ROSES - GUNS N' ROSES FANS DESERT GROUP AT 1AM HOMECOMING

GUNS N' ROSES FANS DESERT GROUP AT 1AM HOMECOMING

GUNS N' ROSES' first southern California show for 14 years fell on largely deaf ears on Saturday night (23SEP06) as fans gave up on the group after frontman AXL ROSE arrived on stage an hour late. The SWEET CHILD O' MINE rockers were slated to headline the Inland Invasion festival just before midnight, but unpredictable Rose didn't hit the Hyundai Pavilion stage until 1am. By then, many fans had already drifted off after watching the likes of MUSE and actor JARED LETO's band 30 SECONDS TO MARS, and more left when Rose and his new-look group started playing new material instead of hits. But Rose, 44, was undeterred by the dwindling crowds and impressed those who stayed with a two-hour set fuelled by his gym workout-like performance. Fan DAVID GRINT says, "Axl was amazing. It wasn't always pretty but he can still hit the high notes and he's still all-energy. "Unfortunately, there were a lot of breaks for costume changes and a few too many guitar solos and new songs." Among the highlights were a cover of CHRISTINA AGUILERA's BEAUTIFUL and a duet with SKID ROW's SEBASTIAN BACH on Guns N' Roses fan favourite MY MICHELLE.