2012.02.15 - The Ritz, New York, USA

TOILET BOYS will open for the legendary GUNS N' ROSES at their sold-out show at The Ritz (Webster Hall) on Wednesday, February 15 in New York City. Ironically, The Ritz (Webster Hall) was the location of TOILET BOYS' last big New York show prior to their European tour in January 2003 after which TOILET BOYS disbanded and went their separate ways. Now almost 10 years later after reuniting, TOILET BOYS return to perform in the iconic location of their last major NYC show.

TOILET BOYS is the infamous neo-punk glam rock band which has toured the U.S., Europe, and Asia with BLONDIE, RAMONES, RANCID, THE DAMNED, JOAN JETT, MOTÖRHEAD, THE DONNAS and RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS. The last great NYC rock 'n' roll band, TOILET BOYS grew out of the iconic club scene of Don Hill's and CBGB's where legends were born.

With one foot in a limo and the other in the dark heart of the NYC club scene, TOILET BOYS has whipped crowds into a frenzy everywhere, from the bullrings of Spain to the kinkiest, sexiest parties in the U.S. to Madison Square Garden.

Revered by the New York Post, Los Angeles Times and Rolling Stone, TOILET BOYS has been deemed "a New York rock legend." The U.K.'s NME states, "Miss Guy and the boys made rock history with their first visit to London."

Having reunited in Spain at the 2010 Azkena Rock Festival where they shared the stage with KISS, BOB DYLAN, SLASH and THE HIVES, TOILET BOYS are currently writing new music and working on a cutting-edge stage show. A sight to behold, TOILET BOYS is back!

Live: Guns N' Roses Played Webster Hall, Which We Refuse to Call The Ritz
Posted by Josh Kurp on Thu, Feb 16, 2012 at 1:56 PM

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Before the show began, there were three popular topics of discussion in the upstairs bar: 1) the New York Knicks; 2) “Who the fuck are the Toilet Boys?” (the opening band); and 3) what time would Axl Rose and the rest of Guns N’ Roses take the stage at Webster Hall, dubbed “The Ritz,” its former name, for one night only to celebrate the band’s historic 1988 performance there.

Roughly an hour after “Linsanity” rolled on with the Knicks winning their seventh straight game, and the Runaways-meets-80s excess Toilet Boys played a poorly-received 40-minute set, the now eight-man Gn’R came out a few minutes before midnight (two hours after doors opened), greeted by the theme from Dexter playing over the PA.

If you closed your eyes, they sure sounded like Guns N’ Roses, even if they looked like Axl Rose N’ Bumblefoot/Bassist from the Replacements. The group’s flamboyant, bombastic, slowed-down-punk-for-the meat-and-potatoes-and-cocaine-crowd sound was still there, and “Welcome to the Jungle,” “It’s So Easy,” “Mr. Brownstone,” and “Rocket Queen” are still as aggressive and menacing (and great) as they were when Slash was a member of the group. The crowd was singing along, the mosh pit was physical—I got pulled from behind by the hood on my hoodie at one point, and multiple people were bleeding before the clock hit 1 a.m.— and Axl, ever the showman, was as good as ever, his voice having lost none of its unmistakable stuttering, yowling tone.

But then came the solos, with nearly every member of the group represented, including guitarists Richard Fortus and DJ Ashba and long-time keyboard/piano player Dizzy Reed, while Axl ran off stage to change his shirt, put on another hat and headband combination, and do whatever else Axl does when he’s not being watched. (If ever you should see Guns N’ Roses live, watch Axl’s face while he’s on stage; it’s a fascinating combination of being happy to make so many other people happy, mixed with the contempt that egomaniacs feel when they do become famous, like he’s not sure whether to love us for knowing the words or hate us because we expect too much from him.)

And then came the covers, including the James Bond theme, an instrumental “Baba O’Riley,” and a full-band jam to “Another Brick in the Wall, Pt. 2,” not to mention Axl’s piano lead-up to “November Rain” with snippets from “Someone Saved My Life Tonight” and “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road.” For awhile, it was cheesy and kind of cute, but two hours into the show, after multiple extended, unnecessary riffs used primarily to let Axl disappear again, it’s tough getting TOO pumped up for Bumblefoot’s cover of “The Pink Panther Theme.” In some ways, this current incarnation of Guns N’ Roses is a tribute band, albeit one with the original singer intact — and who wants to hear a Gn’R tribute band performing Elton John covers?

