're here to hear them playing their music together again."

Check out the photo gallery for a behind the scenes look at Guns N' Roses' stage build.

Soulmonster wrote:The last three shows have had very similar setlists, with only Duff's song changing and Patience and Don't Cry alternating. I hope they will change things up again today. Maybe play Madagascar or Catcher In The Rye, or some UYI deep cuts.

Jason Ferguson wrote:Guns N' Roses reward stadium crowd with a robust and subtly weird reunion show

"Since I was a child, it's always been my dream to play Camping World Stadium," laughed Ian Astbury. Here he was, the lead singer of the Cult, opening for Guns N' Roses on the latter band's highly anticipated reunion tour, taking a minute out of his band's brisk and powerful set to point out the absurdity of the Citrus Bowl's new corporate branding partner. Of course, his humor was tinged with a touch of bitter irony, because back in '87, the roles were reversed – GNR's first U.S. tour was as openers for the Cult – but time moves on, iconic venues get named after RV dealerships, and rock stars get older.

Which, of course, was the thing on the mind of all of the folks who filled the Citrus Bo... Camping World Stadium last night. After years of acrimony, bickering, and out-and-out weirdness, here was most of the original lineup of Guns N' Roses on stage at the same time playing the songs that – 25 years ago – made them seem like the most exciting and most infamous band on the planet. But hey, that was 25 years ago, so for most folks in the crowd, I'd imagine the expectations for the band to be successful were probably pretty low: Play the hits, light some pyro, don't forget too many words, don't fall over, don't murder each other, and make us remember what it felt like when rock 'n' roll ruled the world.

Did they succeed?

Simple answer: Guns N' Roses demolished those low expectations and set an example for what larger-than-life rock 'n' roll reunions should look like in this day and age.

More detailed simple answer: Yes, the show started (mostly) on time. No, nobody in GNR will ever be cooler than Duff. Yes, Slash is still one of the best guitarists on Earth. No, nobody fucked up or flamed out in any noticeable way. Yes, Axl looked great, but no, he doesn't look 25 because he's not 25. And yes, Axl sounded great, hitting all the extended yowl-y screams you'd want him to, and often adding a half-measure to their length as if to prove a point.

More complicated answer: I actually can't believe what I just witnessed, because this show was both really great and also really weird. Like, weird in a way that only a GNR stadium rock show can be weird, because only a GNR show will ever have to bend to the will and whims of W. Axl Rose. The entire structure of the set list seemed designed with a pacing in mind that allowed Axl lots and lots of little breaks, during which he'd retreat offstage for a moment or two (probably getting oxygen). And while some of you cynics may want to use that as an opportunity to be snarky about old people getting old, this approach allowed for two things: 1) When he was on stage, oxygenated Axl was all energy, tossing and spinning his mic stand, doing his little shimmy snake dance thing, bounding up and down the catwalk, and delivering those trademark screams with more relish and power than anyone certainly expected, and, 2) When he wasn't on stage, the rest of the band got to get their groove on, with lots of extended solos, jams, and unexpected song selections that added a tremendous amount of musical dynamics – mostly interesting, but occasionally not – to what probably should have been a jukebox revue of the band's biggest hits. (It also meant that "Welcome to the Jungle" was the fourth [!] song played, which is both a ballsy move and one that respects the needs of those folks with babysitters.) In other words: casual fans/haters didn't get to see Axl get winded, while hardcore fans got to hear their favorite band go deep into their catalog.

In other words, it was all you could have asked for while also being what you would never have expected.

Guns N’ Roses Pay Tribute to Orlando Shooting Victims

On Friday (July 29), Guns N' Roses' "Not in This Lifetime ..." tour made a stop at the Camping World Stadium in Orlando, Fla. Yesterday, they honored the victims of last month's attack at one of the city's gay nightclubs.

They posted the video below to their social media feeds, with the caption "49 Roses ... #WeAreOrlando." It begins with the #WeAreOrlando hashtag, and then their logo is turned into the colors of the rainbow -- a symbol of gay pride. The video concludes with roses blooming out of their logo.

In the early morning hours of June 12, a gunman opened fire in the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, killing 49 people and wounding 53 others. After a three-hour standoff with the police, the shooter, who had expressed allegiance to ISIS during the attack, was shot and killed by the Orlando Police Department.

