Guns N’ Roses have shared not one, but two new singles, as speculation surrounding a potential new studio album from the hard rock giants reaches boiling point.
Nothin’ and Atlas arrives as GNR’s first new material since 2023, when Slash, Axl Rose, Richard Fortus, and the rest of the group dropped The General and Perhaps.
In turn, those standalone singles came after the original GNR members Slash, Rose, and bassist Duff McKagan reunited in the studio for the first time in 28 years back in 2021 for a four-track EP, Hard Skool.
Against the backdrop of a grueling touring schedule that has already taken the band all over the world, Slash and co. clearly remain in rude creative health, and the arrival of Nothin’ and Atlas further seemingly confirms a new Guns N’ Roses album is merely a matter of when, not if.
Naturally, both new tracks feature plenty of Slash six-string exploits. Nothin’ – a fairly loose, back-beat power ballad – leaves room for a particularly lengthy solo, while Atlas is more ‘GNR of old’, propelled by a rolling riff and a far more urgent lead effort.
Now with four singles in two years under their belt, the next step for Guns N’ Roses would seem to be a fully fledged record.
After all, Slash all-but-confirmed an album was in the works, telling Guitar World that “everybody is thinking about it”.
“There’s so much material at this point – it’s a matter of having the discipline to sit down and fucking get into it,” he admitted. “But the thing with Guns is, in my experience, you can never plan ahead. You can never sit down and go, ‘We’re going to take this time, and we’re going to do this.’ Every time we’ve done that, it falls apart.”
The wait might have to go on a little longer, though. The two singles arrive alongside news of yet more touring dates, with Guns N’ Roses set to embark on another world tour next year that will stretch from March to September.
That would seem to imply that GNR will be spending much of their time on the stage rather than in the studio – but, of course, there are always work-arounds.
Furthermore, a press release for the new announcement did tease: “Guns N’ Roses never stops with more touring on the horizon and other surprises.” Does “other surprises” mean ‘new album’? Who knows. It’s all speculation right now. But it does all seem to be falling into place.
