Chinese Democracy
Encyclopedia
Chinese Democracy is the sixth studio album
by American hard rock
band Guns N' Roses
, released in November 2008 on Geffen Records
. It is the band's first studio album since "The Spaghetti Incident?"
(1993), released exactly 15 years before Chinese Democracy, and their first album of original studio material since the simultaneous release of Use Your Illusion I
and II
in September 1991. Despite debuting at number three on the Billboard 200
and being certified Platinum
by the RIAA
, Chinese Democracy domestically undersold expectations. It received generally mixed to positive reviews from music critics. The album achieved international chart success and has sold over one million copies in Europe.
is quoted as saying, "[the] band was so stoned at that point that nothing got finished". Guitarist Slash
has criticized Axl Rose
for making the band seem "like a dictatorship". Slash quit the band in 1996, with drummer Matt Sorum
and McKagan both leaving soon afterwards. Slash was replaced by Nine Inch Nails
touring guitarist Robin Finck
, ex-Replacements bassist Tommy Stinson
replaced McKagan, and Josh Freese
joined as the drummer. In early 1998, the band—which comprised Rose, Finck, Stinson and Freese along with long-time Guns N' Roses associate Paul Tobias
, keyboardists Dizzy Reed
and Chris Pitman
—began recording at Rumbo Recorders, a state-of-the-art studio in the San Fernando Valley
where Guns N' Roses had partially recorded parts for their debut album, Appetite for Destruction
. During this time, Geffen
paid Rose $
1 million to try to finish the album, with a further $1 million if he handed it in to them by March 1, 1999.
In 2000, Rose hired avant-garde
guitarist Buckethead
, and drummer Bryan Mantia
to replace Freese, who left to join A Perfect Circle
. Later on in 2000, Finck rejoined the band as the third guitarist. On January 1, 2001, Guns N' Roses played their first concert in over seven years at the House of Blues
in Las Vegas
, Nevada
. This was followed by their headlining performance at Rock in Rio III
on January 14, 2001 in front of 190,000 people. On August 29, 2002, the band made a surprise visit to the MTV Video Music Awards, playing old songs along with a new "Madagascar" to an ecstatic New York crowd.
Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal
replaced the departed guitarist Buckethead and touring resumed in May 2006, with Bumblefoot adding guitar tracks to the album between legs of touring throughout the year. Drummer Frank Ferrer
replaced departed Mantia in July and added his drum tracks to the album. On December 14, 2006, Rose published an open letter to the band's fans on their website, claiming that remaining tour's shows were taking up time the band needed to finish recording Chinese Democracy. Rose also revealed that the band had parted company with their manager Merck Mercuriadis, implying that the reason the album was not released in 2006 was Mercuriadis's fault (many times throughout 2006, Rose had said the album would be released that year). In the letter, Rose announced a tentative release date of March 6, 2007 for the album; however, the album was once again delayed.
On February 22, 2007, the band's road manager, Del James, announced that all recording for the album had been completed and it was in the mixing process, James stated that there was no release date for the album but that things appeared to be moving on after a number of delays.
On September 14, 2008, "Shackler's Revenge" was released on the music video game
Rock Band 2
, making it the band's first official release of new material since 1999's "Oh My God". "Shackler's Revenge" was shortly followed by another release, "If the World", which, according to Rolling Stone, plays during the closing credits of Body of Lies
. A firm release date was announced by Billboard in October 2008, set for November 23. In the US, the retail release is sold exclusively through Best Buy
. The first single from the album, "Chinese Democracy
", was released on October 22, 2008, followed by the second single "Better
" on November 17, 2008. The album was released as downloadable content for the Rock Band series on April 14, 2009.
Shortly before the album's release, mastering engineer Bob Ludwig
offered three versions of the album for approval to co-producers Axl Rose and Caram Costanzo, and they selected the one with the least compression, to avoid being involved in the ongoing loudness war
. Ludwig wrote, "I was floored when I heard they decided to go with my full dynamics version and the loudness-for-loudness-sake versions be damned." Ludwig feels that the "fan and press backlash against the recent heavily compressed recordings finally set the context for someone to take a stand and return to putting music and dynamics above sheer level."
was hired, he decided everything (reported to be up to 30 songs) needed re-recording.
Long time Guns N' Roses producer Mike Clink
was reported to have worked on the album during its conception. Moby
and Youth
turned down offers to work on the album. According to Rolling Stone, engineer Andy Wallace
, who had worked with many notable bands such as Nirvana
, Sepultura
, Slayer
and Bad Religion
, was working on the album in 2006. A source close to Guns N' Roses is quoted as saying "we're absolutely delighted with the mixes". Other producers who have worked on the album include Roy Thomas Baker
, Bob Ezrin
and Sean Beavan
.
The band has worked with numerous other artists during Chinese Democracys recording process, including guitarists Brian May
and Dave Navarro
. May recorded the lead guitar parts for the leaked song "Catcher In the Rye" in 1999; however, May is not credited in the finished album. May's performances were removed in the final release of the album. Composers Marco Beltrami
and Paul Buckmaster
worked on orchestral arrangements for the album in the early 2000s. In January 2007, former Skid Row frontman Sebastian Bach
recorded backing vocals for a song called "Sorry" at Electric Lady Studios
. Harpist Patti Hood has also recorded parts for the album.
song "Oh My God" was released on the End of Days soundtrack. It featured current Guns N' Roses members Axl Rose
, Dizzy Reed
, Chris Pitman
, and Tommy Stinson
, along with former members Paul Tobias
, Robin Finck
, and Josh Freese
. Dave Navarro
and Gary Sunshine also recorded guitar parts for the song. "Oh My God" was unpopular upon its release and was described by Allmusic as "a less than satisfying comeback". The sound of Chinese Democracy was often reported to be industrial rock music similar to Nine Inch Nails
and Ministry
, a style of which Rose had long been a fan. However, in a 2001 interview with an Argentine radio station, Rose stated the album was not industrial, and would vary in styles, stating "It is not industrial, the closest thing to that was perhaps "Oh My God", but there are some songs that won't be on the album that were this way. There will be all kinds of styles, many influences as blues, mixed in the songs."
In 2003, DJ Eddie Trunk
spoke about the demo of "I.R.S.", which was leaked on his radio show, stating "It reminded me of Use Your Illusion-era stuff, with some modern flairs to it. The song had a loop track in the beginning, but then, when it kicked in, it was that same dramatic Guns N' Roses hard rock." During the launch party for Korn
's 2006 tour, Rose conducted an interview with Rolling Stone
and told the magazine:
In a Rolling Stone
article in 2006, former Skid Row frontman Sebastian Bach
described the album as "epic" and "mind-blowing" and added "It's a very cool album—it's badass with killer screams, killer guitar riffs, but it's got a totally modern sound. The word for it is ‘grand.' It's fucking epic. He's reinvented himself yet again." Bach has also described the album as having "the rawness and the power of Appetite for Destruction
, but it also has the grandiosity of 'November Rain
'." He went on to describe the song "Sorry", which he sings backing vocals on, stating "There's this one song called ‘Sorry' that's almost like doom metal
with Axl singing really clean over this grinding, slow beat that is fucking mean, I cannot get it out of my head."
article, production costs for the album had reached $13 million, making it probably the most expensive recording "never made." Then-Guns N' Roses manager Merck Mercuriadis, however, rejected the claims made by the article in a letter and claimed that the newspaper's sources had not been involved with the project for "six to nine years".
Rose issued a press release on Guns N' Roses' official website on December 14, 2006. Entitled "An open letter to the fans from Axl", Rose announced the cancellation of four concerts that were scheduled for January 2007. He stated that if the band fulfilled the concerts, "valuable time needed by the band and record company for the proper setup and release of the album Chinese Democracy would have been lost". Also in the letter, he confirmed that Guns N' Roses had parted company with Mercuriadis. Rose blamed much of the album's delay on Mercuriadis. Rose also announced a tentative release date for Chinese Democracy of March 6, 2007, and remarked that it was the first time the band had publicly named a release date for the album.
Despite Rose's announcement, the album was once again delayed. On February 22, 2007, the band's road manager, Del James
, issued a press release definitively stating that all recording for the album had been completed. James elaborated, "There is no official release date, as the band is currently mixing, but after some delays and scheduling difficulties, things appear to be moving along."