That said, “November Rain” is still the perfect power ballad, though a large can of Monster Energy Drink now rests on Axl’s black piano, instead of Stephanie Seymour. (Damn.) When Guns N’ Roses put aside the filler and went back to playing “Nightrain,” “My Michelle,” and set-closer “Paradise City,” both the crowd and the band seemed to regain the stamina they had previously lost. In all, they played for three hours, nearly an hour longer than was necessary (and yes, I realize the hypocrisy of criticizing a band known for its garishness and excess, a band that released two 80-minute albums on the same day, on playing too long.) But when the show was good, as much of it was, it was good. “Where do we go now?” Axl once asked. I’m not sure, but it’s nice that you’re at least invested again. Now if only those Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame rumors come to fruition…

Guns N' Roses, NYC: Axl and Co. Go Back to Clubland, With Mixed Results
Posted on Feb 16th 2012 11:00AM by Kenneth Partridge Comments
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Twenty-four years, four albums and countless lineup changes ago, Guns N' Roses played the Ritz in New York City. MTV's cameras caught the then-ascendent group in action, and the performance achieved legendary status, eventually making its way to DVD. Last night (Feb. 15), as GNR returned to the venue for the last of this month's three NYC club gigs, the question was how Axl Rose -- the lone remaining member from that 1988 incarnation -- would mark the occasion. He might have followed the 'Live at the Ritz' setlist, or better yet, he could have snuck in OG sidemen Slash, Izzy Stradlin, Duff McKagan or Steven Adler, musicians he'll supposedly reunite with in April at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony.

Alas, Axl and his super-mega-jacked new lineup -- three guitars, two keyboards, bass and drums -- did precisely what they've been doing for the last year. They came on late and played for three nonstop hours, during which time they turned in serviceable renditions of old favorites and made as strong a case as might be made for 'Chinese Democracy,' airing about a third of that long-delayed, oft-mocked 2008 disc.

Today's GNR is loud, flamboyant, precise but not exacting and staffed with colorful characters, among them former Replacements bassist Tommy Stinson and stick-thin, tat-covered guitarist Richard Fortus, the only guy onstage who could have gone clothes shopping with the 'Appetite for Destruction'-era group. In his dark shades and Macho Man Randy Savage mustache-and-cowboy-hat combo, Axl remains a shadowy figure -- an unknowable entity who's all the more transfixing and unpredictable now that he's into his Elvis-in-Vegas years.

And yet what now passes for Guns lacks firepower. Opener 'Chinese Democracy' proved a satisfyingly sleazy lead-in to 'Welcome to the Jungle,' maybe the sleaziest song of all time, and over the next ten songs, the band showed adequate hunger on four additional 'Appetite' tunes; maimed -- but didn't kill -- with their cover of Paul McCartney's 'Live and Let Die,' prefacing it with bits of the James Bond theme; and played to a backdrop of swimming dolphins on 'Estranged,' harking back to that inscrutable trio of videos they put out in the early '90s.

There was little cause for disappointment, even for those who shelled out more than $125 for scalper tickets, but it was hard to feel part of a "once in a lifetime" experience, as the concert had been billed.

By this time, the clock had struck 1AM, and the group still had two hours to go. Axl has never quite grasped the difference between quality and quantity, and perhaps in an effort to avoid doing a straight-up nostalgia act, he padded the set with solo showcases for each band member and snips of obvious classic-rock covers (the Who's 'Baba O'Riley, Pink Floyd's 'Another Brick in the Wall: Part 2'). Axl only briefly mentioned the Ritz gig, and were it not for the fact the venue had temporarily reverted to its original name, all memory of the lean, mean '88 unit might have been lost.

The confetti canons finally went off around 3AM, just after Axl had bounded back onto the stage to twirl through the final bars of 'Paradise City.' His slithering snake dance, like his tortured-cat yowl, is impressive for a 50-year-old, and despite his lapses in taste and judgement, he at least deserves credit for having assembled a band that, while mindful of history, has its own look and personality.

That it's vastly inferior is immaterial, at least to Axl, whose stubbornness borders on commendable. When he sings the breakdown in 'Sweet Child O' Mine,' the part that asks, "Where do we go now?" he either doesn't register the words or doesn't dream of answering them in any way besides the one he has: Onward, for better or worse.

I never got to see Guns N’ Roses at the height of their Appetite For Destruction days or the riot filled multi-year long Use Your Illusion tour. Lots of reasons, lots of stories, one revolves around running a car off a highway, another was stopping at a casino; ALL ended in not having enough money (this part of my life was sponsored by Busch Light beer ) or finding that all the tickets were sold out. As the years passed by, Axl and the new band spent most of their time away from the states, until recent months when Guns N’ Roses embarked on a North America tour. Now it was a matter of seeing the “new” band in a large stadium or arena. I just wasn’t feeling it. Then I heard Guns was returning to The Ritz.