Guns N' Roses' post represents a change in mindset for Axl Rose, who garnered controversy with "One in a Million," a song from 1988's G N' R Lies, whose lyrics featured racial and homophobic epithets. In a 1989 interview with Rolling Stone, he revealed that he'd had "some very bad experiences with homosexuals," including an attempted rape while hitch-hiking and that he occasionally taunted gays on the street from inside his car. But he also said, "I'm not against them doing what they want to do as long as it's not hurting anybody else and they're not forcing it upon me."

By 1992, however, all appeared to be forgiven, with Rose and Elton John duetting on Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody" at the Freddie Mercury tribute concert. A few months later, the two joined forces again to perform "November Rain" at the MTV Video Music Awards.

Guns N' Roses 'Not In this lifetime' concert; 7/29/16

Review by: Bailey Guinigundo

Orlando FL) Guns N’ Roses’ ‘Not in This Lifetime’ show ripped through the City Beautiful to a massive crowd of more than 50,000 at Camping World Stadium last Friday July 29. For almost 2 ½ hours, the hard rock group fronted by lead vocalist, Axl Rose, alongside original band members Slash (lead guitar) and ‘Duff’ McKagan (bass) put on a rock-n-roll clinic at the former Citrus Bowl Arena. For diehard GN’R fans, the show was highly significant in that this tour marked the first time since the 1993 ‘Use Your Illusion’ tour that these 3 specific members last performed together, and the Orlando performance was the only Florida city listed for the 25-city North American tour.

The band originally formed back in 1985 with 2 other members – Izzy Stradlin (rhythm guitar) and Steven Adler (drums) – who were not included in this ‘reunited’ lineup. With new band additions – Richard Fortus (guitar), Frank Ferrer (drums), Dizzy Reed (piano), and newest member Melissa Reese (synthesizer) – the group rocked Camping World Stadium with a single set of 21 songs followed by a 3-song encore, performing a mix of songs from their Appetite for Destruction (1987), Use Your Illusion (1991), and Chinese Democracy (2008) albums, paying tribute to Pink Floyd (‘Wish You Were Here’), The Who (‘The Seeker’), The Godfather movies (via one of Slash’s multiple solos throughout the night), and Looney Tunes (the theme music to which the band hyped up the crowd before taking to the stage).

While the band didn’t hold much dialogue with the crowd that night, it really didn’t need to do so in order to connect with its fans. Even prior to them taking to the stage, lazer images flanking both sides of the 71-foot wide stage were broadcast on LED panels, each nearly as large as the stage itself, bore the text ‘Not in This Lifetime’ with the hashtag ‘#WeAreOrlando’ and rainbow-colored heart to its side. Then with all lights out in the stadium and cell phones lit up all throughout its interior, the band came out hard to ‘It’s So Easy.’ Axl was dancing awkwardly all over the stage, but who freaking cared – it was better to see him dancing his ‘my… my… serpentine’ versus seeing him immobilized onstage in a cast when he broke his foot just this past April. Thank goodness he’s apparently fully recuperated!

Quite frankly, growing up I was never really a GN’R fan. Axl and Slash scared me. I couldn’t dance to their music either, which bothered me. But now after having watched them live? OMG… not only am I now a big fan of theirs now, but I would also argue that this was probably the best concert I’d ever seen. I’ve played the piano since I was 5, and played the drums in a band for 5 years, but my God… the things that I witnessed Slash doing on that guitar were indescribable. His fingers traversed up and down the neck of his Les Paul at blistering speeds. The musicality of his delivery was beyond impressive as he essentially created a whole other dimension of sound which co-led each song right up there with Axl’s lead vocals. With respect to Axl’s vocals, I was dumbfounded to hear not only the same high-pitch delivery that made Axl’s voice an unmistakable one back in the 80s, but the machine-gun-rapid diction with which he sang each song had me standing with dropped jaw watching in amazement. With Duff working every angle of the stage, I think he may have made direct eye contact with every single person within the first 10 rows, while driving the bass line in perfect unison with the bada$$ drumming from the back of the stage. Together with the piano and the synth accompaniment, GN’R sounded ‘whole’, and they sounded DAMN good.

The ‘Not in This Lifetime’ tour will play out the rest of this North American leg until late August before kicking back up out of country later this October. Get a ticket while you can at a Paradise City close to you… you don’t want to miss out on this one.