In a 2007 interview, Sebastian Bach claimed Rose had planned to have the album released by Christmas 2007: "I know Axl was very serious about putting something out before Christmas. He was talking to me about it. He was talking about finishing liner notes." Bach also said that Chinese Democracys delay might be because of business problems: "I think there's a lot of business shit that goes on with him. It's just not as easy. It's a little more complicated than people think." Little was said about the record after this, and 2007 saw no official release of the new material.
In January 2008, rumors arose that Chinese Democracy had been handed over to Geffen Records, but had been delayed because the label and Rose could not agree on the marketing of the album. Eddie Trunk
also claimed Geffen might have the album: "I hear the new GNR CD is actually done, but the delay in release is not the bands issues but the label. There is so much money tied up in this record that in todays business it will be virtually impossible to be profitable, meaning the label might want to sell it off but can not find a buyer since nobody buys CDs anymore. Problem might not be Axl this time around and might keep this CD in limbo for more years to come. Hopefully it gets resolved." However, in a February 2008 interview with Classic Rock Magazine, Rose's personal manager, Beta Lebeis, debunked Trunk's suggestion and was quoted as saying, "We're currently in negotiations with the record label".
would offer a free can of Dr Pepper to everyone in America—excluding former Guns N' Roses guitarists Buckethead and Slash—if the band released Chinese Democracy in 2008. Later on March 26, Rose replied to Dr Pepper on Guns N' Roses' official website and spoke of his surprise at Dr Pepper's support. Rose also said he would share his Dr Pepper with Buckethead as "some of Buckethead's performances are on Chinese Democracy". After it was announced that the album would be released in 2008, Dr Pepper confirmed that it would uphold its pledge. However, Dr Pepper's online distribution of free coupons upon the album's release November 23, 2008 proved less than adequate. Lawyers for the band threatened Dr Pepper's parent company with a lawsuit just two days after the album's release. In a letter to Dr Pepper, Rose's lawyer Alan Gutman said "The redemption scheme your company clumsily implemented for this offer was an unmitigated disaster which defrauded consumers and, in the eyes of vocal fans, ruined Chinese Democracys release." Rose's lawyer also demanded that the company make a full-page apology that would appear in The Wall Street Journal
, USA Today
, The New York Times
and The Los Angeles Times.
Later, in an online interview with a fan message forum, Axl stated he specifically told his lawyers it was a non-issue and was taken off-guard by their actions. He believed they should be focused on the record release.
, due to perceived criticism in its title track
of the Government of the People's Republic of China
and reference to the Falun Gong
. The Chinese government
said through media that it "turns its spear point on China".
's record labels, Independiente and Domino, sued Guns N' Roses, alleging that the band had committed copyright infringement
by using portions of his compositions in the song "Riad 'n the Bedouins". The suit alleges that the portions used were from Schnauss' 2001 Wherever You Are and 2003 A Strangely Isolated Place. Brian Caplan, attorney for Domino, stated that they first contacted the Geffen label on the 26th of February. The label "attempted to explain [the samples] away", Caplan told the New York Daily News. "They tried to justify it.". Guns N' Roses vigorously denies the allegations. Guns N' Roses manager Irving Azoff stated that "The snippets of 'ambient noise' in question were provided by a member of the album's production team who has assured us that these few seconds of sound were obtained legitimately." Going further, he added "While the band resents the implication that they would ever use another artist's work improperly and are assessing possible counterclaims, they are confident this situation will be satisfactorily resolved." The two labels are seeking $1 million in damages against Geffen for the unauthorized use of the composition samples.
, Switzerland
, and Austria
. It was released on November 23, 2008, worldwide, except in the United Kingdom
on November 24, 2008. Chinese Democracy debuted at number three on the US Billboard 200
chart, selling 261,000 copies in its first week, well below expectations. The album also debuted at #2 on the UK Albums Chart
, coming in behind The Killers' album Day & Age. Chinese Democracy was certified Platinum
by the RIAA
on February 3, 2009. The album secured an IFPI European Platinum Award, having sold more than one million copies in Europe, and had sold 2.6 million units worldwide as of February 2009, according to Universal Music. The album also reached triple platinum certification in Canada, as well as platinum certifications in many other countries, including Finland, the Czech Republic, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Norway, Poland, Romania, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, Argentina, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa. It was certified gold in Austria, Belgium, Denmark, France, Greece, Hungary, the Netherlands, Sweden, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, Brazil, and Colombia. It re-entered the US Billboard 200
again in the week ending April, 3, 2011, selling 3,200 copies, enough for the 198th position. To date, the album has sold 614,000 copies in the US according to Nielsen Soundscan
.
, which assigns a normalized
rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average
score of 64, based on 28 reviews, which indicates "generally favorable reviews". Los Angeles Times
writer Ann Powers
called it "a test for contemporary ears", but ultimately viewed it as "a cyborgian blend of pop expressiveness, traditional rock bravado and Brian Wilson-style beautiful weirdness". Greg Kot
of the Chicago Tribune
expressed a mixed response towards Axl Rose's production, viewing it as embellished and wrote "Rose throws everything he’s got into these songs, but his shock-and-awe arrangements suggest he’s really trying to cover something up". Writer Chuck Klosterman
gave the album an A-, stating "Rose made some curious (and absolutely unnecessary) decisions throughout the assembly of this project, but that works to his advantage as often as it detracts from the larger experience." Former band member Duff McKagan praised the album, saying that "Axl sounds amazing" and "I think Axl's finally made the record he always wanted to". Slash reacted positively to the title track, and after the full album was released, the guitarist only said it was "exactly what I thought it would sound like", with many synthesizers and digital augmentation. The album was ranked number 12 on the "Top 50 Albums of 2008" list for Rolling Stone and number 3 on "Top 50 Albums of 2008" for Classic Rock magazine.
Studio album
A studio album is an album made up of tracks recorded in the controlled environment of a recording studio. A studio album contains newly written and recorded or previously unreleased or remixed material, distinguishing itself from a compilation or reissue album of previously recorded material, or...
by American hard rock
Hard rock
Hard rock is a loosely defined genre of rock music which has its earliest roots in mid-1960s garage rock, blues rock and psychedelic rock...
band Guns N' Roses
Guns N' Roses
Guns N' Roses is an American hard rock band, formed in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, in 1985. The band has released six studio albums, three EPs, and one live album...
, released in November 2008 on Geffen Records
Geffen Records
Geffen Records is an American record label, owned by Universal Music Group, and operated as one third of UMG's Interscope-Geffen-A&M label group.-Beginnings:...
. It is the band's first studio album since "The Spaghetti Incident?"
"The Spaghetti Incident?"
"The Spaghetti Incident?" is the fifth studio album by the American rock band Guns N' Roses. The album is unique for the band, consisting entirely of cover versions, mostly of punk and glam rock songs of the late 1970s and early 1980s....
(1993), released exactly 15 years before Chinese Democracy, and their first album of original studio material since the simultaneous release of Use Your Illusion I
Use Your Illusion I
Use Your Illusion I is the third studio album by the American rock band Guns N' Roses. It was the first of two albums released in conjunction with the Use Your Illusion Tour, the other being Use Your Illusion II. The two are thus sometimes considered a double album. In fact, in the original vinyl...
and II
Use Your Illusion II
Use Your Illusion II is the fourth studio album by the American rock band Guns N' Roses. It was one of two albums released in conjunction with the Use Your Illusion Tour, and as a result the two albums are sometimes considered a double album...
in September 1991. Despite debuting at number three on the Billboard 200
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
and being certified Platinum
RIAA certification
In the United States, the Recording Industry Association of America awards certification based on the number of albums and singles sold through retail and other ancillary markets. Other countries have similar awards...
by the RIAA
Recording Industry Association of America
The Recording Industry Association of America is a trade organization that represents the recording industry distributors in the United States...
, Chinese Democracy domestically undersold expectations. It received generally mixed to positive reviews from music critics. The album achieved international chart success and has sold over one million copies in Europe.
