Guns N' Roses Can Play Gillette Stadium, but Not Past 11:15

FOXBOROUGH, MA - Guns N’ Roses might be coming to Gillette Stadium, but they’ll be expected to wrap up the show by 11:15 p.m.

Tuesday, the selectmen approved the entertainment license for the concerts scheduled for July 19 and 20, but the license didn't include a request from the stadium to extend the show’s curfew to 11:40 p.m.

Jess Enos, the director of business development and external affairs for Gillette Stadium, told the board that the tour has been running past 11:30 p.m. but stadium officials are reaching out to band representatives to have Guns' N' Roses end their show by the town’s curfew of 11:15 p.m.

“Asking for 11:40 p.m. doesn’t mean we’re going to check it off our list of things to do because it’s important to be the best neighbors we can be,” Enos said. “We don’t have a lot of control over what Axel Rose decides to do.”

The request for the late finish didn’t sit well with the board, who noted that the two shows are on a Tuesday and Wednesday night.

“If this was a weekend I wouldn’t have a problem, but it’s a work night. People have to get up early to go to work. This isn’t going to be an acoustic evening,” Selectmen Ginny Coppola said.

Enos said there haven’t been any major issues with the crowds during the tour. During previous stops, the band has played in stadiums with either a midnight curfew or received a waiver from the local licensing board to play later.

Prior to the meeting, Police Chief Ed O’Leary, Fire Chief Roger Hatfield, and the Stadium Advisory Committee all signed off on the license with the 11:40 p.m. end time. O’Leary said he doesn't expect any of the same issues that arose during their 1992 visit to Foxboro Stadium, remarking that may be the result of an aging audience.

Stadium Advisory Committee Chairman George Bell said his committee hasn't received many concerns about noise levels at concerts, telling the board they received maybe two complaints for the past 10 shows.

Selectman Jim DeVellis said he was worried that the waiver would create a precedent for future acts. Last year, the selectmen approved a request for a later curfew for two Taylor Swift shows, both of which were on weekend nights.

“The stadium is a fine balance because the urban/suburban mix is not the same. To break on a rock concert at 11:40 p.m. when people have to get to work it’s not the same,” DeVellis said.

Selectman Chris Mitchell proposed a compromise where the curfew is moved to 11:30 p.m., but no action was taken on the recommendation.

When Selectman Mark Elfman asked if there was some pushback from the band over the curfew, Enos said there was.

If the show goes past the curfew, the stadium faces fines of 10 cents per attendee for the show going five minutes past 11:15 p.m. The fine increase to 25 cents per attendee for going six minutes to 15 minutes late, and 50 cents for 16-30 minutes past curfew.

A sold-out crowd is expected for the first show, with a much smaller audience for night two. Enos said the stadium is planning to close the 300-level for the July 20th show.