Slash's Snakepit Album: “Ain't Life Grand”

With Ain't Life Grand hard rock icon Slash & his rock 'n roll wrecking crew Snakepit crank it up to the max. The all new lineup features a group of guys out to do nothing but rock. The most signifigant acquisition is that of new vocal talent Rod Jackson. Jackson is a true wildman, bringing to the board a high volume, soulful and energetic voice full of charisma and range. The album is expertly produced by legendary Aerosmith producer Jack Douglas. In a music world dominated by kornbisquit hip-hop/rock bands, Ain't Life Grand strikes hard armed with an arsenal of all out rockin' tunes. Slash lays down the crunching riffs and blazing yet bluesy leadwork he once rode to the top of the world with Guns 'n Roses. Track #1, Been There Lately is the perfect blast off song. It's an absolute stomper; it rocks so hard it's funny. Just Like Anything is an up-tempo song full of attitude and a showcase of Rod Jacksons vocal talent. Slash opens Shine with a liquidy slide guitar intro, leading to a sensational song. You'll want to check out Mean Bone-cool concept here: The song opens with a chick-rap, where a girlfriend is using her man. Along comes a heavy riff, the guy has had enough and puts his foot down(the song just plain destructive now!) A song that personifies the band and album is Life's Sweet Drug. It's an out of control jam full of riff of the year guitar work and aggressive vocals accompanied by an uncontainable band. Slash is all over this disc, whailing on his Les Paul like the Guitar God that he is. From begining to end, each song shows no mercy to your ears(or speakers). Simply put, hard rock 'n roll does'nt get much better than Ain't Life Grand. It's an Aerosmith, AC/DC, and of coarse GNR soaked tracklist of gems which proves to be one of the finest albums to come out in a while. The bottom line is, Ain't Life Grand is the best thing to happen to music since Guns 'n Roses!

(just for the record, Axl- GET YOUR STUFF TOGETHER AND CALL SLASH!)

The first track I heard off of "Ain't Life Grand" was "Mean Bone." The story is sort of interesting. After getting into Guns N' Roses, I decided to download a few tracks of Slash's Snakepit as a sample. When I connected my new iPod, it automatically downloaded all the tracks on my library to the device. I hadn't yet listened to "Mean Bone" so that night I had my iPod on shuffle and suddenly this weird song started playing. It was a woman's voice with some funky beat in the background. I was like, "What is THIS?!" I was about to switch it off when all of a sudden I heard the guitar intro roaring into play and the lead singer's voice literally growling.

Yes, it was quite a surprise, and I immediately fell in love with the fierce attitude of the song. I found out it was "Mean Bone," and ever since I've been listening to it repetitively.

I haven't heard every track on this CD, but I have heard most of them, and although it's certainly acquired taste as someone else pointed out (best to listen to Gn'R first and move on from there), for fans of rock - REAL rock - this will be a breath of fresh air. In a decade of Limp Bizcuits it's no wonder this album flopped and the band broke up soon after its release.

It's rare that I can listen to an album the first time and instantly like it. "Ain't Life Grand" is one of those CDs. I found myself hitting the replay button on the first three songs alone!

The previous reviewers are correct, there is definitly an Aerosmith/Zeppelin groove on the album, but with Slash's unmistakable guitar work, it's got a style all its own. "Been There Lately," "Just Like Anything," and "Shine" are steller songs that stick with you long after you're done listening.

This has got to be one of the best releases of 2000-2001 in the Hard Rock genre. Why radio stations that play Classic Rock aren't picking up on this, I don't know. But why let them decide what you listen to anyway? They're missing out on a good thing -- don't let this happen to you.

If you're tired of manufactured teen pop or tired replayed Classic Rock tracks, give this album a try. It has just about every element you could want. If you're a Guns 'n' Roses fan, this is an example of the great material they could have been putting out had they not fallen apart.

It's good -- really good.

This is Slash's project after GN'R dismembered. This is Slash's band driven by a sound of his childhodd influences. This is Snakepit's second album, and sounds like a mix between Led Zeppelin and Aerosmith. I highly recommend this shredding guitar god's awesome album.

This is a cd that is great if you like rock n roll. It is not like new rock, it still has that 80's feel and crunch to it. This is the best cd that I have heard in a while, and it keeps you into it during the entire cd. All of the songs are great, I havent found one that I dont like yet.

Buy this cd, you will love every minute of it. Slash is the best! If you like GNR buy this cd!