The Spill Magazine The Spill Magazine
The Spill Magazine The Spill Magazine
The Spill Magazine The Spill Magazine
  • Reviews
    • Album Reviews
    • Features
    • Live Reviews
    • Festivals
  • Portraits
  • Headlines
    • News
    • Contests
    • Events
    • Entertainment Headlines
    • Concert Listings
    • Toronto Concert Venues
  • New Music
    • Premieres
    • Track Of The Day
  • Track Of The Month
  • Books + Movies
  • About
16
new
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: SPARKS – THE GIRL IS CRYING IN HER LATTE
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: MOON BLUE – THE MOONLIGHT DISCO
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: KASSI VALAZZA – KASSI VALAZZA KNOWS NOTHING
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: MAUD THE MOTH + TRAJEDESALIVA
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: PERE UBU – TROUBLE ON BIG BEAT STREET
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: AJJ – DISPOSABLE EVERYTHING
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: THE DIRTY NIL – FREE REIN TO PASSIONS
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: JOE PERRY – SWEETZERLAND MANIFESTO MKII
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: FISHBONE – FISHBONE
SPILL NEW MUSIC: MOBIUS RADIO – “THE MORE YOU KNOW”
SPILL NEW MUSIC: TARA MACLEAN SHARES HEARTBREAKINGLY BEAUTIFUL NEW VIDEO FOR “THAT’S ME”
SPILL NEW MUSIC: JANE’S PARTY – “SHIPS ON AN OCEAN”
SPILL FEATURE: OVERCOMING ADVERSITY, EMERGING VICTORIOUS – A CONVERSATION WITH ROBBIE LITCHFIELD OF SAVING VICE
SPILL FEATURE: LATELY I’VE BEEN FEELING GOOD AND THAT MAKES ME FEEL SO BAD – A CONVERSATION WITH SEAN BONNETTE OF AJJ
SPILL FEATURE: CONNECTING ALL OUR LIVES – A CONVERSATION WITH GEOFF DOWNES OF YES
SPILL MUSIC PREMIERE: DIVINE SWEATER – “WAKING UP ALONE / JULIA”
  • Reviews
    • Album Reviews
    • Features
    • Live Reviews
    • Festivals
  • Portraits
  • Headlines
    • News
    • Contests
    • Events
    • Entertainment Headlines
    • Concert Listings
    • Toronto Concert Venues
  • New Music
    • Premieres
    • Track Of The Day
  • Track Of The Month
  • Books + Movies
  • About
  • Spill Menu
    • Reviews
      • Album Reviews
      • Features
      • Live Reviews
      • Festivals
    • Portraits
    • Headlines
      • News
      • Contests
      • Events
      • Entertainment Headlines
      • Concert Listings
      • Toronto Concert Venues
    • New Music
      • Premieres
      • Track Of The Day
    • Track Of The Month
    • Books + Movies
    • About
Album Reviews
238
Editor Pick
previous article
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: QUADECA - I DIDN'T MEAN TO HAUNT YOU
next article
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: RISING APPALACHIA - LIVE FROM NEW ORLEANS AT PRESERVATION HALL

SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: GUNS N’ ROSES – USE YOUR ILLUSION (SUPER DELUXE)

Guns N' Roses

Guns N’ Roses
Use Your Illusion (Super Deluxe)
UMe

Appetite For Destruction remains one of the greatest debut records ever, something that forever established Guns N’ Roses among the greatest rock bands but has left a nearly impossible summit that the band has yet to reach again. Their follow-up, a pair of albums – a double album in theory, released separately on the same day – Use Your Illusion I & II, stands as a conflicted and bloated mess of true greatness and half-baked, middle of the road rock. Regardless, even when not at their best, Guns N’ Roses remain a cut above most other bands, as seen on their massive boxset, Use Your Illusion (Super Deluxe). Collecting remastered versions of both albums, and two concerts from the era, Use Your Illusion (Super Deluxe) is an essential listening experience from one of the greatest rock ‘n’ roll bands on the brink of total combustion.

With thirty songs between the two records, Use Your Illusion could have rivaled Appetite For Destruction as a worthy sophomore effort had it been cut down to a condensed single album. The pair of records caught the band at both their most visceral – “You Could Be Mine”, “Back Off Bitch”, and “Right Next Door To Hell” – and their most sophisticated – “Civil War” and “November Rain” (a newly updated version that features a 50-piece orchestra is a highlight among the boxset) – a duality that is often never present within the context of the same album. Additionally, songs like “Dust N’ Bones” captures a raw darkness while “Coma” and “Locomotive (Complicity)” denotes a complex evolution in the band’s songwriting. Who knows quite how different the rest of the ‘90s would have looked for Guns N’ Roses had Use Your Illusion been a single disc. Either way, despite their shortcomings, Use Your Illusion I & II still stand as a pair of solid releases, 31 years later.

