While most festival sets last 30 minutes to an hour, Guns N’ Roses took advantage of their long-lasting legacy and notoriety, gifting Aftershock 2023 with a 3-hour set.
The Aftershock festival is a staple in musical festivals, featuring the best and up and coming rock acts from the past thirty years. Over 95 artists performed at Aftershock 2023, which would typically leave 30 minutes to an hour of stage time for each performance. However, Guns N’ Roses defied these unwritten rules.
After Queens of the Stone Age and Sacramento’s Dance Gavin Dance captured the attention of the attendees, Guns N’ Roses took the stage and performed over a dozen tracks from various albums.
“It was… three hours, so a bit much,” attendee Melissa Teliano said. “They played, like, half of their discography.”
They kicked off their set with the track “It’s So Easy” before segueing into their popular tracks, such as “Chinese Democracy” and “Bad Obsession.” While the first half was geared toward die-hard fans of the band, the second half was hit-heavy and suitable for radio listeners.
The crowd buzzed to life when lead singer Axl Rose and rhythm guitarist Izzy Stradlin dashed across the stage, head-banging to their explosive hits. Rose had surprising endurance, and hit the high notes and power ballads better than one might expect him to at 61 years old.
Guns N’ Roses have been known for their electric stage presence and ability to perform. Performances from the 1980’s and 90’s display Rose screaming at the top of his lungs and various band members going crazy on their respective instruments.
The band additionally covered six songs by artists such as “Bob Dylan” and close-to-home supergroup “Velvet Revolver.” The band rolled out into extended jams as lead guitarist Slash improvised a two minute guitar solo.
Despite the fact they showed up 30 minutes late, they still put on a show. The band made up for their tardiness by rocking the stage and pumping energy into the crowd to keep them jumping until the end. They closed out the never-ending set with a bittersweet sing-along to 1987 classic “Paradise City.”
Guns N’ Roses was the light at the end of the tunnel of a long day, and there is no doubt that light showed up and showed out.
