Chinese Democracy [Special Edition]

The CD version has masses of customer reviews, but how good is the vinyl? Well the answer is it is a fantastic pressing on double 180g, and sounds amazing. The CD is pretty good but this is better, something that is not always true of vinyl versions. Someone who knows what they are doing has worked on this and it shows. Somewhat surprising as G'N'R vinyl was not that great previously - the Use Your Illusion albums are for example not very good on vinyl.
The sleeve is gatefold and the cover is about 100 times better than on the CD. Inside you get the wide Mao picture which is in the centre pages of the CD booklet, printed over with credits, but disappointingly no lyrics. The inner sleeves are plain back plastic lined.
The music? Well, you can read plenty of petty nit picking on the CD review pages, but if you like this sort of thing (rock) there is nothing better. It's a great album, but coming out in 2008 instead of say 1978 is not going get it the recognition it deserves.

After buying a limited edition of an album a couple years ago that came with two vinyl records of the album, and adding it to my dad's collection, I decided to find myself a record player. Long story short, I found one, played a handful of these vinyls at my disposal, and decided I might buy several more recent vinyl records, partly to see how they sound on a different medium, and partly because I'm quite nostalgic and love the idea of placing a record on a turntable, placing the stylus on, hearing the crackling before a song and listening to the non-compressed audio.

Deciding on what to buy, this was amongst the three I bought. Why I don't know, but I'm glad I did.

While the two vinyl records in my limited edition album are still quite well presented, Chinese Democracy has something greater at its disposal; it has had care put into its design. The front cover of the album is blown up and is more striking (it's only now on vinyl I realise there isn't a corner to the wall on the right of the bicycle), and the litter is more identifiable, flip the case over and you have the red star artwork, a surreal image to add to the other surreal images synonymous with Guns N' Roses albums, the tracklist broken up into the four sides you can find them on, as well as the Chinese lettering above it mirroring the band's name and album title on the front cover (my best guess is the Chinese lettering is the band's name and album title).

Open the case up and the General Mao artwork found in the centre double pages of the album booklet takes up the entire two sides with the list of personnel involved on every song of the album on the left and the complete thank yous on the right. Even though this is similar to the CD, on vinyl this feels more epic and fitting the build-up for this album.

One complaint could be the lack of an lyric sheet, but with the Internet this isn't a necessity and can be overlooked.

Listening to the album, now that's where the real gratification can be found.

Upon its release, Axl Rose and Caram Costanzo, the album's producers, decided out of three versions of the album the one with the least compression and more dynamics. And while the end effect can be slightly overlooked on CD, on vinyl it is evidently clear. Even with songs that maybe have 26 guitars playing at the same time, songs like "Madagascar" where a selection of quotes from political activists and films play against a backdrop of brooding instruments, everything is clear and the sounds intended for you to hear are easily picked up. Chinese Democracy is easily one of the best albums released on vinyl, and whether it be for sheer nostalgia or general interest, it is a format that any Guns N' Roses or rock fan should listen to the album on, even if just for once.

Of course, this is a product that only those prepared to pay the increased priced for this album should buy. If you were not convinced by the album when you heard/bought the CD, you're not expected to buy it. For me, after repeat viewings, the true majestic nature of Axl Rose's opus is applaudable, and his dedication to craft the 14 songs to their perfected end product is commendable, and after hearing the end product on vinyl in a package made with such care, I'll be hard-pressed to listen to this album any other way.

I have to agree that this should have been released on the same day as the CD. However, this pack-ins are great and are worth the price. This is an awesome set for anyone who has been waiting 15 years for this CD.