The first of two concerts included on the reissue was recorded at New York City’s Ritz Theatre on May 16, 1991 – months ahead of the release of Use Your Illusion. The energy from the smaller venue propels the concert as Axl Rose delivers an absolute vocal shredding ripper of a performance over the course of their 20-song set. At this point in time, Gun N’ Roses are among the biggest bands in the world; to hear them deliver a massive, stadium sized performance in a room that holds under a thousand people is something truly special. Beyond their powerful performance, their set at The Ritz shines as the band demos what will eventually become their global tour in support of their upcoming two albums. In this regard, their ’91 performance is a peek behind the curtain to the creative process the band was in the midst of. The use of Jimi Hendrix’s “Voodoo Child (Slight Return)” teased as an intro to “Civil War” and Alice Cooper’s “Only Women Bleed” introducing “Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door” (in the second show, this would also include a prelude of The Eagles’ “Hotel California”) in both shows on Use Your Illusion (Super Deluxe) speaks to this. In this regard, Guns N’ Roses at The Ritz is a raw, balls to the wall onslaught of a performance that is Guns N’ Roses at their strongest in their post Appetite era (their infamous set at The Ritz in 1988 remains a masterclass in performance – watch it on YouTube and you too will hope for an official release). With founding guitarist Izzy Stradlin still in the band, even taking lead vocals on “Dust N’ Bones”, this was an incredible set from Guns N’ Roses, highlighted by “Pretty Tied Up”, “Right Next Door To Hell”, “Mr. Brownstone”, “Estranged”, and a blistering “Welcome To The Jungle” – demonstrating the unparalleled chemistry between Slash and Stradlin – to close the night.

The second concert on Use Your Illusion (Super Deluxe) sees Guns N’ Roses perform at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas on January 25, 1992. Recorded in the middle of the Use Your Illusion Tour, this set truly captures the grandiose, larger than life nature of the era, as well as building on the tone set in the 1991 performance in New York. Additionally, the recording is benefited by not only a more refined performance from the band, but also a far more polished sound quality. Featuring a range of covers (“Wild Horses” and “Sail Away Sweet Sister”, along with many others teased), extended arrangements, and structured jams, this concert is a strong evolution built upon their New York performance. Slash soars as he rips guitar solos and licks with reckless abandon while Rose shines with a powerful vocal delivery. Must hear highlights from this set include “Double Talkin’ Jive”, “You Could Be Mine”, “Nightrain”, “My Michelle”, “It’s So Easy”, and “Rocket Queen”.

There is no denying the staying power and continued relevance of Gun N’ Roses. Use Your Illusion (Super Deluxe) demonstrates this while offering an in-depth look at an era long gone, as best seen through the pair of concerts, a year apart, that encapsulate the metamorphosis of Guns N’ Roses in the early ‘90s. Their New York set at The Ritz represents the twilight of the Appetite era – Stradlin’s still there and the group sounds like the most dangerous band in the world; a true gang of hardened street punks you’d fear to cross. The Vegas set, on the other hand, is a production worthy of a global stadium tour for the biggest band in the world. This doesn’t necessarily make it better, but this latter set, a definitive take of the use your Illusion era, certainly contrasts with the initial live recordings. In this regard, Use Your Illusion (Super Deluxe) captures Guns N’ Roses at a period of transition as they proved their worth as some of the last truly great rockstars to conquer the world. Simultaneously, this was a period marked with great turmoil attributed to excessively obscene drug use and growing internal tensions. All of this can be heard on Use Your Illusion (Super Deluxe), making for a thrilling expansion to their divisive, yet seemingly classic, sophomore albums.



Artist Links

website_flat_2016 facebook_flat_2016 twitter_flat_2016 instagram_flat_2016

STAY UP-TO-DATE
WITH OUR WEEKLY NEWSLETTER!

* Mandatory Field

Check your inbox or spam folder now (just in case!) to confirm your subscription.

Editor Pick
Item Reviewed

SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: GUNS N’ ROSES – USE YOUR ILLUSION (SUPER DELUXE)

Author

Gerrod Harris

Here's what we think...
Spill Rating
Fan Rating
Rate Here
New Criteria
10
—
9.0
Total Spill Rating
—
Total Fan Rating
You have rated this
Album Reviews
album reviewalbum reviewsguns n' rosesumeyou could be mine
album review, album reviews, guns n' roses, ume, you could be mine
About the Author
Gerrod Harris
A passion for music has always been a part of Gerrod’s life. As a young boy, he was raised on a steady diet of the music from The Chili Peppers, Aerosmith, The Stones, Prince, and others from his mum. Raised in the GTA, Gerrod continued to foster his love for music by attending a wide range of concerts and learning the drums. His unapologetic passion for music has no bounds and has spread to a wide variety of styles, whether it be the 90’s rock that sound tracked his teenage years, the jazz he studied in university, or his newfound love for hip-hop. He recently received his bachelors in music and education from York University and is passionate about writing and reviewing good (and less than good) music. Gerrod is also the drummer and songwriter for a Toronto based rock & roll band, One In The Chamber.
RELATED ARTICLES
album reviewalbum reviewsguns n' roses
 
9.0
Sparks
10

SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: SPARKS – THE GIRL IS CRYING IN HER LATTE

by Aaron Badgley on May 26, 2023
Sparks The Girl Is Crying In Her Latte Island Records The Girl Is Crying In Her Latte is Sparks 25th studio album, and their first since 2020’s very successful A Steady Drip, Drip, Drip. They have gained a new audience, thanks in part to the [...]
 
