<\/p>\n
When the principal members of Guns N’ Roses<\/a> reunited in 2016, they didn’t immediately rediscover their songwriting mojo. Just look at our ranked list of Guns N’ Roses post-reunion songs for proof.<\/p>\n Mercurial frontman\u00a0Axl Rose<\/a> did the seemingly unthinkable when he buried the hatchet with guitarist Slash<\/a> and bassist Duff McKagan<\/a>. The semi-reunited Guns N’ Roses launched\u00a0a blockbuster reunion tour in 2016, but new songs didn’t follow for several years.<\/p>\n To date, Guns N’ Roses have released six “new” songs since 2016: “Absurd” and “Hard Skool” in 2021; “Perhaps” and “The General” in 2023; and “Nothin'” and “Atlas” in 2025. They all\u00a0date back to the sessions for 2008’s long-delayed\u00a0Chinese Democracy<\/a><\/em> and have\u00a0been updated with new guitar and bass parts from Slash and McKagan.<\/p>\n READ MORE:<\/strong> All 84 Guns N’ Roses Songs Ranked Worst to Best<\/a><\/p>\n As a result, some of these “new”\u00a0tunes sound a bit disjointed \u2014 and some of them barely sound like Guns N’ Roses at all.\u00a0But while none of them quite reach the glorious highs of the band’s classic era, some of them get\u00a0admirably close.<\/p>\n Read on to see our list of Guns N’ Roses post-reunion songs ranked worst to best.<\/p>\n You know what they say: First is the worst. When Guns N’ Roses debuted “Absurd” in 2021 as their first post-reunion song, all but the most hardcore fans were gobsmacked\u00a0by\u00a0the grinding alt-metal oddity.<\/p>\n “Absurd”\u00a0had been kicking around for two decades under the working title “Silkworms.” Its choppy, simplistic riffs are\u00a0bland\u00a0and mostly inoffensive. But Rose’s\u00a0overly processed vocals and godawful lyrics are\u00a0among\u00a0the worst musical contributions of his career. Simply put, “Absurd” is irredeemable.<\/p>\n Rose’s trip-hop affinity rears its head on “The General,” a genre-hopping curio anchored around electronic beats and wah-drenched guitar licks.\u00a0The frontman\u00a0employs multiple vocal registers on the track, singing simultaneously in a baritone\u00a0croon and pinched, nasally sneer.<\/p>\n There aren’t many conventional rock elements to be found in “The General,” save for its doom-laden chorus, which is marred by\u00a0heavy-handed vocal compression. In terms of composition and production, this song still feels stuck in demo form. Nothing particularly clicks here.<\/p>\n Now we’re getting somewhere! “Perhaps” picks up where the\u00a0Use Your Illusion<\/em> albums left off: a peppy, Elton John<\/a>-style piano rocker featuring remorseful lyrics and biting, multi-tracked vocals.<\/p>\n It’s easy to see how “Perhaps”\u00a0could have fit on\u00a0Chinese Democracy<\/em> alongside similar piano-based\u00a0songs such as\u00a0“Street of Dreams” and “Catcher in the Rye.” If there’s\u00a0a downside to the song, it’s the pedestrian rhythm section and uninspired guitar solo. Still, the bones of a\u00a0solid song are here.<\/p>\n Don’t be fooled by\u00a0the lounge-style keyboards and electronic beats that open “Nothin’.” The song quickly\u00a0blossoms into a full-fledged power ballad, rife with massive power chords and\u00a0anthemic hooks.<\/p>\n Slash shines in particular on “Nothin’,” alternating between aching guitar squalls and fiery solos.\u00a0As Rose wails atop his\u00a0expressive outro solo, you can\u00a0almost<\/em> picture the Guns N’ Roses of yesteryear exploding from your speakers.<\/p>\n Guns N’ Roses fans yearning for the\u00a0no-holds-barred hard rock of the band’s early days will have to satiate themselves with “Hard Skool.” This brisk\u00a0rocker\u00a0is the closest GN’R have gotten to their “vintage” sound since reuniting, full of taut riffs, economical solos and blistering vocals. It’s damn catchy to boot.<\/p>\n “Hard Skool” isn’t perfect. Once again, there’s a strange production sheen over Rose’s vocals, making the gap between the initial recording and contemporary\u00a0overdubs all the more apparent. The official version also\u00a0cuts\u00a0the more ambitious elements of the previously circulated demo. Nevertheless, it gets points for its catchiness and verve.<\/p>\n If there’s a single song from the crop of post-reunion Guns N’ Roses releases that shows how the band could\u00a0have soldiered\u00a0on through the ’90s with their wits and\u00a0style intact, it’s “Atlas.”<\/p>\n This\u00a0groovy, mid-tempo rocker\u00a0preserves GN’R’s hard rock instincts but\u00a0filters them through a ’90s alt-rock prism. (Imagine the band got\u00a0really<\/em> into Spacehog and Tiny Music<\/i>-era Stone Temple Pilots<\/a> while making it.) Rose’s vocals are\u00a0expressive and dynamic, while McKagan delivers nimble bass\u00a0lines\u00a0and Slash\u00a0soars with tasteful leads and solos.\u00a0On “Atlas,” Guns N’ Roses finally sound reunited.<\/p>\n It’s not a large catalog, but its impact is mighty.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n Gallery Credit: Michael Gallucci<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n6. “Absurd” (2021)<\/h3>\n
5. “The General” (2023)<\/h3>\n
4. “Perhaps” (2023)<\/h3>\n
3. “Nothin'” (2025)<\/h3>\n
2. “Hard Skool” (2021)<\/h3>\n
1. “Atlas” (2025)<\/h3>\n
Guns N’ Roses Albums Ranked<\/h2>\n