Welcome to the 27th insertion of DEMUR®, an analytical series highlighting the intricacies of the artistic world and the minutiae lying within. In this episode we look back at the pyrotechnic chaos Mötley Crüe lives by, digging deep into the flaming hot legacy of a group so metal, they’re banned from rock n’ roll.
Mötley Crüe was founded on January 17th, 1981 with originating band members; Nikki Sixx (bassist), Tommy Lee (drummer), Mick Mar (guitarist) and Vince Neil as lead vocalist. Together, Mötley Crüe and a mountain of drugs, alcohol, and belligerent sex made waves in the glam rock scene with their outlandish persona and raw heterogeneity. Their image was equally crucial as their musical ability, pushing each member to new heights of drug fueled PR stunts.
Entering airport security with spiked stage costumes, calling in false bomb threats to venues and throwing tv sets out hotel windows were the nuance of Mötley Crüe’s PR career. A disregard for anything or one was a soundtrack to the initial years, giving radical a new meaning. However, as the climb to mainstream success caught pace following their performance of debut album “Too Fast for Love” in ‘83 - so did their antics.
Scale was everything, and Mötley Crüe wanted more. In ‘85, for their “Theatre of Pain” tour, Tommy Lee mounted his drum set to a death-ridden, mechanical steel cage in which tilted vertically to display a bird's-eye perspective. Two years later, the kit was adhered to a revolving cage, spinning 360 degrees for the ‘87 “Girls, Girls, Girls” album tour, and again for the Dr. Feel Good world tour in 1990. But this, as per usual, wasn’t enough.
After Nikki Sixx’s Heroin overdose and revival in ‘87, mania was pulsing throughout the group and widespread rehabilitation took place. In 1990, 3rd studio album ‘Dr. Feel Good’ was released, but legalities and inner turmoil withheld the group during the 2000’s. Reuniting in 2012 for “The Final Tour”, fans were met with flame throwing guitars and elaborate roller coaster drum kits, but exiled Mötley Crüe from the Rock n’ Roll hall of fame.
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