Hard Skool

Slash and McKagan left Guns N’ Roses in the late '90s, with Slash and vocalist Axl Rose having a longstanding public feud until repairing their relationship in 2015. A year later Slash and McKagan rejoined the band for the record-setting Not in This Lifetime… Tour, with the band stating they intended to make new music.

The tracks "Absurd" and "Hard Skool" were initially recorded during the Chinese Democracy sessions, although an earlier version of "Hard Skool" might have been written in 1996.^[8][9] "Absurd" (known previously as "Silkworms") was performed live four times in 2001, before two different studio recordings of it leaking online in 2018 and 2019, respectively.^[10][11][12] A snippet of "Hard Skool" was posted online in 2006 under the title "Checkmate". In 2008, Rose mentioned that the working title of the song was "Jackie Chan".^[13] The full version from the Chinese Democracy sessions, under the name "Hard School", leaked in 2019.^[4][14]

A reworked version of "Absurd" was performed live for the first time on August 3, 2021.^[15] It was released as a single three days later, marking the group's first release of new material since the release of Chinese Democracy in 2008.^[16][17] It was also the first new Guns N' Roses track to feature guitarist Slash and bassist Duff McKagan since the release of 1994's "Sympathy for the Devil".^[18] "Hard Skool" was first performed by members of the band at soundcheck before the last concert of the canceled -- due to the COVID-19 pandemic -- tour on March 14, 2020, and then in August and September 2021.^[19][20][21] It was then released as a single on September 24.^[22] The track peaked at number 9 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Airplay chart.^[23] The official lyric video of the song debuted on Good Morning Football on December 3, 2021.^[24]

The Hard Skool EP was announced on September 25, 2021 and slated for release on February 25, 2022.^[25] Exclusive to the band's online store, it features live versions of "You're Crazy" and "Don't Cry", songs originally released on 1987's Appetite for Destruction and 1991's Use Your Illusion I, respectively.^[26][27] The Hard Skool CD and cassette, as well as the 7-inch single featuring a live version of "Absurd" as B-side, eventually became available earlier than originally announced, on January 28, 2022. A second 7-inch vinyl version was released June 2022 to the Nightrain fan club. It features "Hard Skool" and a new live version of "Shadow of Your Love".^[28]

Classic Rock's Stephen Hill gave "Absurd" a positive review, noting how the track makes the band "sound genuinely pumped up, aggressive and full of boisterous energy".^[29] However, Loudwire noted a divide among audiences, with some "digging the track" while others "don't seem so into it".^[30] "Hard Skool" was more well received, with several publications describing it as "vintage" Guns N' Roses.^[4][31][32]

Guns N' Roses

• Axl Rose – lead vocals, piano, production, programming
• Slash – lead guitar
• Duff McKagan – bass guitar, backing vocals
• Dizzy Reed – piano, keyboards, backing vocals, programming
• Richard Fortus – rhythm guitar
• Brain – drums, percussion (studio tracks only)^[38]
• Frank Ferrer - drums, percussion (live tracks only)
• Melissa Reese – keyboards, sub-bass, percussion, backing vocals

Additional credits

• Caram Costanzo – production, mixing, engineer
• Sean Beavan, Eric Caudieux – additional engineering