Background
Guns N' Roses began to write and record new music in 1994. Bassist Duff McKaganDuff McKagan
Michael Andrew "Duff" McKagan is an American musician and writer. He is best known for his twelve-year tenure as the bassist of the hard rock band Guns N' Roses, with whom he achieved worldwide success in the late 1980s and early 1990s...
is quoted as saying, "[the] band was so stoned at that point that nothing got finished". Guitarist Slash
Slash (musician)
Saul Hudson , known by his stage name Slash, is a British-American musician and songwriter. He is best known as the former lead guitarist of the American hard rock band Guns N' Roses, with whom he achieved worldwide success in the late 1980s and early 1990s. During his later years with Guns N'...
has criticized Axl Rose
Axl Rose
W. Axl Rose is an American singer-songwriter and musician. He is the lead vocalist and only remaining original member of the hard rock band Guns N' Roses, with whom he enjoyed great success and recognition in the late 1980s and early 1990s, before disappearing from the public eye for several years...
for making the band seem "like a dictatorship". Slash quit the band in 1996, with drummer Matt Sorum
Matt Sorum
Matthew William Sorum is an American rock drummer and percussionist. Sorum is most famous for his 7-year stint in Guns N' Roses and supergroup Velvet Revolver , which is comprised in part of former Guns N' Roses members Duff McKagan and Slash .-Early career :Matt Sorum was born Matthew William...
and McKagan both leaving soon afterwards. Slash was replaced by Nine Inch Nails
Nine Inch Nails
Nine Inch Nails is an American industrial rock project, founded in 1988 by Trent Reznor in Cleveland, Ohio. As its main producer, singer, songwriter, and instrumentalist, Reznor is the only official member of Nine Inch Nails and remains solely responsible for its direction...
touring guitarist Robin Finck
Robin Finck
Robin Finck is an American guitarist of Nine Inch Nails and former lead guitarist of Guns N' Roses. He is one of only a few artists who has played in two different bands listed on VH1's "100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock"; Nine Inch Nails and Guns N' Roses .-Career:Finck grew up in Marietta,...
, ex-Replacements bassist Tommy Stinson
Tommy Stinson
Thomas "Tommy" Eugene Stinson is an American musician best known for his work as the bassist for The Replacements and Guns N' Roses as well as the post-Replacements groups Bash & Pop, where he performed guitar duties, and Perfect...
replaced McKagan, and Josh Freese
Josh Freese
Josh Freese is an American session drummer and songwriter. He is a permanent member of A Perfect Circle, The Vandals, and Devo, having formerly played drums for Nine Inch Nails from late 2005 until late 2008, and for Guns N' Roses from mid-1998 to 2001. Freese has appeared on close to 300 records....
joined as the drummer. In early 1998, the band—which comprised Rose, Finck, Stinson and Freese along with long-time Guns N' Roses associate Paul Tobias
Paul Tobias
Paul Tobias is an American guitarist best known for his involvement with hard rock band Guns N' Roses, with whom he has collaborated since 1994.-Guns N' Roses:...
, keyboardists Dizzy Reed
Dizzy Reed
Dizzy Reed is a contemporary rock musician, and occasional actor. He is best known for his tenure as the keyboardist & pianist for the rock band Guns N' Roses, with whom he has played, toured and recorded since 1990...
and Chris Pitman
Chris Pitman
Chris Pitman is an American musician best known for his involvement with hard rock band Guns N' Roses. A multi-instrumentalist, Pitman is known to play keyboards, guitar and drums, in addition to his role as a lead or backing vocalist...
—began recording at Rumbo Recorders, a state-of-the-art studio in the San Fernando Valley
San Fernando Valley
The San Fernando Valley is an urbanized valley located in the Los Angeles metropolitan area of southern California, United States, defined by the dramatic mountains of the Transverse Ranges circling it...
where Guns N' Roses had partially recorded parts for their debut album, Appetite for Destruction
Appetite for Destruction
Appetite for Destruction is the debut studio album by American rock band Guns N' Roses, released in July 1987 on Geffen Records. It was well-received by critics and topped the American Billboard 200 chart...
. During this time, Geffen
Geffen Records
Geffen Records is an American record label, owned by Universal Music Group, and operated as one third of UMG's Interscope-Geffen-A&M label group.-Beginnings:...
paid Rose $
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
1 million to try to finish the album, with a further $1 million if he handed it in to them by March 1, 1999.
In 2000, Rose hired avant-garde
Avant-garde
Avant-garde means "advance guard" or "vanguard". The adjective form is used in English to refer to people or works that are experimental or innovative, particularly with respect to art, culture, and politics....
guitarist Buckethead
Buckethead
Brian Carroll , better known by his stage name Buckethead, is a guitarist and multi instrumentalist who has worked within several genres of music. He has released 34 studio albums, four special releases and one EP. He has performed on over 50 more albums by other artists...
, and drummer Bryan Mantia
Bryan Mantia
Bryan "Brain" Mantia is a contemporary rock drummer. He has played with bands like Primus, Guns N' Roses, Praxis and Godflesh, and with other popular performers such as Tom Waits, Bill Laswell, Bootsy Collins and Buckethead...
to replace Freese, who left to join A Perfect Circle
A Perfect Circle
A Perfect Circle is an American rock supergroup formed in 1999 by guitarist Billy Howerdel and Tool vocalist Maynard James Keenan. The original incarnation of the band also included Paz Lenchantin on bass, Troy Van Leeuwen on guitar, and Tim Alexander on drums...
. Later on in 2000, Finck rejoined the band as the third guitarist. On January 1, 2001, Guns N' Roses played their first concert in over seven years at the House of Blues
House of Blues
House of Blues is a chain of 13 live music concert halls and restaurants in major markets throughout the United States. House of Blues first location was in Cambridge's Harvard Square. It was opened in 1992 by Isaac Tigrett, co-founder of Hard Rock Cafe, and Dan Aykroyd, star of The Blues Brothers...
in Las Vegas
Las Vegas Strip
The Las Vegas Strip is an approximately stretch of Las Vegas Boulevard in Clark County, Nevada; adjacent to, but outside the city limits of Las Vegas proper. The Strip lies within the unincorporated townships of Paradise and Winchester...
, Nevada
Nevada
Nevada is a state in the western, mountain west, and southwestern regions of the United States. With an area of and a population of about 2.7 million, it is the 7th-largest and 35th-most populous state. Over two-thirds of Nevada's people live in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, which contains its...
. This was followed by their headlining performance at Rock in Rio III
Rock in Rio
Rock in Rio is a series of music festivals held in three cities: Rio de Janeiro in Brazil, Lisbon in Portugal and Madrid in Spain.Four incarnations of the festival were in Rio de Janeiro, in 1985, 1991, 2001 and 2011, four in Lisbon, in 2004, 2006, 2008 and 2010, and two in Madrid in 2008 and 2010....
on January 14, 2001 in front of 190,000 people. On August 29, 2002, the band made a surprise visit to the MTV Video Music Awards, playing old songs along with a new "Madagascar" to an ecstatic New York crowd.
Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal
Ronald Jay Blumenthal , better known by his stage name Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal, is a Jewish-American guitarist, songwriter, recording artist and producer. Thal adopted the name Bumblefoot from the bacterial infection of the same name, which he learned about while helping his wife review for her...
replaced the departed guitarist Buckethead and touring resumed in May 2006, with Bumblefoot adding guitar tracks to the album between legs of touring throughout the year. Drummer Frank Ferrer
Frank Ferrer
Frank Ferrer is an American rock drummer and session musician. In October 2006, Ferrer became an official member of the American hard rock band Guns N' Roses after serving as the band's emergency substitute drummer for Bryan Mantia on several occasions during the band's summer 2006 European tour...
replaced departed Mantia in July and added his drum tracks to the album. On December 14, 2006, Rose published an open letter to the band's fans on their website, claiming that remaining tour's shows were taking up time the band needed to finish recording Chinese Democracy. Rose also revealed that the band had parted company with their manager Merck Mercuriadis, implying that the reason the album was not released in 2006 was Mercuriadis's fault (many times throughout 2006, Rose had said the album would be released that year). In the letter, Rose announced a tentative release date of March 6, 2007 for the album; however, the album was once again delayed.
On February 22, 2007, the band's road manager, Del James, announced that all recording for the album had been completed and it was in the mixing process, James stated that there was no release date for the album but that things appeared to be moving on after a number of delays.
On September 14, 2008, "Shackler's Revenge" was released on the music video game
Music video game
A music video game, also commonly known as a music game, is a video game where the gameplay is meaningfully and often almost entirely oriented around the player's interactions with a musical score or individual songs...
Rock Band 2
Rock Band 2
Rock Band 2 is a music video game developed by Harmonix Music Systems. It is the sequel to Rock Band and is the second title in the series. The game allows up to four players to simulate the performance of popular songs by playing with controllers modeled after musical instruments...
