Check the temperatures in hell, and crack open the Dr. Pepper -- Guns N' Roses' "Chinese Democracy" will be hitting Canadian stores this November 23.
The album, which has been in production since the middle of the Clinton Administration, will be the American hard rock band's first original album since releasing two albums simultaneously in 1991.
On Wednesday, the blistering title track of the new album was released as a single to radio, where it quickly garnered massive airplay and much discussion on music websites.
"The release of Chinese Democracy marks a historic moment in rock 'n' roll," Irving Azoff and Andy Gould, Guns N' Roses' co-managers said in a news release. "We're launching with a monumental campaign that matches the groundbreaking sound of the album itself. Guns N' Roses fans have every reason to celebrate, for this is only the beginning."
Notoriously volatile lead singer Axl Rose is the lone holdover from the band's debut album and serves as the "Chinese Democracy" producer , along with Caram Costanzo (Pearl Jam's "No Code", Rage Against the Machine's "Evil Empire.") The album will feature 14 tracks.
Despite the legendary wait and impossible to meet expectations of a tortured fan base, the album is being treated as a potential economic savior for the in-transition music industry.
"We're expecting it to be one of the biggest, if not the biggest, albums of the year," HMV Canada president Humphrey Kadaner told CTV.ca Wednesday.
"Chinese Democracy" will be released exclusively at Best Buy in the United States, but will be available at all music stores in Canada. Kadaner actually took out an ad in "Billboard" last week thanking the band and other acts for not going the exclusive release route in Canada.
A long and winding road
The backstory of "Chinese Democracy" is the stuff of music legend, which certainly threatens to overshadow the actual album's content.
The New York Times has reported that the album is believed to have cost about $13 million -- and that was back in 2005. It is easily the most expense album ever made.
The new album has been rumoured to be released pretty much every year since 2000, becoming a running joke in pop culture for indulgent perfectionism. It got to the point where earlier in 2008, soft drink maker Dr. Pepper promised a free pop to every American if "Chinese Democracy" was released this year. Oops.
But you got to give it to them, the company is stepping up.
"We never thought this day would come," Tony Jacobs, vice president of marketing for Dr Pepper said in a news release. "But now that it's here all we can say is: The Dr Pepper's on us."
Americans will be able to print of a voucher on the company's website and take it to wherever Dr. Pepper is sold.
With about 300 million potential winners, the promotional stunt could easily cost the company millions.
The new album
Rose is joined on "Chinese Democracy" by some combination of bassist Tommy Stinson (The Replacements), keyboardist Dizzy Reed (who joined GNR in 1990), guitarists Robin Finck (Nine Inch Nails), Buckethead (who left GNR in 2004), Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal, Richard Fortus (Love Spit Love) and drummers Brian Mantia (Primus) and Frank Ferrer. Other musicians such as Queen's Brian May, Jane's Addiction's Dave Navarro and The Vandals Josh Freese have stepped into the studio for GNR over the last 15 years.
Rose has taken the new GNR on tour - with the same line-up mostly intact -- a number of times. In 2002, the tour featured two riots, and was cut short. In 2006, Guns actually managed to put together a very successful world tour and "Chinese Democracy" seemed to be on the brink of release. But it never happened.
Various versions of some of the album's songs have been played at live shows and demos have been leaked on the internet. A U.S. blogger was recently charged for leaking nine songs from the album this summer. But those songs appear to have been only demos as the new single is a strikingly stronger track than it was in the leaked version.
The new single hints at the industrial rock sound that Rose has been believed to be working on, but the leaked demos showcase a variety of musical stylings.
Reactions to the new material from fans and critics have been mixed, but not bad considering. One wonders how the songs would be treated if there wasn't the ridiculously high burden of making them 14 years worth-the-wait good.
Two other songs have been released from the album, "Shackler's Revenge," a catchy industrial rocker, is featured on the video game "Rock Band 2." A portion of "If the World" is featured in the end credits of the Leonardo DiCaprio/Russell Crowe film, "Body of Lies."
Guns N' Roses have sold nearly 100 million albums worldwide, including four million in Canada. The band's 1987 full-length debut, Appetite For Destruction, has sold more than 28 million copies worldwide, one of the best-selling debuts of all-time.
The new single can be heard at www.gunsnroses.com.
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