Following a week of superb performances from so many bands, there are only so many artists that can bring an entire festival’s focus back onto a single-stage and keep them there for almost three hours. On Saturday night at Hellfest 2022, all eyes and ears await Guns N’ Roses.
Guns N’ Roses – Hellfest 2022 – 25 June 2022.
Words: Kahmel Farahani
Still on their record-breaking Not In This Lifetime tour, Guns N’ Roses are midway through a run of European shows, and tonight they are in fine form. Kicking off with the AFD heavy hitters It’s So Easy, Mr Brownstone and Welcome To The Jungle, Guns N’ Roses keep tonight’s set fast and heavy.
AC/DC’s Back In Black is next, with frontman Axl Rose sounding brilliant, even on such a demanding song. After more than five years from their first shows back as permanent members, Slash and Duff McKagan have never looked more at home than they do tonight, and it’s a joy to watch them flex their musical muscles on newer songs like Hard School and Better.
The earliest days of Guns N’ Roses are also given a workout with Reckless Life and Shadow Of Your Love. While all the hits are present and accounted for, the moments that the band simply jam and enjoys themselves make for the unforgettable.
Civil War is given an outro jam with Hendrix’s Machine Gun riff, while Slash leaves behind his traditional solo piece of The Godfather for a jam of Albert King’s Born Under A Bad Sign. Fellow guitarist Richard Fortus is surely one of the finest players of his generation and a perfect companion to Slash’s thick, bluesy lead tone, and the pair expand Knockin’ On Heavens Door with a stunning back and forth of guitar licks.
One of many highlights of tonight is Guns N’ Roses beginning their encore with UYI classic Coma before the acoustic guitars are brought out for Patience. The fast AFD version of You’re Crazy is played at breakneck speed and force before a triumphant Paradise City closes things off for the night with the entire crowd singing along at the top of their lungs.
Hellfest 2022 will be held over two weekends in June, featuring 350 artists on six stages. For more information visit www.hellfest.fr/en/
You can read all the MetalTalk Hellfest coverage at metaltalk.net/tag/hellfest-2022
This year there is also a virtual edition, Hellfest From Home. For more details visit fromhome.hellfest.fr
