Chinese Democracy a "toe-tapper". Early Guns N' Roses guitarist Tracii Guns said he thought it was "over-indulgent, sterile and not that exciting". "Chinese Democracy"'s protracted recording process attracted extensive media coverage. According to "Spin", a cottage industry grew around covering its development; "the only way the record could have lived up to its legend would have been to never come out at all". Five years after its release, "Grantland" journalist Steven Hyden wrote: "For years, it was widely assumed "Chinese Democracy" would never come out; in retrospect, the delay is all anybody cares about ... As music, "Chinese Democracy" is merely the
Chinese Democracy million in damages against Geffen for the unauthorized use of the samples. In May 2010, Azoff's company Front Line Management sued Rose over unpaid concert fees. Shortly afterwards, Rose filed a $5 million counter-lawsuit against Azoff claiming Azoff had "sabotaged" the release of "Chinese Democracy", among other issues. The suit claimed Azoff had "purposefully spoiled the "Chinese Democracy" album art, botched a sales deal with Best Buy, and even leaked songs online". The lawsuit was settled in 2011. "Chinese Democracy" is banned in the People's Republic of China because of perceived criticism in its title track of the Chinese government