8.0
Moon Blue

SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: MOON BLUE – THE MOONLIGHT DISCO

by Ljubinko Zivkovic on May 26, 2023
Moon Blue The Moonlight Disco 777 Music There are two ways by which an artist can make the title of his record fit perfectly with the music within. One is to compose the music and then find a fitting title, the other is the have the title in [...]
 
8.0
Kassi Valazza
10

SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: KASSI VALAZZA – KASSI VALAZZA KNOWS NOTHING

by Ljubinko Zivkovic on May 26, 2023
Kassi Valazza Kassi Valazza Knows Nothing Fluff & Gravy Records Portland, Oregon artist Kassi Valazza defies the title of her latest album – Kassi Valazza Knows Nothing. She actually knows quite a bit it seems, and one of the things [...]
 
8.0
maud the moth + trajedesaliva
8.8

SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: MAUD THE MOTH + TRAJEDESALIVA

by Ljubinko Zivkovic on May 26, 2023
maud the moth + trajedesaliva Bordando el Manto Terrestre Time Released Sound Now, we’re talking about some serious dark stuff here. Yet, it is the kind of dark stuff that actually enlightens and makes the true darkness go away. Bordando [...]
 
9.0
Pere Ubu

SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: PERE UBU – TROUBLE ON BIG BEAT STREET

by Aaron Badgley on May 26, 2023
Pere Ubu Trouble On Big Beat Street Cherry Red Records One could be forgiven for being confused as to what the actual year is when Sparks, Pere Ubu, Yes, and Jethro Tull are releasing new music. And it is a most excellent confusion. David Thomas [...]

Latest Album Reviews
View All
 
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: SPARKS – THE GIRL IS CRYING IN HER LATTE
9.0
10
 
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: MOON BLUE – THE MOONLIGHT DISCO
8.0
 
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: KASSI VALAZZA – KASSI VALAZZA KNOWS NOTHING
8.0
10
 
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: MAUD THE MOTH + TRAJEDESALIVA
8.0
8.8
 
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: PERE UBU – TROUBLE ON BIG BEAT STREET
9.0

STAY UP-TO-DATE
WITH OUR WEEKLY NEWSLETTER!

* Mandatory Field

Check your inbox or spam folder now (just in case!) to confirm your subscription.

Tweets by @spillmagazine

SPILL MAGAZINE MENU
  • Home | The Spill Magazine
  • Premieres
  • Track Of The Month
  • Album Reviews
  • Books + Movies
  • Features
  • Live Reviews
  • Festivals
  • Portraits
  • News
  • Events
  • Entertainment Headlines
  • Concert Listings
  • Toronto Concert Venues
  • About Us
  • Contests
  • New Music
  • Contributors
  • TOTD
  • Privacy Policy
  • The Scene Unseen
  • Newsletter

Copyright © 2023 | The Spill Magazine
All Rights Reserved.

TRENDING RIGHT NOW
   
 
SPILL NEWS: RINGO STARR AND HIS ALL STARR BAND ADD DATES TO SPRING 2023 TOUR
7833
 
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: METALLICA – 72 SEASONS
3639
 
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: JETHRO TULL – RÖKFLÖTE
1479
 
SPILL FEATURE: LOVE THAT WE WERE LIVING – A CONVERSATION WITH JUSTIN HAYWARD OF THE MOODY BLUES
1336
 
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: DELERIUM – SIGNS
1202
 
SPILL NEW MUSIC: EMMA ARMSTRONG – “MAYBE PROBABLY NEVER”
1070
 
SPILL FEATURE: RECOLLECTION IN TRANQUILITY – A CONVERSATION WITH JOHN FOXX
833
 
SPILL FEATURE: THE GIRL IS CRYING IN HER LATTE – A CONVERSATION WITH RUSSELL MAEL & RON MAEL OF SPARKS
815
 
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: THE KINKS – THE JOURNEY – PART 1
682
 
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: THE WHO – THE WHO WITH ORCHESTRA: LIVE AT WEMBLEY
681
 
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: THE DAMNED – DARKADELIC
607
 
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: CROWN LANDS – FEARLESS
498
 
SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: DEPECHE MODE – MEMENTO MORI
489
ENTERTAINMENT HEADLINES