Looking back, in 1988, Guns N’ Roses, by most standards were on the verge of “blowing up”, and the set list for The Ritz was mostly made up of songs from their Appetite For Destruction album. The show was recorded by MTV and was part of a Saturday Night series. To this day the performance GN’R gave that night in New York’s East Village is legendary, displaying the energy and ferociousness that would make them famous and keep pre-internet bootleggers in business for years to come.

Last month Guns N’ Roses announced they would be doing a series of club dates, three in New York City, two shows (Roseland Ballroom, Terminal 5) prior to their return to what is now named Webster Hall (formerly The Ritz.) I’ll admit initial mixed feelings and low expectations. My first thought was what time will Axl take the stage? This was a Wednesday night after all, a school night. Okay, so I’m 37 and don’t have school, but I have a job and don’t have until 2a.m. to stand around and hope Axl Rose shows up. Trepidation turned to excitement when I peeked at the set list from the Roseland Ballroom and saw that the new Guns N’ Roses opened the show with “Welcome To The Jungle”, “It’s So Easy”, and “Mr. Brownstone.” My plan was to show up around 11 and hope for a midnight start time.

It was 11:58p.m. when the opening chords from “Chinese Democracy” hit, followed by the appetite trifecta mentioned earlier. Something was very clear early on and it was a surprise to me. BREAKING NEWS: Axl Rose can still sing his ass off! I wasn’t expecting this. Rose has been known to struggle with his voice at times, but in person, this night? Wow, actually a guy next to me put it best, “brother still brings it like a mother fucker!” Took the words right out of my mouth.

The band is not the original lineup, I believe this has been established; however, the current band is tight. In addition to Axl, the lineup includes D.J. Ashba (guitar), Richard Fortus (guitar), Bumblefoot (guitar), Tommy Stinson (bass), Frank Ferrer (drums), Dizzy Reed (piano, keyboards), and Chris Pitman (keyboards). They blaze through the Appetite For Destruction riffs and ballads with ease, in many cases, putting their own stamp on timeless classics. Not much was left out of the set list this particular evening. Rose played most of the songs from the Appetite For Destruction album as well as several songs from the Use Your Illusion albums including “Live and Let Die”, “November Rain”, “Civil War”, “You Could Be Mine”, and “Estranged.” Throw in a couple covers and the band still made time for “Street of Dreams”, “This I Love”, and “Sorry” from Chinese Democracy. Surprise songs (based on previous set lists) included “Shackler’s Revenge”, a slowed down version of “You’re Crazy”, “Used To Love Her”, and the Elvis Presley cover “Heartbreak Hotel.”

Other highlights included: 1. The several thirty-something Jersey guys who felt fist pumping was appropriate (than you douche bags.) 2. A polarizing guitar solo (thank you D.J. Ashba.) 3. The vocals on “This I Love” (thank you Axl Rose.) 4. The “Baba O’Riley” piano solo (thank you Dizzy Reed.) 5. The comedy of a five gallon cowboy hat worn during “Sweet Child O’ Mine” (thank you again, Axl Rose.)

Fist pumping aside, the crowd fueled the band/the band fueled the crowd with energy that seemed endless. Of course I did see three guys (one bleeding) get carried out by security guards. It was unclear whether they were intoxicated or knocked out cold, or both. A long encore was capped by “Patience” and “Paradise City”, it was 3:05 in the morning when Guns finished their 30 plus song set. After, the crowd dispersed onto New York City’s 11th street with Frank Sinatra’s “My Way” playing over the speakers.

I left thinking about the recent news (via BBC website) report quoting Dizzy Reed that all of the original members of Guns N’ Roses are planning to attend the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony. Will they perform together? What about the current lineup? Are these club shows a public relations move for Axl? He has been with some of the new members longer than the original lineup; maybe he will insist on only playing with his current band. Maybe Rose is just a fan of New York Fashion week. One thing is for certain (as with most things related to Guns N’ Roses): Only Axl Rose has the answer and right now Axl is keeping it under his hat, even if that may be a five gallon cowboy hat.

Back in the late eighties, MTV broadcast a series of concerts called Live At The Ritz, which aired on Saturday nights and were filmed at the famous concert venue in New York City’s East Village. A number of notable acts appeared on the program (The Cult and The Smithereens are two examples), but there’s only one episode of the show that is considered canon-worthy: Guns N’ Roses‘ February 1988 visit to the intimate rock club. It’s an incredible time capsule of GNR performing while at the peak of their powers, having just released the stone classic Appetite For Destruction and having not yet succumbed to the jealousy, in-fighting and substance abuse that eventually tore the group apart. The concert is especially memorable because it was filmed just before the band graduated to stadium-sized shows; Watching the videos, it’s remarkable to witness the palpable sense of electricity that existed that night between the band and their rapturous audience.

