well i guess i must be insane because i just wasn't feeling them. maybe you're right, i am biased against Axl, but i tried to be open minded when i listened to the tracks. it just didn't sound the same to me, that's really what i mean. good, bad or otherwise, it didn't sound like GNR to me. that band had a signature sound, and the "new" Guns just doesn't have that imo.
what i mean by fooling people is that by calling his new band Guns N Roses, people will have expectations of what the band should be, what they should sound like. the fans, the true fans know what GNR sounds like, and i think most of them know these new songs dn't sound like that at all. is he trying to fool anyone? maybe not, but he is trying to relive history with a band that imo is inferior to the original, and the fans know it. look, to me, any band is bigger than just one person. you can replace one or 2 people from the band but you can't get rid of the entire band and expect things to be the same. the heart of the band has changed too much for me. but hey, if you like the new stuff, then good for you. it's just not for me.
as for what i said about Velvet Revolver, i respect them because they're doing their own thing, they aren't trying to be Guns N Roses or Stone Temple Pilots all over again, they are what they are. and i can respect that more than i can respect what Axl's doing. but they do suck. you may not give a shit about people's personalities, but i do, especially when i'm paying money to buy an album and supporting them.
i felt the same way about The Doors. when they got back together a few years ago with a new singer and drummer, i hated the fact that they were still calling it The Doors cuz without Jim Morrison and John Densmore it just isn't the same. and i'd feel the same way if Slash, Izzy, Duff and Matt started a band with a new singer and called it Guns N Roses. it wouldn't be the same. put it this way: if Krist Novoselic and Dave Grohl decided to hire a new singer and continue Nirvana after Kurt died, would it have been the same? no. face it, the only reason he wants to use the name is to try and tread off the success of it. to me, that's wrong. but then again Axl has always rubbed me the wrong way. even when i loved GNR it still pissed me off that Axl couldn't even respect his fans enough to show up for concerts on time.