, making it the band's first official release of new material since 1999's "Oh My God". "Shackler's Revenge" was shortly followed by another release, "If the World", which, according to Rolling Stone, plays during the closing credits of Body of Lies
Body of Lies (film)
Body of Lies is a 2008 American spy film directed by Ridley Scott. Set in the Middle East, it follows the attempts of the CIA and Jordanian Intelligence to catch "al-Saleem", a fictional jihadist terrorist...
. A firm release date was announced by Billboard in October 2008, set for November 23. In the US, the retail release is sold exclusively through Best Buy
Best Buy
Best Buy Co., Inc. is an American specialty retailer of consumer electronics in the United States, accounting for 19% of the market. It also operates in Mexico, Canada & China. The company's subsidiaries include Geek Squad, CinemaNow, Magnolia Audio Video, Pacific Sales, and, in Canada operates...
. The first single from the album, "Chinese Democracy
Chinese Democracy (song)
"Chinese Democracy" is a song by the American rock band Guns N' Roses, and the title track from their sixth studio album of the same name. The song was released as the band's twenty-first radio single on October 22, 2008 and was released on the iTunes Store on November 9, 2008...
", was released on October 22, 2008, followed by the second single "Better
Better (Guns N' Roses song)
"Better" is a song by American rock band Guns N' Roses, featured on their 2008 sixth studio album Chinese Democracy. It was released as the second single from the album, after "Chinese Democracy", on November 17, 2008.-Background:...
" on November 17, 2008. The album was released as downloadable content for the Rock Band series on April 14, 2009.
Shortly before the album's release, mastering engineer Bob Ludwig
Bob Ludwig
Bob Ludwig is an American mastering engineer.He is a well known and respected figure within the music industry. His name is credited on the covers of albums released across the world, and he has won numerous awards....
offered three versions of the album for approval to co-producers Axl Rose and Caram Costanzo, and they selected the one with the least compression, to avoid being involved in the ongoing loudness war
Loudness war
The loudness war or loudness race is a pejorative term for the apparent competition to digitally master and release recordings with increasing loudness.The phenomenon was first reported with respect to mastering practices for 7" singles...
. Ludwig wrote, "I was floored when I heard they decided to go with my full dynamics version and the loudness-for-loudness-sake versions be damned." Ludwig feels that the "fan and press backlash against the recent heavily compressed recordings finally set the context for someone to take a stand and return to putting music and dynamics above sheer level."
Recording
A version of Chinese Democracy was completed and ready to be released in 2000; however, when Roy Thomas BakerRoy Thomas Baker
Roy Thomas Baker is a multiple award-winning Anglo-American music producer, songwriter, arranger and Recording Academy Governor, who has produced Platinum and Gold certified pop and rock records from the 1970s to the present.- Career :Baker began his career at Decca Records in England at the age...
was hired, he decided everything (reported to be up to 30 songs) needed re-recording.
Long time Guns N' Roses producer Mike Clink
Mike Clink
Mike Clink is a record producer who started his career as an engineer at Record Plant Studios, recording such bands as Triumph, Guns N' Roses, Mötley Crüe, Megadeth, UFO , Jefferson Starship, The Babys, Heart, Eddie Money and many others.Clink began producing in 1986...
was reported to have worked on the album during its conception. Moby
Moby
Richard Melville Hall , better known by his stage name Moby, is an American musician, DJ, and photographer. He is known mainly for his sample-based electronic music and his outspoken liberal political views, including his support of veganism and animal rights.Moby gained attention in the early...
and Youth
Martin Glover
Martin Glover, also known as Youth, is a record producer and a founding member and bassist of the UK band Killing Joke. He is a member of The Fireman along with Paul McCartney. Glover was born in Africa.-Early career:...
turned down offers to work on the album. According to Rolling Stone, engineer Andy Wallace
Andy Wallace (producer)
Andy Wallace is a Grammy Award-winning music studio engineer with a long track record of successful productions, beginning with the 1986 production of the Run-DMC/Aerosmith collaboration on "Walk This Way" with Rick Rubin...
, who had worked with many notable bands such as Nirvana
Nirvana (band)
Nirvana was an American rock band that was formed by singer/guitarist Kurt Cobain and bassist Krist Novoselic in Aberdeen, Washington in 1987...
, Sepultura
Sepultura
Sepultura is a Brazilian heavy metal band from Belo Horizonte, formed in 1984. The band was a major force in the death metal, thrash metal and ultimately groove metal realms during the late 1980s and early 1990s, with their later experiments melding nu metal, hardcore punk and industrial.Sepultura...
, Slayer
Slayer
Slayer is an American thrash metal band formed in Huntington Park, California, in 1981 by guitarists Jeff Hanneman and Kerry King. Slayer rose to fame with their 1986 release, Reign in Blood, and is credited as one of the "Big Four" thrash metal acts, along with Metallica, Megadeth and...
and Bad Religion
Bad Religion
Bad Religion is a punk rock band that formed in Los Angeles in 1979. Their current line-up consists of Greg Graffin , Brett Gurewitz , Jay Bentley , Greg Hetson , Brian Baker and Brooks Wackerman . Gurewitz is also the founder of the label Epitaph Records, which has released almost all of the...
, was working on the album in 2006. A source close to Guns N' Roses is quoted as saying "we're absolutely delighted with the mixes". Other producers who have worked on the album include Roy Thomas Baker
Roy Thomas Baker
Roy Thomas Baker is a multiple award-winning Anglo-American music producer, songwriter, arranger and Recording Academy Governor, who has produced Platinum and Gold certified pop and rock records from the 1970s to the present.- Career :Baker began his career at Decca Records in England at the age...
, Bob Ezrin
Bob Ezrin
Robert Alan "Bob" Ezrin is a Canadian music producer and keyboardist, known for his work with artists including Alice Cooper, Kiss and Pink Floyd. He was inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame in 2004.-Biography:...
and Sean Beavan
Sean Beavan
Sean Beavan is a musician, record producer, and audio engineer best known for his work with Guns N Roses, Marilyn Manson, Nine Inch Nails, God Lives Underwater, and Slayer...
.
The band has worked with numerous other artists during Chinese Democracys recording process, including guitarists Brian May
Brian May
Brian Harold May, CBE is an English musician and astrophysicist most widely known as the guitarist and a songwriter of the rock band Queen...
and Dave Navarro
Dave Navarro
David Michael "Dave" Navarro is an American guitarist who plays in the alternative rock band Jane's Addiction and cover band Camp Freddy. He has also played with the Red Hot Chili Peppers, The Panic Channel, and many others.- Early life :...
. May recorded the lead guitar parts for the leaked song "Catcher In the Rye" in 1999; however, May is not credited in the finished album. May's performances were removed in the final release of the album. Composers Marco Beltrami
Marco Beltrami
Marco Beltrami is an American film composer.-Life and career:Beltrami was born in Long Island, New York of Italian and Greek descent...
and Paul Buckmaster
Paul Buckmaster
Paul John Buckmaster is a Grammy Award-winning English artist, arranger and composer.He began learning the cello at the age of 4 and graduated from the Royal College of Music at age 16....
worked on orchestral arrangements for the album in the early 2000s. In January 2007, former Skid Row frontman Sebastian Bach
Sebastian Bach
Sebastian Bach is a Canadian heavy metal singer who achieved mainstream success as frontman of Skid Row from 1987 to 1996. Since his departure from Skid Row, he has had many television roles, acted within Broadway plays, and leads a successful solo career.-Early life:Bach was born Sebastian...
recorded backing vocals for a song called "Sorry" at Electric Lady Studios
Electric Lady Studios
Electric Lady Studios, at 52 West 8th Street, in New York City's Greenwich Village, is a recording studio originally built by Jimi Hendrix and designed by John Storyk in 1970...
. Harpist Patti Hood has also recorded parts for the album.
Music
In 1999, the industrial metalIndustrial metal
Industrial metal is a musical genre that draws from industrial music and many different types of heavy metal, using repeating metal guitar riffs, sampling, synthesizer or sequencer lines, and distorted vocals. Founding industrial metal acts include Ministry, Godflesh, and KMFDM.Industrial metal's...
song "Oh My God" was released on the End of Days soundtrack. It featured current Guns N' Roses members Axl Rose
Axl Rose
W. Axl Rose is an American singer-songwriter and musician. He is the lead vocalist and only remaining original member of the hard rock band Guns N' Roses, with whom he enjoyed great success and recognition in the late 1980s and early 1990s, before disappearing from the public eye for several years...
