Axl Rose ... he has, apparently, fired his manager three times in the last five weeks. Photograph: Alexander Sibaja/Getty Images
It's not just Guns N' Roses fans who were disappointed with Chinese Democracy – so was Axl Rose himself. Fed up with the album's poor sales, the band's frontman has locked himself in his home and is not coming out, according to reports.
"[Axl] won't come out of his house," a source told the New York Daily News. "[He] doesn't want anything to do with [the album]."
Almost 15 years in the making, Chinese Democracy was finally released in 2008. Despite the fanfare around its completion, the album failed to make a substantial chart impact – peaking at no 2 in the UK and no 3 in the US. The title single only rose as high as no 27.
Axl Rose has also fired and re-hired manager Irving Azoff at least three times in the past five weeks, according to the source – described as "close" to Azoff. But "Axl is Axl. People get hired and fired all the time in this business."
Azoff's office doesn't seem particularly concerned. Asked about the relationship with their client, a spokesman said, "We're in daily contact with Axl, and we look forward to continuing to support him and Guns N' Roses."
Although a major world tour was expected this summer, Guns N' Roses have yet to announce any concert plans for 2009.