I tried to approach this show with a blank slate, but it was impossible to keep Velvet Revolver's predecessor, Guns 'N' Roses, out of my mind.
The addition of former Stone Temple Pilots vocalist Scott Weiland, Electric Love Hogs guitarist Dave Kushner, ex-Guns 'N' Roses guitarist Slash, bassist Duff McKagan and drummer Matt Sorum means the band chemistry is inevitably different, and while it's unfair to compare their material to former triumphs, I couldn't help it.
G 'N' R may have been a completely over-the-top cliché, but they backed up their posturing with monster tunes such as Sweet Child O' Mine, Paradise City and November Rain. While some of the night's material was undoubtedly strong, most notably the tracks from highly-rated new album Libertad, I found myself waiting in vain for something a bit special and equally epic.
I don't think I was alone, because while the moshers at the front went through the usual beer-chucking, crowd-surfing routine, the slightly older crew at the back did not appear completely captured either.
The kids seemed to get what they wanted, but for me the show simply didn't fire on all cylinders. It lacked the whiff of urgency and danger so prevalent in their former incarnation.
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