, Dizzy Reed
Dizzy Reed
Dizzy Reed is a contemporary rock musician, and occasional actor. He is best known for his tenure as the keyboardist & pianist for the rock band Guns N' Roses, with whom he has played, toured and recorded since 1990...
, Chris Pitman
Chris Pitman
Chris Pitman is an American musician best known for his involvement with hard rock band Guns N' Roses. A multi-instrumentalist, Pitman is known to play keyboards, guitar and drums, in addition to his role as a lead or backing vocalist...
, and Tommy Stinson
Tommy Stinson
Thomas "Tommy" Eugene Stinson is an American musician best known for his work as the bassist for The Replacements and Guns N' Roses as well as the post-Replacements groups Bash & Pop, where he performed guitar duties, and Perfect...
, along with former members Paul Tobias
Paul Tobias
Paul Tobias is an American guitarist best known for his involvement with hard rock band Guns N' Roses, with whom he has collaborated since 1994.-Guns N' Roses:...
, Robin Finck
Robin Finck
Robin Finck is an American guitarist of Nine Inch Nails and former lead guitarist of Guns N' Roses. He is one of only a few artists who has played in two different bands listed on VH1's "100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock"; Nine Inch Nails and Guns N' Roses .-Career:Finck grew up in Marietta,...
, and Josh Freese
Josh Freese
Josh Freese is an American session drummer and songwriter. He is a permanent member of A Perfect Circle, The Vandals, and Devo, having formerly played drums for Nine Inch Nails from late 2005 until late 2008, and for Guns N' Roses from mid-1998 to 2001. Freese has appeared on close to 300 records....
. Dave Navarro
Dave Navarro
David Michael "Dave" Navarro is an American guitarist who plays in the alternative rock band Jane's Addiction and cover band Camp Freddy. He has also played with the Red Hot Chili Peppers, The Panic Channel, and many others.- Early life :...
and Gary Sunshine also recorded guitar parts for the song. "Oh My God" was unpopular upon its release and was described by Allmusic as "a less than satisfying comeback". The sound of Chinese Democracy was often reported to be industrial rock music similar to Nine Inch Nails
Nine Inch Nails
Nine Inch Nails is an American industrial rock project, founded in 1988 by Trent Reznor in Cleveland, Ohio. As its main producer, singer, songwriter, and instrumentalist, Reznor is the only official member of Nine Inch Nails and remains solely responsible for its direction...
and Ministry
Ministry (band)
Ministry is an American industrial metal band founded by lead singer Al Jourgensen in 1981. Originally a synthpop outfit, Ministry changed its style to industrial metal in the late 1980s. Ministry found mainstream success in the early 1990s with its most successful album Psalm 69: The Way to...
, a style of which Rose had long been a fan. However, in a 2001 interview with an Argentine radio station, Rose stated the album was not industrial, and would vary in styles, stating "It is not industrial, the closest thing to that was perhaps "Oh My God", but there are some songs that won't be on the album that were this way. There will be all kinds of styles, many influences as blues, mixed in the songs."
In 2003, DJ Eddie Trunk
Eddie Trunk
Eddie Trunk is an American music historian, radio personality, talk show host, and author best known as the host of several hard rock and heavy metal themed radio and television shows.- Current work :...
spoke about the demo of "I.R.S.", which was leaked on his radio show, stating "It reminded me of Use Your Illusion-era stuff, with some modern flairs to it. The song had a loop track in the beginning, but then, when it kicked in, it was that same dramatic Guns N' Roses hard rock." During the launch party for Korn
Korn
Korn is an American nu metal band from Bakersfield, California, formed in 1993. The current band line up includes four members: Jonathan Davis, James "Munky" Shaffer, Reginald "Fieldy" Arvizu, and Ray Luzier. The band was formed as an expansion of L.A.P.D.The band released their first demo album,...
's 2006 tour, Rose conducted an interview with Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
and told the magazine:
In a Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
article in 2006, former Skid Row frontman Sebastian Bach
Sebastian Bach
Sebastian Bach is a Canadian heavy metal singer who achieved mainstream success as frontman of Skid Row from 1987 to 1996. Since his departure from Skid Row, he has had many television roles, acted within Broadway plays, and leads a successful solo career.-Early life:Bach was born Sebastian...
described the album as "epic" and "mind-blowing" and added "It's a very cool album—it's badass with killer screams, killer guitar riffs, but it's got a totally modern sound. The word for it is ‘grand.' It's fucking epic. He's reinvented himself yet again." Bach has also described the album as having "the rawness and the power of Appetite for Destruction
Appetite for Destruction
Appetite for Destruction is the debut studio album by American rock band Guns N' Roses, released in July 1987 on Geffen Records. It was well-received by critics and topped the American Billboard 200 chart...
, but it also has the grandiosity of 'November Rain
November Rain
"November Rain" is a song by American rock band Guns N' Roses, written by lead singer Axl Rose and released as a single in June 1992. It appears on the album Use Your Illusion I. The music video for this song was also released in 1992, and won an MTV Video Music Award for Best Cinematography...
'." He went on to describe the song "Sorry", which he sings backing vocals on, stating "There's this one song called ‘Sorry' that's almost like doom metal
Doom metal
Doom metal is an extreme form of heavy metal music that typically uses slower tempos, low-tuned guitars and a much "thicker" or "heavier" sound than other metal genres...
with Axl singing really clean over this grinding, slow beat that is fucking mean, I cannot get it out of my head."
Delays
According to a March 2005 New York TimesThe New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
article, production costs for the album had reached $13 million, making it probably the most expensive recording "never made." Then-Guns N' Roses manager Merck Mercuriadis, however, rejected the claims made by the article in a letter and claimed that the newspaper's sources had not been involved with the project for "six to nine years".
Rose issued a press release on Guns N' Roses' official website on December 14, 2006. Entitled "An open letter to the fans from Axl", Rose announced the cancellation of four concerts that were scheduled for January 2007. He stated that if the band fulfilled the concerts, "valuable time needed by the band and record company for the proper setup and release of the album Chinese Democracy would have been lost". Also in the letter, he confirmed that Guns N' Roses had parted company with Mercuriadis. Rose blamed much of the album's delay on Mercuriadis. Rose also announced a tentative release date for Chinese Democracy of March 6, 2007, and remarked that it was the first time the band had publicly named a release date for the album.
Despite Rose's announcement, the album was once again delayed. On February 22, 2007, the band's road manager, Del James
Del James
Del James, is an American musician, writer, journalist and artist best known for writing the short story that reportedly inspired the "November Rain" video by hard rock band Guns N' Roses...
, issued a press release definitively stating that all recording for the album had been completed. James elaborated, "There is no official release date, as the band is currently mixing, but after some delays and scheduling difficulties, things appear to be moving along."
In a 2007 interview, Sebastian Bach claimed Rose had planned to have the album released by Christmas 2007: "I know Axl was very serious about putting something out before Christmas. He was talking to me about it. He was talking about finishing liner notes." Bach also said that Chinese Democracys delay might be because of business problems: "I think there's a lot of business shit that goes on with him. It's just not as easy. It's a little more complicated than people think." Little was said about the record after this, and 2007 saw no official release of the new material.
In January 2008, rumors arose that Chinese Democracy had been handed over to Geffen Records, but had been delayed because the label and Rose could not agree on the marketing of the album. Eddie Trunk
Eddie Trunk
Eddie Trunk is an American music historian, radio personality, talk show host, and author best known as the host of several hard rock and heavy metal themed radio and television shows.- Current work :...
also claimed Geffen might have the album: "I hear the new GNR CD is actually done, but the delay in release is not the bands issues but the label. There is so much money tied up in this record that in todays business it will be virtually impossible to be profitable, meaning the label might want to sell it off but can not find a buyer since nobody buys CDs anymore. Problem might not be Axl this time around and might keep this CD in limbo for more years to come. Hopefully it gets resolved." However, in a February 2008 interview with Classic Rock Magazine, Rose's personal manager, Beta Lebeis, debunked Trunk's suggestion and was quoted as saying, "We're currently in negotiations with the record label".
