A Vegas residency in 2014? - TRUE

Uli wrote:As long as people pay to see them, it's "okay" for me if they continue playing gigs.
However, as a fan waiting for new music, of course it would be GREAT if they start recording something.

Soulmonster wrote:If we are to believe the rumours GN'R will be doing both in 2014.

Johan wrote:Lame

Guns N’ Roses shooting for ‘kick-ass’ residency in Las Vegas

Not a lot is being revealed about the upcoming Guns N’ Roses residency at the Hard Rock Hotel, but it will have lots of surprises, lead guitarist DJ Ashba said.

When asked what will be different from the band’s first Hard Rock residency, he said mischievously, “just live sex shows.”

And this is why we love rock stars.

Joking aside, this is what we do know: Things are going to be blown up.

“Last time, we had those crazy aerial artists and strippers everywhere,” Ashba said. “There’s been a lot of talk about doing some really cool stuff and pushing the limit even further, which will be a lot of fun.”

File: Guns N' Roses kick off first residency show, Appetite for Democracy, Oct. 31, 2012, at The Joint at Hard Rock Hotel in Las Vegas. Source: Kabik/ Starlitepics

Their nine-show residency opens right before Memorial Day weekend, and the band is still working on developing the show.

“A show like what we’re going to bring to the Hard Rock isn’t done overnight,” he said. “It’s going to take still even more planning right up to probably show time. There’s a lot that goes into a show like this.”

Guns N’ Roses typically puts on three-hour shows, running through much of their hit-heavy catalog.

“That’s typically just a normal show for us,” he said. “But I have no idea. It’s kind of up in the air right now. We want to come in and give the fans a really kick-ass rock ‘n’ roll experience and that’s our only goal.”

The first GN’R residency, “Appetite for Democracy,” opened at The Joint at the Hard Rock Hotel in 2012. Like the previous Hard Rock residency, the entire property has been transformed into a sort of Guns N’ Roses campus. Front line staff are wearing GN’R shirts. The Center Bar, elevators, windows, the resort’s exterior, and so on, are wrapped in the band’s residency artwork. Drinks and dishes at the resort’s bars and restaurants are named after the band’s popular songs.

“I think they even have the little poker chips,” Ashba said.

Chas Smith, vice president of entertainment at Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, said the campus atmosphere is all-encompassing.

“We found that having every team member involved, versus just the entertainment department, really helps get the word out there,” Smith said.

For Ashba, who lives in Las Vegas, the residency at the GN’R campus is like a month-long slumber party.

“It’s almost like band camp,” he said. “You get a chance to really get close to your fan base. You run into them in the hallways … and it’s just cool.

“Our fan base is just the most dedicated, really cool fan base you can ever dream of having. It’s a lot of fun partying with them and hanging out. Their appreciation for what we do is cool. It’s overwhelming.”

More than that, the residency will give the band some much-needed time together to weed through about three albums worth of already recorded, but not-yet-released music for a new album, Ashba said.

“This is going to be a great opportunity for this band, to finally be in one place for a solid month,” he said.

But even a rock star needs a break. As a Las Vegas resident, Ashba said many visitors are missing out on much of what Vegas has to offer.

“I think there’s a whole Vegas that people never get a chance to experience and that’s the local scene,” Ashba said. “Vegas is so cool off the Strip. There’s so many cool little places, little bars off the Strip. Vamp’d is a cool one. A lot of gun ranges, which is fun, because I love shooting guns. Just tons of stuff to do. Vegas is one of those places that never closes.

“If you have a bad time in Vegas, then it’s not everyone around you. It’s you. Pretty much you’re just an a–hole (laughs). It’s hard not to have a good time, though.”

When Axl Rose and crew are on stage, they will offer a show that would be next to impossible to do on the road.

“You’ve got to tear down and move on to the next city, so (the residency) definitely allows us to do a much cooler show,” Ashba said. “It’s an experience of a lifetime. It’s going to be different from any other Guns N’ Roses show you’ve ever experienced.”

Guns N’ Roses: An Evening of Destruction. No Trickery! will rip through much of the band’s lengthy catalog and greatest hits on select nights May 21 – June 7 at The Joint at the Hard Rock Hotel in Las Vegas. Showtimes vary. Tickets start at $75.

The return of hotel executive Don Marrandino to Las Vegas as the possible future head honcho at the off-Strip Hard Rock Hotel has sparked a series of rock and roll rumors. Don will not confirm reports that he will eventually take over as COO there when current negotiations are concluded.

Over the weekend, Oscar-winning actor and Las Vegas resident Nicolas Cage joined comedian Andrew Dice Clay to watch Guns N’ Roses’ closing shows of their “No Trickery: An Evening of Destruction” mini-residency run at the Joint. I’m reliably told that business at the box office has been phenomenal and even better than frontman Axl Rose anticipated.

“So much so, he’s begun thinking about putting the original group all back together for a global tour. That would be the biggest-selling rock tour of all tours,” one knowledgeable insider told me.

And Don himself told me: “They are definitely thinking of returning for another mini-run at the Hard Rock. We’ve already had conversations about converting one of the restaurant venues into a Guns N’ Roses hangout with its own barbecue and hamburger lineup.”

Don was at restaurateur Elizabeth Blau’s advance birthday party for “Iron Chef” winner Kerry Simon, and Don and Kerry talked burger recipes for Axl to try. Don also confirmed that his pal Sammy Hagar will have a lineup of rockers join the July 2 kickoff of the new Soundwaves sessions they’re planning at Paradise Pool in the Hard Rock. That debut will be a journey through the history of rock.

Meantime, intriguing posters about KISS have begun popping up in town, triggering talk of Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley agreeing to a mini-residency at the Hard Rock. Don did say: “Rock will be back full force at the Hard Rock.”

Kerry’s advance birthday party was a salute to the chef battling the neurodegenerative disease Multiple System Atrophy, a rare condition similar to but far more advanced than Parkinson’s. Among those at the party: Zappos magnate Tony Hsieh, Elizabeth’s husband chef Kim Canteenwalla and chef Grant McPherson.

Don joked that he’d actually given Kerry the last name of Simon when his “real name” of Moskovitz wouldn’t fit on the original Simon Kitchen & Bar at the Hard Rock.

“Nobody knew his real name all these years. The game of Simon Says just flashed into my mind, and he’s stuck with it ever since,” said Don.

Robin Leach has been a journalist for more than 50 years and has spent the past decade giving readers the inside scoop on Las Vegas, the world’s premier platinum playground.