Last month Motley Crue announced plans for a 72-show final tour in North America with overseas dates to follow in 2015. But the rock veterans will not be hitting the road with any new songs with Nikki Sixx casting doubt on the worth of any band in their position making an album in todays climate, citing the difficulty of getting radio play as the main barrier preventing bands reaching an audience.
Nikki Sixx tells Classic Rock in an interview printed in full next issue, “We’ve written some songs. But this is difficult to say and probably harder to hear: when you spend nine months working on an album, all the work that goes into it and recording it, mixing it, mastering it, then you release it and it falls on deaf ears. Radio is so fuckin’ formatted, if you don’t have a banjo and a beard they’re not playing you over here. If you’re this kind of band at this stage of your career you can’t be played on Active Rock; if you’ve been around for more than fifteen years you’re classic rock, but classic rock radio doesn’t play new music. You just think, “Fuck, man, this sucks. I have the belief that I would rather have less music reach more people through different opportunities, whether it be through movies, through sponsorships or co-sponsorships through integrated marketing with other types of companies that want to use your song specifically to reach tens of millions of people. I’d rather work on two songs under that plan than do eleven songs that only reach 100,000 people.”
Mick Mars echoed Sixx’s sentiments to Artisan News stating, “I don’t know … maybe I’m retarded or something, but I like to put a lot of effort into this last, farewell tour…”
Watch Artisan News‘ interview with Mick Mars and Tommy Lee below.
source: classicrockmagazine.com
34 Responses
ps. i sure am happy RATT doesn’t feel this way. they are dying to make a new record, and gonna do just that! and did i mention how f’n good “infestation” was/is?!
just thought i’d throw that out there since you all came up together for the most. anyway, looks like motley just joined the ranks of cinderella and poison. except not considering motley did a cd. but different excuses. same song and dance. no new cd. except in this case i find it worst… motley is going bye bye. cinderella and poison are still around so there is still a chance. and even though im no big poison fan at all, i can’t lie and say im not curious. as far as cinderella… im the most disappointed in them. and yeah i get tom FINALLY put out the solo album… it still isn’t cinderella.
i guess im just saying that bands like that have money. ESPECIALLY motley. but the excuse is well radio won’t play it. wow… i guess maybe in that case it may be best. cause i don’t like the shit radio plays anyway for the most.
anyway it’s the excuses as to why no new cd’s that gripes me most. and congrats nikki and tommy {cause tommy started this talk a year ago of no new cd} for making your way onto the list of lame.
it’s a record company issue {cinderella}
yet it’s funny tom could do the solo record….
poison. who knows their deal. it changes from year to year.
i mean if you just dont want to do a new record than just be honest to us and kill the BS. there are millions of bands that will never get radio play but they putting out cd’s. crashdiet. hardcore superstar. we can even go older. overkill. slayer. metal church. none of them bands will ever get fm radio play. but they still put out cd’s. so shove it sixx. your excuse is weak as fuck.
anyway thanks to all the bands out there putting out cd’s. and i do mean all of you. i may not like your band but others do and i know how they feel from a fans point of view. and im not mad if i go see a band and they only play a song off their new cd. at least i get new music from them and that outweighs it being played live where im only gonna get to hear it that one time unless i see that band a few times on tour that year.
ok i think im done ranting. lol. but im sorry, it just pisses me off to hear the lame excuses from some of these bands as to why no new cd. if i believed the excuse then maybe i’d be ok with it. but when you know better… then it just becomes a joke. and to be honest, i hope sixx is lying. i’d rather believe that we just don’t have any music up to our standards than to hear.. “well the radio won’t play it and we’ll only sell 100,000”
even if that was the case… i guess 100,000 people ain’t worth your time. rolls eyes………….
Well if Nikki wants to improve radio he can help the issue by ending his crappy syndicated radio show.
Actually it is “Good material” issue. Nobody can write the hook & riffs anymore, Bon Jovi needs Child on the albums. Sixx knows his group gets zero airplay but Crue ’89 is all over the place. Brian Wilson could write Pet Sounds Part 2 for his group but it would get little play compared to the ’66 stuff.
Most of the bands from the 80’s era are releasing music that is just as great as when they did in their glory, as far as I’m concerned. If there were rock radio stations playing the bands we love at Trunk Nation, it’d be just as good as the old days. I’m sure that everyone here has to buy their CDs or downloads to listen to the bands we love, cause there is no terrestrial radio. I could totally dig a playlist from recent releases from Van Halen, Stryper, Lita Ford, Warrant, Ratt, Deep Purple, Winery Dogs, Night Ranger, Journey, Motley, Winger, Maiden, Monster Truck, Aerosmith, Kiss, Michael Monroe. I’ve bought the latest CD from every band here and they sound pretty fantastic to me. Just too bad the economics aren’t there for the bands and the fans for some reason. Aren’t there millions of us in North America that would listen? Our combined power ain’t enough? Really? The only thing that has economic power are bands with beards or electronic dance music?
Heck, we wonder about the brains behind the RnR Hall of Fame now…what about in 25 years? Rhianna or Kei$ha or that kinda lame crap? I’ll be 70 in 20 years and my CD player better still be working in the old folks home, I tell ya! I will be buried with my copy of Kiss Alive…record version of course!
Sorry Sixx-I don’t buy your B. S. at all, not by a long shot. What does radio have to do with anything? He just doesn’t want to put out a Mötley album. But I will bet anything I hold dear he will put out a Sixx A. M.album! Am I right? Or will Sixx A. M. not be putting out an album? Will they only be touring also? This sucks. A huge disappointment. So my favorite band’s last album was put out 6 years ago? I am so disappointed, and to make things worse, he’s lying.