Dr Pepper promotion
On March 26, 2008, various media outlets reported that Dr PepperDr Pepper
Dr Pepper is a soft drink, marketed as having a unique flavor. The drink was created in the 1880s by Charles Alderton of Waco, Texas and first served around 1885. Dr Pepper was first nationally marketed in the United States in 1904 and is now also sold in Europe, Asia, Canada, Mexico, Australia ...
would offer a free can of Dr Pepper to everyone in America—excluding former Guns N' Roses guitarists Buckethead and Slash—if the band released Chinese Democracy in 2008. Later on March 26, Rose replied to Dr Pepper on Guns N' Roses' official website and spoke of his surprise at Dr Pepper's support. Rose also said he would share his Dr Pepper with Buckethead as "some of Buckethead's performances are on Chinese Democracy". After it was announced that the album would be released in 2008, Dr Pepper confirmed that it would uphold its pledge. However, Dr Pepper's online distribution of free coupons upon the album's release November 23, 2008 proved less than adequate. Lawyers for the band threatened Dr Pepper's parent company with a lawsuit just two days after the album's release. In a letter to Dr Pepper, Rose's lawyer Alan Gutman said "The redemption scheme your company clumsily implemented for this offer was an unmitigated disaster which defrauded consumers and, in the eyes of vocal fans, ruined Chinese Democracys release." Rose's lawyer also demanded that the company make a full-page apology that would appear in The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal is an American English-language international daily newspaper. It is published in New York City by Dow Jones & Company, a division of News Corporation, along with the Asian and European editions of the Journal....
, USA Today
USA Today
USA Today is a national American daily newspaper published by the Gannett Company. It was founded by Al Neuharth. The newspaper vies with The Wall Street Journal for the position of having the widest circulation of any newspaper in the United States, something it previously held since 2003...
, The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
and The Los Angeles Times.
Later, in an online interview with a fan message forum, Axl stated he specifically told his lawyers it was a non-issue and was taken off-guard by their actions. He believed they should be focused on the record release.
Censorship in the People's Republic of China
The album is banned in the People's Republic of ChinaPeople's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
, due to perceived criticism in its title track
Chinese Democracy (song)
"Chinese Democracy" is a song by the American rock band Guns N' Roses, and the title track from their sixth studio album of the same name. The song was released as the band's twenty-first radio single on October 22, 2008 and was released on the iTunes Store on November 9, 2008...
of the Government of the People's Republic of China
Government of the People's Republic of China
All power within the government of the People's Republic of China is divided among three bodies: the People's Republic of China, State Council, and the People's Liberation Army . This article is concerned with the formal structure of the state, its departments and their responsibilities...
and reference to the Falun Gong
Falun Gong
Falun Gong is a spiritual discipline first introduced in China in 1992 by its founder, Li Hongzhi, through public lectures. It combines the practice of meditation and slow-moving qigong exercises with the moral philosophy...
. The Chinese government
Communist Party of China
The Communist Party of China , also known as the Chinese Communist Party , is the founding and ruling political party of the People's Republic of China...
said through media that it "turns its spear point on China".
Schnauss lawsuit
In October 2009, electronic musician Ulrich SchnaussUlrich Schnauss
-Biography:Ulrich Schnauss was born in the northern German seaport of Kiel in 1977. He became interested in a range of music: My Bloody Valentine, Slowdive, Tangerine Dream, Chapterhouse, and early bleep & breakbeat tracks...
's record labels, Independiente and Domino, sued Guns N' Roses, alleging that the band had committed copyright infringement
Copyright infringement
Copyright infringement is the unauthorized or prohibited use of works under copyright, infringing the copyright holder's exclusive rights, such as the right to reproduce or perform the copyrighted work, or to make derivative works.- "Piracy" :...
by using portions of his compositions in the song "Riad 'n the Bedouins". The suit alleges that the portions used were from Schnauss' 2001 Wherever You Are and 2003 A Strangely Isolated Place. Brian Caplan, attorney for Domino, stated that they first contacted the Geffen label on the 26th of February. The label "attempted to explain [the samples] away", Caplan told the New York Daily News. "They tried to justify it.". Guns N' Roses vigorously denies the allegations. Guns N' Roses manager Irving Azoff stated that "The snippets of 'ambient noise' in question were provided by a member of the album's production team who has assured us that these few seconds of sound were obtained legitimately." Going further, he added "While the band resents the implication that they would ever use another artist's work improperly and are assessing possible counterclaims, they are confident this situation will be satisfactorily resolved." The two labels are seeking $1 million in damages against Geffen for the unauthorized use of the composition samples.
Commercial performance
The album was initially released November 22, 2008, in GermanyGermany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
, and Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
. It was released on November 23, 2008, worldwide, except in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
on November 24, 2008. Chinese Democracy debuted at number three on the US Billboard 200
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
chart, selling 261,000 copies in its first week, well below expectations. The album also debuted at #2 on the UK Albums Chart
UK Albums Chart
The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart...
, coming in behind The Killers' album Day & Age. Chinese Democracy was certified Platinum
Music recording sales certification
Music recording sales certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped or sold a certain number of copies, where the threshold quantity varies by type and by nation or territory .Almost all countries follow variations of the RIAA certification categories,...
by the RIAA
Recording Industry Association of America
The Recording Industry Association of America is a trade organization that represents the recording industry distributors in the United States...
on February 3, 2009. The album secured an IFPI European Platinum Award, having sold more than one million copies in Europe, and had sold 2.6 million units worldwide as of February 2009, according to Universal Music. The album also reached triple platinum certification in Canada, as well as platinum certifications in many other countries, including Finland, the Czech Republic, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Norway, Poland, Romania, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, Argentina, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa. It was certified gold in Austria, Belgium, Denmark, France, Greece, Hungary, the Netherlands, Sweden, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, Brazil, and Colombia. It re-entered the US Billboard 200
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
again in the week ending April, 3, 2011, selling 3,200 copies, enough for the 198th position. To date, the album has sold 614,000 copies in the US according to Nielsen Soundscan
Nielsen SoundScan
Nielsen SoundScan is an information and sales tracking system created by Mike Fine and Mike Shalett. Soundscan is the official method of tracking sales of music and music video products throughout the United States and Canada...
.
Critical response
Chinese Democracy received mixed to positive reviews from most music critics. At MetacriticMetacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
, which assigns a normalized
Standard score
In statistics, a standard score indicates how many standard deviations an observation or datum is above or below the mean. It is a dimensionless quantity derived by subtracting the population mean from an individual raw score and then dividing the difference by the population standard deviation...
rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average
Weighted mean
The weighted mean is similar to an arithmetic mean , where instead of each of the data points contributing equally to the final average, some data points contribute more than others...
score of 64, based on 28 reviews, which indicates "generally favorable reviews". Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
writer Ann Powers
Ann Powers
Ann Powers is an American writer and pop music critic.Powers has been writing about popular music and society since the early 1980s...
called it "a test for contemporary ears", but ultimately viewed it as "a cyborgian blend of pop expressiveness, traditional rock bravado and Brian Wilson-style beautiful weirdness". Greg Kot
Greg Kot
Greg Kot is an American writer and journalist. Since 1990, Kot has been the music critic at the Chicago Tribune, where he has covered popular music and reported on music-related social, political and business issues...
of the Chicago Tribune
Chicago Tribune
The Chicago Tribune is a major daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, and the flagship publication of the Tribune Company. Formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" , it remains the most read daily newspaper of the Chicago metropolitan area and the Great Lakes region and is...
expressed a mixed response towards Axl Rose's production, viewing it as embellished and wrote "Rose throws everything he’s got into these songs, but his shock-and-awe arrangements suggest he’s really trying to cover something up". Writer Chuck Klosterman
Chuck Klosterman
Charles John "Chuck" Klosterman is an American author and essayist who has written for The New York Times Magazine, The Believer, and The Washington Post, and has written books focusing on American popular culture....
gave the album an A-, stating "Rose made some curious (and absolutely unnecessary) decisions throughout the assembly of this project, but that works to his advantage as often as it detracts from the larger experience." Former band member Duff McKagan praised the album, saying that "Axl sounds amazing" and "I think Axl's finally made the record he always wanted to". Slash reacted positively to the title track, and after the full album was released, the guitarist only said it was "exactly what I thought it would sound like", with many synthesizers and digital augmentation. The album was ranked number 12 on the "Top 50 Albums of 2008" list for Rolling Stone and number 3 on "Top 50 Albums of 2008" for Classic Rock magazine.
