2011.11.28 - Copps Coliseum, Hamilton, Canada

Just got home. Absolutely amazing show. No surprises in the set list but I wasn't expecting any. It's a very satisfying set to see live. Even though I could guess most of the time what was coming next it left nothing to be desired. A near three hour show is nothing to complain about!

I might post a longer review tomorrow but here was some of the highlights:

- Axl's voice was the perfect mix of rasp and clean vocals throughout (Jungle sounding better than ever and Nightrain was spot on, to name a couple)
- Shackler's was a lot of fun, the crowd was quite into that one
- Good flow of the set list, as soon as it starts getting quiet (Sorry) they know exactly how to bring the energy back
- Axl didn't say much but smiled a lot, made a few comments, and the band in general seemed really excited and happy
- Bumblefoot is a god, his Pink Panther solo stood out to me of the solos tonight, the guy gives it his all
- Fun to see DJ and Ron switch guitars, I think it was during KOHD
- Small crowd but stayed pretty lively (my section stood the whole time, as did the ones around it)

Overall, an awesome, high energy show. This band is really something to see live. The amount of energy and effort by the band made this concert far surpass last year's show.

Just got back from the show, and I have to say that this current band is the best GNR lineup since the Use Your Illusion tour. I've felt this was the case since Rio and seeing live clips over the past month or two (along with all the positive reviews in newspapers and here on the board). However, while I thought this was the case, I was still blown away seeing them live. They just work together amazingly well, such a cohesive unit and I'm a big fan of every member of the band right now.

In my opinion, Buckethead is probably the most talented guitar player they ever had. However, Bumble comes damn close and it's just clicking on all cylinders with Bumblefoot, Ashba and Fortus manning the guitars. I loved Brain's work in the past but Frank is doing a great job right now. Every band member is a real cool guy and fantastic musician, they play off each other really well and look like they're having a lot of fun. I suppose I agree with an earlier post that Bumble looks to be in some pain, although my thought during the show was that he just seemed pretty mellow for the most part. Probably on some kind of medication for his pain, didn't move around a whole lot but it didn't seem to affect his guitar playing in any way. Came away very impressed with DJ Ashba. You can tell he just loves being in this band and his energy was infectious, just running around like a kid in a candy store and his guitar work was excellent throughout.

Had floors and since it wasn't super-crowded, managed to get up reasonably close, maybe 20 feet from the stage. Pretty Reckless was better than I expected them to be. Fairly basic sound, and the singer kind of overdoes the stripper moves, but in addition to being pretty hot she is actually a very good singer and it seemed like the crowd was impressed overall.

Guns came on right at 10:45, played for 2:50. The setlist posted seems correct, no surprises. I loved the encore - Madagascar, Better, Patience and Paradise City flowed really well. Loved the acoustic intro to Patience. Heard a couple of guys chanting "Oh My God" several times near me, so they were probably forum members. The crowd seemed to be really into it all night long.

Estranged was a magical moment. Highlights were Estranged, It's So Easy, Rocket Queen, PC, also loved Bumble's Pink Panther solo spot. The crowd really enjoyed it. Shackler's and Better sounded pretty good, I've found them to be a pretty muddy sound mix in the past but they were really good tonight. I've seen a lot of arena shows (including GNR shows in 02, 06 and 2010), and tonight might have been the best "sound" I've heard in an arena show. Might have been the fact that it was a bit more intimate (upper deck was blocked off), maybe I was standing in a good spot, but the sound was quieter than expected for the first 3 or 4 songs and there was almost no echo, you could hear everything really clearly. Towards the middle of the show it seemed like they turned the volume up a bit, there was more echo and Axl got drowned out on occasion but overall the sound was excellent for a stadium show.

As for Axl, didn't say a whole lot, sang great all night long. Smiled a lot, seems to be in a very good place these days. Think I understand why he wanted to add Riff Raff to the set on this tour, as he just seemed really into this song and sang the hell out of it. But he was on top of his game all night long.

Bottom line, you've heard this before but if they are coming to your town, GO SEE THEM. Being on the floor that close to the stage was awesome, in a crowd of GNR fans singing along to every song and having the sound of this great band washing right over you for 3 solid hours is more than worth the price of admission.