Get “Down” with a New L.A. Guns Song
In less than two weeks, Guns N’ Roses and L.A. Guns have released new music. Do you have any idea how much that means to a guy who calls himself ‘Axl Rosenberg’? I feel like that dude in PCU who just proved The Caine-Hackman Theory.
ANYHOO, L.A. Guns — the version worth paying attention to, I mean — have announced that they’ll release a new album, Checkered Past via Frontiers.
This will be the thirteenth full-length L.A. Guns studio album, assuming you count certain records that feature guitarist Tracii Guns but not vocalist Phil Lewis and certain other records that feature vocalist Phil Lewis but not guitarist Tracii Guns but also don’t count certain other other records that feature guitarist Tracii Guns but not vocalist Phil Lewis. If you just count everything made under the name ‘L.A. Guns’ regardless of who was or was not in the band at the time, I think this is actually their 387th full-length studio album.
(And that’s not even getting into the myriad greatest hits, live recordings, and re-recordings this band has released. It’s almost as though they’re determined to put something out for every Axl Rose doesn’t premiere new music.)
Here’s the cover art for Checkered Past… and let me just take a second to say bravo to LAG for really getting the most possible mileage out of their logo design.
My ribbing aside, the first single from Checkered Past, “Knock Me Down,” is a characteristically solid outing from Guns and Lewis. It’s got a real loosey-goosey ’70s vibe, complete with an excellent use of cowbell. Tracii’s solo is on the less-shreddy side but is still great. I suspect fans who felt let down by the experimentalism GN’R demonstrated on “Absurd” will especially enjoy the vintage, no-B.S. feel of L.A. Guns’ “Knock Me Down.”
You can check out the song below, along with some upcoming LAG live dates.
Pre-order Checkered Past here. Alas, there’s no deluxe edition that comes with a L.A. Guns-themed checkers set.
Checkered Past Tracklist
- “Cannonball”
- “Bad Luck Charm”
- “Living Right Now”
- “Get Along”
- “If It’s Over Now”
- “Better Than You”
- “Knock Me Down”
- “Dog”
- “Let You Down”
- “That Ain’t Why”
- “Physical Itch”
L.A. Guns Tour Dates
November 12, Indio, CA, Fantasy Springs Resort Casino [tickets]
November 26, San Juan Capistrano, CA, Coach House [tickets]
November 27, Long Beach, CA, Gaslamp [tickets]
December 3, Las Vegas, NV, Count’s Vamp’d [tickets]
December 4, Las Vegas, NV, Count’s Vamp’d [tickets]
December 31, West Hollywood, CA, Whisky A Go Go [tickets]
Feb 9-14, Port of Miami, FL, Monsters of Rock Cruise 2022 [book]