Now, I don’t need to tell you that the Guns N’ Roses of 1988 bares little resemblance to the Guns N’ Roses of 2012. But you know what? That’s perfectly okay with us, in a whole “Let he who is without sin cast the first stone” sort of way. (Translation: I, too, bare little resemblance to the 1988 version of me, and I’d bet you dollars to donuts that the same is true of you.) It’s true that the only constant between the two eras is one W. Axl Rose, but when news broke late last month that he would be taking Guns N’ Roses out on a rapidfire mini-tour of club-sized venues, rock and roll fans instantly snapped up tickets for a chance to re-connect with Axl in a way that has not been possible since the Reagan era.

In a nod to the famous concert that took place there 24 years ago, New York City’s Webster Hall rechristened itself as The Ritz for last night’s Guns N’ Roses concert (for one night only). The set time was billed only as starting “after 10 p.m.” and, true to form, the band didn’t take the stage until 11:54 p.m. The crowd didn’t seem to mind in the slightest, though; it was as if everyone in the audience stepped through a time portal as they entered the venue and were instantly granted the stamina (and alcohol tolerance) they had back in ’88. The crowd was well-lubricated and excited to connect with the mysterious enigma and consummate showman that is W. Axl Rose, so no one gave a rip about either the wait OR the fact that the band’s first song was “Chinese Democracy” and not their traditional show opener, “Welcome To The Jungle” (that song came second).



Speaking of “Welcome To The Jungle,” it’s probably an appropriate time address the elephant in the room: Are Guns N’ Roses still Guns N’ Roses without the presence of Slash and Duff and Steven and Izzy on stage? The answer is semi-complicated, so bear with us as we work through it with you. The 2012 version of GNR, which includes fretwork courtesy of Bumblefoot, DJ Ashba and Richard Fortus, is a technically precise outfit that is incredibly skilled at bringing Axl’s grandiose musical vision to life. Close your eyes the songs certainly SOUND precisely like you remember, down to the little flourishes during the razor sharp guitar solos, but there is something visually disconcerting about seeing “new guys” — some of whom, we should note, have been in the band WAY longer than anyone from the original lineup can claim they lasted — playing songs that you’re used to seeing the “old guys” perform. The rhythms and melodies are also a little bit less muscular than what the ’88 lineup used to crank out, but again, if you were to close your eyes and let yourself be enveloped by the sound (not to mention the secondhand marijuana smoke that hung in the air like a gorgeous cloud), you would be hard pressed to offer up any complaints.

As for Axl, well, he’s impossible to take your eyes off, even when he’s not on stage (which was semi-frequently). The 50-year-old bounded around the stage with seemingly limitless energy; he was frequently seen sprinting, and rarely stood in the same place for more than a few seconds at a time. His voice got sounded powerful and moving in both his lower-register gear and his near-falsetto caterwauls, and appeared to get stronger as the evening wore on. He really seemed to enjoy working in a significantly smaller space than he’s used to, and he used the opportunity to physically connect to his band members with a number of back-to-back leans. He didn’t do the snake dance as much as we hoped, but then again, we also left before the show wrapped up.

Speaking of which! We left the club at 2:45 a.m., at which point GNR had already been playing for nearly three hours. Their set was mainly comprised of Appetite and Use Your Illusion era faves; we only heard a few songs from Chinese Democracy mixed in there. The highlight of the evening came around 1:30 a.m., when roadies wheeled a piano out on stage and Axl tickled the ivories for a stretch. He led his band in a cover of Pink Floyd‘s “Another Brick in the Wall, Pt. 2,” and then mixed in quick references to Elton John‘s “Somebody Saved My Life Tonight” and “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road” before launching into an epic version of “November Rain.” The revelers, myself included, were awash in nostalgia as the single best power ballad in the history of music played out before our eyes and ears. As the song built into its glorious crescendo of pounding piano and searing guitar solos, we confess that there was a moment there when the vision of Slash playing on the edge of a cliff from the music video entered our heads. So we closed our eyes, lost ourselves in our memories for a few moments, and let the majestic sounds of Guns N’ Roses envelop us. At a Guns N’ Roses show in 2012, sight is definitely not the most important of your five senses.

666 wrote:I was at the famous Ritz show in 1988...and I was at this one too