Track listing
Limited edition box set
A limited edition box set was released on December 15, 2008 in the United Kingdom. The deluxe edition contains the following:- Album packed in a standard Jewel Box
- Packed in a lid box 295 mm x 295 mm x 47 mm
- T-shirt
- Bandana
- Patch
- Key ring
- Buckle
Guns N' Roses and former members
- W. Axl Rose – lead vocalsLead vocalistThe lead vocalist is the member of a band who sings the main vocal portions of a song. They may also play one or more instruments. Lead vocalists are sometimes referred to as the frontman or frontwoman, and as such, are usually considered to be the "leader" of the groups they perform in, often the...
, pianoPianoThe piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
on "Catcher in the Rye", "This I Love" and "Prostitute", keyboardKeyboard instrumentA keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
s on "Chinese Democracy", "There Was a Time" and "This I Love", rhythm guitarRhythm guitarRhythm guitar is a technique and rôle that performs a combination of two functions: to provide all or part of the rhythmic pulse in conjunction with singers or other instruments; and to provide all or part of the harmony, ie. the chords, where a chord is a group of notes played together...
on "There Was a Time" and "Madagascar", backing vocals on "Catcher in the Rye" - Dizzy ReedDizzy ReedDizzy Reed is a contemporary rock musician, and occasional actor. He is best known for his tenure as the keyboardist & pianist for the rock band Guns N' Roses, with whom he has played, toured and recorded since 1990...
– keyboards, piano, synthesizerSynthesizerA synthesizer is an electronic instrument capable of producing sounds by generating electrical signals of different frequencies. These electrical signals are played through a loudspeaker or set of headphones...
, backing vocals - Tommy StinsonTommy StinsonThomas "Tommy" Eugene Stinson is an American musician best known for his work as the bassist for The Replacements and Guns N' Roses as well as the post-Replacements groups Bash & Pop, where he performed guitar duties, and Perfect...
– bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
, backing vocals - Chris PitmanChris PitmanChris Pitman is an American musician best known for his involvement with hard rock band Guns N' Roses. A multi-instrumentalist, Pitman is known to play keyboards, guitar and drums, in addition to his role as a lead or backing vocalist...
– keyboards, backing vocals, programmingProgramming (music)Programming is a form of music production and performance using electronic devices, often sequencers or computer programs, to generate music. Programming is used in nearly all forms of electronic music and in most hip hop music since the 1990s. It is also frequently used in modern pop and rock...
, sub-bassSub-bassSub-bass is a term used to describe audible sounds below 90 Hz and extending downward to include the lowest frequency humans can hear, typically 20 Hz. Sound systems often feature one or more subwoofer loudspeakers that are dedicated solely to amplifying sounds in the sub-bass range...
, bass on "There Was a Time" and "Madagascar", 12 string guitar on "If the World", mellotronMellotronThe Mellotron is an electro-mechanical, polyphonic tape replay keyboard originally developed and built in Birmingham, England in the early 1960s. It superseded the Chamberlin Music Master, which was the world's first sample-playback keyboard intended for music...
on "There Was a Time" - Ron "Bumblefoot" ThalRon "Bumblefoot" ThalRonald Jay Blumenthal , better known by his stage name Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal, is a Jewish-American guitarist, songwriter, recording artist and producer. Thal adopted the name Bumblefoot from the bacterial infection of the same name, which he learned about while helping his wife review for her...
– rhythm & lead guitars - Richard FortusRichard FortusRichard Fortus is a professional guitarist who is most famous for being rhythm guitarist in Guns N' Roses.Originally from St. Louis, Missouri, Fortus cut his teeth throughout the Midwest with his band, The Eyes. The four-piece alternative band independently released "Freedom in a Cage", which was...
– rhythm guitar - Frank FerrerFrank FerrerFrank Ferrer is an American rock drummer and session musician. In October 2006, Ferrer became an official member of the American hard rock band Guns N' Roses after serving as the band's emergency substitute drummer for Bryan Mantia on several occasions during the band's summer 2006 European tour...
– drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person .... - BucketheadBucketheadBrian Carroll , better known by his stage name Buckethead, is a guitarist and multi instrumentalist who has worked within several genres of music. He has released 34 studio albums, four special releases and one EP. He has performed on over 50 more albums by other artists...
– lead guitarLead guitarLead guitar is a guitar part which plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs within a song structure...
, acoustic guitarAcoustic guitarAn acoustic guitar is a guitar that uses only an acoustic sound board. The air in this cavity resonates with the vibrational modes of the string and at low frequencies, which depend on the size of the box, the chamber acts like a Helmholtz resonator, increasing or decreasing the volume of the sound...
on "If the World" - Robin FinckRobin FinckRobin Finck is an American guitarist of Nine Inch Nails and former lead guitarist of Guns N' Roses. He is one of only a few artists who has played in two different bands listed on VH1's "100 Greatest Artists of Hard Rock"; Nine Inch Nails and Guns N' Roses .-Career:Finck grew up in Marietta,...
– lead guitar, acoustic guitar on "Sorry", keyboards on "Better" - Paul TobiasPaul TobiasPaul Tobias is an American guitarist best known for his involvement with hard rock band Guns N' Roses, with whom he has collaborated since 1994.-Guns N' Roses:...
– rhythm guitar, piano on "There Was a Time" - Bryan MantiaBryan MantiaBryan "Brain" Mantia is a contemporary rock drummer. He has played with bands like Primus, Guns N' Roses, Praxis and Godflesh, and with other popular performers such as Tom Waits, Bill Laswell, Bootsy Collins and Buckethead...
– drums - Josh FreeseJosh FreeseJosh Freese is an American session drummer and songwriter. He is a permanent member of A Perfect Circle, The Vandals, and Devo, having formerly played drums for Nine Inch Nails from late 2005 until late 2008, and for Guns N' Roses from mid-1998 to 2001. Freese has appeared on close to 300 records....
– drum arrangement on tracks 4, 6, 9 and 14
Additional personnel
- Pete Scaturro – keyboards on track 10; arrangements on tracks 2 and 10; digital editing and additional engineering on track 10; initial production on tracks 2 and 10
- Sebastian BachSebastian BachSebastian Bach is a Canadian heavy metal singer who achieved mainstream success as frontman of Skid Row from 1987 to 1996. Since his departure from Skid Row, he has had many television roles, acted within Broadway plays, and leads a successful solo career.-Early life:Bach was born Sebastian...
– background vocals on "Sorry" - Patti Hood – harpHarpThe harp is a multi-stringed instrument which has the plane of its strings positioned perpendicularly to the soundboard. Organologically, it is in the general category of chordophones and has its own sub category . All harps have a neck, resonator and strings...
on "This I Love" - Caram Costanzo – digital editing on all tracks; arrangements on tracks 2, 6 and 8; drum arrangements on tracks 3, 6 and 14; sub drums on track 13; production; mixing; engineeringAudio engineeringAn audio engineer, also called audio technician, audio technologist or sound technician, is a specialist in a skilled trade that deals with the use of machinery and equipment for the recording, mixing and reproduction of sounds. The field draws on many artistic and vocational areas, including...
; initial production on track 8 - Eric CaudieuxEric CaudieuxEric Caudieux is an accomplished player of the keyboards and rhythm guitar who has not only played for guitarist Joe Satriani on many of his albums, but is a member of Joe Satriani's backing group when he is on tour.- References :...
– digital editing on all tracks; drum programming on track 5; arrangements on track 6; sub drums on track 13; Pro ToolsPro ToolsPro Tools is a digital audio workstation platform for Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X operating systems, developed and manufactured by Avid Technology. It is widely used by professionals throughout the audio industries for recording and editing in music production, film scoring, film, and television...
engineering; additional production - Andy WallaceAndy Wallace (producer)Andy Wallace is a Grammy Award-winning music studio engineer with a long track record of successful productions, beginning with the 1986 production of the Run-DMC/Aerosmith collaboration on "Walk This Way" with Rick Rubin...
– Producer, mixing - Dan MontiDan MontiDan Monti, also known by his stage name Del Rey Brewer, is a musician, composer, producer and engineer who has worked with such bands as Metallica, Slayer and Guns 'n' Roses...
– engineering - Bob LudwigBob LudwigBob Ludwig is an American mastering engineer.He is a well known and respected figure within the music industry. His name is credited on the covers of albums released across the world, and he has won numerous awards....
