Last night, Guns N’ Roses — one of the most iconic and defining rock bands of the 1990s — took the stage in front of nearly 49,000 people at Budapest’s Puskás Arena. We were there with a floor ticket.
When the newly reunited Guns N’ Roses returned to their hometown of Los Angeles on November 29, 2017 — closing out their two-year marathon world tour — they did it with a four-hour-long megashow at The Forum in Inglewood. Despite the intention of treating their home crowd, it didn’t land quite right. Fans were talking more about Axl Rose’s weight and diminished vocals than the music itself. Oh, and Axl had broken his leg during the tour, so he sang the entire concert — yes, even that LA show — sitting in a throne. Quite the contrast from the days when he used to sprint across the stage with long hair, a bandana, boxers, and an open shirt flapping in the wind. Sure, Slash still had that magic ability to save the band’s momentum with his solos, but overall, the 2017 LA show just didn’t deliver that full-blown rock experience. I had to agree with the critics — they weren’t ready for a comeback just yet.
But last night in Budapest, the old Guns N’ Roses spark was back — at least a glimmer of it. Axl has clearly slimmed down and worked out (visibly so), and his voice even hit those classic frequencies a few times. During certain songs, I almost believed it was 1997 and I had time-traveled back into my teenage self.
The concert started precisely at 8:00 p.m. — which, considering Guns N’ Roses’ history, is a small miracle. During their 1991–1993 “Use Your Illusion” Tour, they were known to show up on stage three hours late. Legend has it, Axl was not exactly “stage ready” during that era. No surprise then that people trickled into the Puskás Arena up until 9 p.m.
The band kicked off strong with “Welcome to the Jungle” right after the intro, but the songs that followed mostly delighted the die-hard fans. It wasn’t until the second half of the show, around nightfall, that they started pulling out the big guns — their most famous and powerful hits. “Sweet Child o’ Mine,” “Sorry,” “Shadow of Your Love” — all got their moment. But it was “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door” that really lit the fire in the arena. The crowd raised their phones like glowing lighters, and from the floor, spinning around with your head held high was nothing short of uplifting. I can only imagine what it must feel like to experience that from the stage…
“Paradise City” jolted the crowd into full energy — even the seating area, where up until then people had been sitting with poker face and still, as if they were watching a Chekhov drama. The only difference was that instead of suits and gowns, everyone wore a Guns N’ Roses T-shirt or at least a flannel shirt (an Axl classic). Scanning the crowd, I was very glad we had tickets for the floor — the energy down there just kept climbing. By the time they played “Civil War,” the people around us were going wild.
As for the lukewarm vibe up in the seated area? My theory is: the sound. It left a lot to be desired. The acoustics weren’t great, and the music often blurred together, echoing off the walls. At times, it felt more like noise than rock, and Axl’s vocals even got lost in the mix. If you didn’t already know the songs well, it was hard to enjoy them — they came off as one big musical mush. That said, the stage visuals and lighting really carried their weight and lifted the whole production.
Merch was selling fast. We, too, grabbed the must-have plastic Guns n’ Roses cups… which were promptly stolen while we were in line for the bathroom. (No way we were taking them into a porta-potty.) Turns out, they were already sold out at the drink stands. Thankfully, two guys took pity on us and gifted us a couple from their collection. Rock fans are good people.
Axl changed outfits several times during the show. Not all of them were hits — at one point he wore a sparkly vest that looked like something Elton John might’ve rejected, which I’d file under “wardrobe malfunction.” But overall, he was styled well. And during “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door,” dressed in tight jeans, black T-shirt, bandana, and a backwards baseball cap, Axl wasn’t just a memory. Squint a little, and there he was — his former self. My 17-year-old heart skipped a beat.
The band saved their biggest hit, “November Rain,” for the end. The arena lit up with a sea of phone lights, like millions of tiny candles. Then Axl and the gang took a bow and didn’t come back. But hey, you gotta leave the stage at your peak.
– Virág Vida –
