Axl Delivers "Chinese" This Fall. Really.

Tue., May. 9, 2006 10:35 AM PDT by Josh Grossberg

We know you've heard it before, but this Axl Rose says he finally ready to spread some Democracy. Honest.

The Guns N' Roses ringleader emerged from his Cheney-esque secure location last Friday to appear on a New York radio station, where he revealed that Chinese Democracy will at long last make its way to stores within a few months.

The 44-year-old singer broke the news on Eddie Trunk's syndicated radio program on WAXQ-FM after cohost Sebastian Bach of Skid Row fame phoned Rose on his cell and conducted an impromptu interview to find out what the deal was.

When questioned when the seemingly forever gestating album would finally be unleashed, the flamed-haired singer replied, "Sometime this fall or late fall," adding that "it will be out this year." Presumably he didn't have his fingers crossed.

Rose, the only original member left from the classic GNR lineup, is currently in Manhattan with his new Guns N' Roses crew rehearsing for shows at the Hammerstein Ballroom May 12, 14, 15, and 17.

The band will then head to Europe for several festival dates in June and a reunion with Rolling Stones. Guns N' Roses will open Stones shows in Nuremburg and Leipzig, Germany July 10 and 12, respectively. (GNR last opened for Mick and the boys at the Los Angeles Coliseum in 1989.)

During the brief phone call, Trunk invited Rose to stop by his studio. Lo and behold, the reclusive singer showed up an hour later, but the radio hosts had a hard time interrogating him.

Asked to explain the cancellation of the Gunner's infamous 2002 comeback tour, which came after Rose flaked on a concert in Philadelphia, the singer initially demurred before saying that he just wasn't ready to take the stage again. But, he added, he was glad that the revamped lineup got some stage experience under its belt so the new members felt more like a band than hired hands.

For that 2002 iteration, Rose welcomed to the jungle ex-Nine Inch Nails guitarist Robin Finck, former Replacements bassist Tommy Stinson, guitar virtuoso Buckethead, onetime Psychedelic Furs guitarist Richard Fortis, former Primus drummer Brian "Brain" Mantia," and keyboardists Chris Pittman and Dizzy Reed, the latter of whom joined GNR during the Use Your Illusion era in the early '90s.

Rose announced that Buckethead will not be joining Guns N' Roses on the forthcoming jaunt, having left the band in 2004.

During his radio interview, however, the rocker did note that he had been hanging out with ex-Gunner Izzy Stradlin, sparking speculation that Stradlin might end up making a surprise appearance at one of the Hammerstein gigs. There have been conflicting rumors about whether Rose's former running mate Slash would be back in the fold, but Rose didn't address that. (Slash and original GNR bassist Duff McKagan are suing Rose over royalties.)

Rose confirmed that the band has recorded "two-and-a-half, three albums worth of material" but that Chinese Democracy will be a single disc and he's finalizing the track list. He also hinted that some of the leftover songs could be saved for a future release.

Of course, we've heard all this before, most recently in February after Rose showed up at a tour kickoff party hosted by Korn and declared that "people will hear music this year." He made the statements around the same time three studio-quality tracks from Democracy--"There Was a Time," "I.R.S." and "Better"--were leaked to a Boston radio station and found their way to the Internet.