– masteringAudio masteringMastering, a form of audio post-production, is the process of preparing and transferring recorded audio from a source containing the final mix to a data storage device ; the source from which all copies will be produced... - Roy Thomas BakerRoy Thomas BakerRoy Thomas Baker is a multiple award-winning Anglo-American music producer, songwriter, arranger and Recording Academy Governor, who has produced Platinum and Gold certified pop and rock records from the 1970s to the present.- Career :Baker began his career at Decca Records in England at the age...
– Initial album production - Sean BeavanSean BeavanSean Beavan is a musician, record producer, and audio engineer best known for his work with Guns N Roses, Marilyn Manson, Nine Inch Nails, God Lives Underwater, and Slayer...
– arrangements on tracks 1, 4, 6, 9 and 11; digital editing on tracks 4, 5, 6, 9, 11, 12 and 14; initial production on tracks 5 and 12; additional Pro Tools - Paul BuckmasterPaul BuckmasterPaul John Buckmaster is a Grammy Award-winning English artist, arranger and composer.He began learning the cello at the age of 4 and graduated from the Royal College of Music at age 16....
– Orchestra conductor, Orchestral arrangement on track 14, Initial Symphonic arrangements on tracks 4, 6, 12 - Marco BeltramiMarco BeltramiMarco Beltrami is an American film composer.-Life and career:Beltrami was born in Long Island, New York of Italian and Greek descent...
– Additional Orchestral arrangements on tracks 4, 6, 12, 14; Orchestral Arrangement on track 13 - Suzy Katayama – Orchestra contractor, French horns on track 12; Brass section arrangements on tracks 6, 12 and 13; Choral arrangements on tracks 6 and 13
- Billy HowerdelBilly HowerdelBilly Howerdel is the founding member, guitarist, songwriter, and producer for the bands A Perfect Circle and Ashes Divide. He has recorded three acclaimed studio albums with the former, and in 2008, Ashes Divide released their debut album, Keep Telling Myself It's Alright.-Early life:Howerdel was...
– digital editing on track 6
- Okhee Kim – engineering assistance
- Andy Gwynn – engineering assistance
- Brian Monteath – engineering assistance
- Dave Dominguez – engineering assistance
- Jose Borges – engineering assistance
- Joe Peluso – engineering assistance
- Christian Baker – engineering assistance
- James Musshorn – engineering assistance
- Greg Morgenstein – additional Pro Tools
- Paul DeCarli – additional Pro Tools
- Jan Petrov – engineering assistance
- Jeff Robinette – engineering assistance
- Bob Koszela – engineering assistance
- Paul Payne – engineering assistance
- Mark Gray – engineering assistance
- Xavier Albira – engineering assistance
- Dror Mohar – engineering assistance
- Mike Scielzi – mixing assistance
- Billy Bowers – additional Pro Tools
- Justin Walden – additional Pro Tools
- Eric Tabala – engineering assistance
- Shawn Berman – engineering assistance
- Donald Clark – engineering assistance
- Shinnosuke Miyazawa – engineering assistance
- Vanessa Parr – engineering assistance
- John Beene – engineering assistance
- Al Perrotta – engineering assistance
- Paul Suarez – mixing assistance
- Rail Jon Rogut – additional Pro Tools
- Isaac Abolin – additional Pro Tools
- Ryan Corey – designGraphic designGraphic design is a creative process – most often involving a client and a designer and usually completed in conjunction with producers of form – undertaken in order to convey a specific message to a targeted audience...
- Terry Hardin – coverAlbum coverAn album cover is the front of the packaging of a commercially released audio recording product, or album. The term can refer to either the printed cardboard covers typically used to package sets of 10" and 12" 78 rpm records, single and sets of 12" LPs, sets of 45 rpm records , or the front-facing...
photographyPhotographyPhotography is the art, science and practice of creating durable images by recording light or other electromagnetic radiation, either electronically by means of an image sensor or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film... - George Chin – photography
Album
| Year | Chart | Peak position |
|---|---|---|
| 2008 | European Top 100 European Top 100 Albums The European Top 100 Albums chart is the European adaptation of the Billboard 200 albums chart. It was created in March 1984.The European Top 100 Albums, commonly referred to as Eurochart Top 100 Albums shows the sales of an act in 19 European countries based on IFPI data.The European Top 100... |
1 |
| Argentina Albums Chart | 1 | |
| Canadian Albums Chart Canadian Albums Chart The Canadian Albums Chart is the official album sales chart in Canada. It is compiled every Wednesday by U.S.-based music sales tracking company Nielsen Soundscan, and published every Thursday by Jam! Canoe and Billboard, along with its sister charts the Canadian Singles Chart and the Canadian BDS... |
1 | |
| Finnish Albums Chart | 1 | |
| New Zealand Albums Chart | 1 | |
| Polish Albums Chart | 1 | |
| Slovene Albums Chart | 1 | |
| Swiss Albums Chart | 1 | |
| UK Albums Chart UK Albums Chart The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart... |
2 | |
| German Albums Chart | 2 | |
| Norwegian Albums Chart | 2 | |
| U.S. Billboard 200 Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
3 | |
| Australian Albums Chart ARIA Charts The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June... |
3 | |
| Austrian Albums Chart | 3 | |
| Irish Albums Chart Irish Albums Chart The Irish Albums Chart is the Irish music industry standard albums popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association and compiled on its behalf by Chart-Track. Chart rankings are based on sales, which are compiled through over-the-counter retail data captured electronically... |
3 | |
| Israeli Albums Chart | 3 | |
| Italian Albums Chart Federation of the Italian Music Industry The Federation of the Italian Music Industry is an umbrella organization that keeps track of virtually all aspects of the music recording industry in Italy.... |
3 | |
| Japanese Oricon Oricon , established in 1999, is the holding company at the head of a Japanese corporate group that supplies statistics and information on music and the music industry in Japan. It started as , which was founded by Sōkō Koike in November 1967 and became known for its music charts. Oricon Inc... Albums Chart |
3 | |
| Belgian Albums Chart | 2 | |
| Dutch Albums Chart | 4 | |
| Hungarian Albums Chart | 4 | |
| Mexican Albums Chart | 3 | |
| Russian Albums Chart | 4 | |
| Swedish Albums Chart | 4 | |
| Danish Albums Chart | 7 | |
| Portuguese Albums Chart | 9 | |
| French Albums Chart | 5 | |
| Greek Albums Chart | 10 |
Year-end charts
| Chart (2009) | Position |
|---|---|
| Swiss Albums Chart | 89 |
Singles
| Year | Song | Chart | Peak position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | "Chinese Democracy Chinese Democracy (song) "Chinese Democracy" is a song by the American rock band Guns N' Roses, and the title track from their sixth studio album of the same name. The song was released as the band's twenty-first radio single on October 22, 2008 and was released on the iTunes Store on November 9, 2008... " |
Billboard Hot 100 Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday... |
34 |
| Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks | 5 | ||
| Hot Modern Rock Tracks | 24 | ||
| Canadian Hot 100 Canadian Hot 100 The Canadian Hot 100 is a music singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine which ranks songs in Canada. The chart debuted in the Billboard issue dated June 16, 2007 and was made available for the first time via their online services on June 7, 2007... |
10 | ||
| UK Singles Chart UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ... |
27 | ||
| Australian ARIA Singles Chart ARIA Charts The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June... |
10 | ||
| Norwegian Top 20 VG-lista VG-listen is a Norwegian record chart. It is weekly presented in the newspaper VG and the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation program Topp 20. It is considered the primary Norwegian record chart, charting albums and singles from countries and continent around the world. The data is collected by... |
1 | ||
| Swedish Singles Chart | 2 | ||
| Finnish Singles Chart | 3 | ||
| "Better Better (Guns N' Roses song) "Better" is a song by American rock band Guns N' Roses, featured on their 2008 sixth studio album Chinese Democracy. It was released as the second single from the album, after "Chinese Democracy", on November 17, 2008.-Background:... " |
Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks | 3 | |
| 2009 | "Street of Dreams Street of Dreams (Guns N' Roses song) "Street of Dreams" is a song by the American rock band Guns N' Roses, featured on their 2008 album Chinese Democracy. The song is the fourth song on the album and the third single from it... " |
Canadian Song Charts | 44 |
External links
- Chinese Democracy at DiscogsDiscogsDiscogs, short for discographies, is a website and database of information about audio recordings, including commercial releases, promotional releases, and bootleg or off-label releases. The Discogs servers, currently hosted under the domain name discogs.com, are owned by Zink Media, Inc., and are...
- Chinese Democracy at MetacriticMetacriticMetacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...