It’s beginning to appear as if Chinese Democracy, the latest album by Guns ‘N’ Roses, might be nothing more than an urban legend. After all, recording started in 1994, but despite over ten years, the album still has not seen the light of day. Is it some sort of hoax? Or some sort of mass hallucination?

The latest development might give some of you more gullible die-hard fans hope: several tracks were leaked to prominent music blogs last week but were quickly pulled after cease-and-desists from the band’s lawyers. And while this might seem like a good thing, it should be noted that this is the fifth time material from the album has been leaked, the first incident dating back to 2003. Add to that two officially-announced release dates that came and went without a release and we’ve got ourselves the bona fide Loch Ness Monsters of albums: everyone wants to believe it’s out there, and all these rumors seem to confirm it, but it’s still hidden in the murky depths, unwilling to reveal itself to the world.

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