For those of you who haven't had their ear to the ground of the Rock/Metal scene, Motley Crue announced that they're calling it quits after going on one last hurrah and performing a Greatest Hits setlist all over the world. Unlike other bands such as Judas Priest who lie about going on a farewell tour just to fill more seats, Motley Crue have made a big deal about how this is genuinely the end and two days ago, I was lucky enough to catch them in Manchester before they fade away.
The warm-up band (The One Hundred) were fucking shite. They sounded like a generic screaming Metal band populated by thirteen year olds and their older brothers. So yeah, I don't recommend paying for anything by these guys based on what I heard.
Luckily, they were just a warm-up for a much better warm-up. Eventually, Alice Cooper and his band hit the stage and played a selection of hits from "Poison" to "No More Mr. Nice Guy". This isn't the first time I've seen Alice Cooper live but it was definitely the better performance. The first time, Alice Cooper was on his own at a charity gig with musicians from other bands such as Ian Paice and Brian May. However, since this was an Alice Cooper show, he had more time to play his own songs with all the theatrics involved.
I'm not really a huge Alice Cooper fan but his vocals are still as strong as they were when he recorded them all those decades ago, plus he really knows how to put on a freaky show. The only problem was that some of the stage theatrics (such as dressing as a massive Frankenstein Monster and running about shouting during the end of "Feed My Frankenstein") can be greatly distracting from the music so if you just want to hear Alice Cooper songs, you might find it a little off-putting. Then again, his shows have always been about shock and awe so if you go in expecting that, you won't be disappointed.
So yes, I enjoyed Alice Cooper's segment of the show. Now onto the main event!
Motley Crue came out with a roar and opened with "Girls, Girls, Girls", joined by pyrotechnics and two scantily clad ladies dancing about and occasionally providing backing vocals. They played a great selection of tunes from various albums with a few mediocre ones every now and then, such as a cover of "Anarchy In The U.K.". Not that it makes any difference as they're no longer touring after this year but the band are all still on top form. There are a few blemishes here and there such as Vince Neil's inability to sing longer vocal phrases without pausing throughout (very noticeable during "Live Wire" and "Dr. Feelgood") but everyone in the band and audience still had a great time.
There were also a couple of odd moments during the show, like Nikki Sixx's "follow your dreams" monologue about stealing his dad's penknife that he seemingly recited without taking a single breath. Along with this, there were the obligatory instrumental solos that bands seem to be doing more and more now. Mick Mars decided to impersonate Eddie Van Halen with a loud but obnoxious guitar solo, clearly fancying himself as some sort of virtuoso. Ordinarily, I wouldn't mind a good guitar solo that gets progressively more frenzied before ending on an all-out showstopper but this one sounded more like an air conditioning unit that's beyond the point of being totally fucked.
Unlike guitarists such as Slash or Steve Vai who have mastered the art of their instrument, Mick Mars seemed to rely heavily on smacking his fretboard and strings like a cat pawing at a laser pointer or a blind man trying to put out a fire on his crotch. It would've sounded a lot better if there was less feedback and you could actually hear each note he was playing, unless of course that was the intention after all. Maybe he's played much better solos at other gigs but I wasn't impressed after this one. Hey, speaking of using noise to cover things up, let's move onto the other spectacle of the show; the drum roller coaster.
If you haven't seen it before, I recommend checking it out on Youtube but basically, Tommy Lee starts a drum solo and as he does so, his kit is lifted into the air and spun around as it follows a track to another part of the stage, still with him playing all the way through. It's a pretty awesome sight and I was looking forward to seeing it in person. It started off with "O Fortuna" (or the scary operatic music used in teasers for The X Factor when they want to create the illusion of drama) and eventually broke into Tommy starting the beat as his kit slowly levitated.
A good start, yes, but things gradually fell apart (not literally). Instead of creating a drum solo himself, Tommy was drumming along to a remix of several tunes as he spun across the arena. This would've been fine if the remix contained Motley Crue songs, since that's what people paid to hear. Hell, I would've been satisfied if he stuck to Rock tracks, as there were snippets of Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath in the mix. Regretfully, the remix was mostly shitty Pop music and Dubstep, loud enough to cover up any actual physical drumming from the actual physical fucking drummer.
It was a hell of a stunt that, in my eyes, flopped miserably as soon as I recognised "Uptown Funk". Bad remixes, unimpressive solos and unnecessary covers aside though, it was a great show that ended on a single encore performance of "Home Sweet Home", a fitting swan song for these iconic Hair Metal heroes...even if I do suspect Tommy Lee wasn't really playing the piano. But yes, I had a fun night and even if I am being quite harsh on the band, I have massive respect for them for not completely phoning it in.
Many other Hair Metal or 80's Hard Rock acts probably would've let arrogance get in the way and put on a shitty show. It would've been incredibly easy for any of the band members to sack the whole thing off and say "Hey, it doesn't matter if this goes to shit. I've still got millions upon millions to my name!". Maybe one of them did in their own way or will do on their last ever gig but as far as I'm concerned, they put on a hell of a show. It's things like this that make Motley Crue different to Guns N' Roses, for example.
Bottom line is I enjoyed both shows, even if they had a few faults. The band came together as a cohesive unit and rocked an entire arena. I can't recommend seeing these guys live as that opportunity has expired (unless you've got a time machine on you, in which case I do recommend popping back and seeing them play!) but if you haven't done already, do give their earlier albums a listen; particularly Theatre Of Pain.
Motley Crue are one of those bands who are capable of writing insanely catchy songs AND top quality filler tracks too. They're not just hair spray and eyeliner, they're decent musicians if you give them a chance. The next gig I'm going to will be in December as I'm seeing The Darkness in Leeds. I've already reviewed their latest album on the blog but I'll give the show a write-up as well, assuming I'm not inundated with ideas for the rest of the year.
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