Because the Summer Olympics in Beijing have resparked our interest in all things Chinese, we're thrilled to bring you the latest non-news regarding Axl Rose's long-delayed, probably still-not-done opus: Billboard reports that the cornrowed, procrastinating Guns N' Roses front man is in talks to release Chinese Democracy exclusively through either Best Buy or Wal-Mart. According to a source, there are still ongoing negotiations to give the album traditional record-company distribution, but GNR's manager, Irving Azoff, is apparently a fan of retailer exclusives (he's partially responsible for that crappy recent Eagles album, which you never heard because it came only out at Wal-Mart).

If the record is available only through Wal-Mart, local Guns N' Roses fans hoping for a first-day copy will have to go all the way to Secaucus, New Jersey (there's currently no branch of the retailer in any of New York's five boroughs), which is nearly as inconvenient as having to wait fourteen years for its release.

Guns N' Roses in talks for exclusive album release [Billboard]