Category: Live Reviews
Tags: mick mars, motley crue live in wacken open air, nikki sixx, tommy lee, vince neil

Motley Crue are expected at The Black Stage, half an hour after Alice Cooper concludes his set. The crowd is warmed- up by now and there is a lot of tension in the air. Excited girls are trying to get near the stage, dragging their boyfriends with them (they don’t seem to mind). The stage background consists of sets cut out like buildings and skyscrapers. Suddenly, fire errupts from them, along with a blast of fireworks and the band is on stage with Kickstart My Heart. The crowd goes predictably wild.

Vince Neil looks like the eternal Californian frat- boy poser. Nikki Sixx is a leather- clad caricature of a rock star, while our own Tommy Lee has more tattoos in his skinny frame than it’s possible to count. They bounce around on stage like men half their age. All of them apart from Mick Mars, who stays hunched over his guitar like a gargoyle and only moves when necessary (due to his severe spinal problems).

Unlike the rest of the evening’s headliners, the Crue are far more famous for their extracurricular activities (Tommy Lee’s sex tape, Vince’s car accident, their awesome autobiography, etc.,) than their music. They do not possess Alice Cooper’s theatricality and knack for re- invention or Maiden’s huge back catalogue and technical ability. They are disreputable scumbags, basically.

Try telling that to the sea of people screaming around me…

Shout At The Devil is barely a song but live, with thousands of people chanting the words, it becomes a primal, all- powerful mantra. Everyone is howling on top of their lungs like rabid dogs. Semi- naked women are climbing on the shoulders of strangers, screaming orgasmically.

And so it goes. All of their songs are custom built for arenas. Even if you have never heard Ten Seconds To Love before, you ‘ll be singing along by the second verse. They burn through Same Old Situation, Don’t Go Away Mad, Motherfucker Of The Year, Primal Scream, Saints Of Los Angeles, Dr. Feelgood and a bunch of others. They are not the best band of the festival but they make damn sure everyone has a good time during their watch. Mission accomplished.

setlist:
1.Kickstart My Heart
2.Wild Side
3.Shout At The Devil
4.Saints Of Los Angeles
5.Looks That Kill
6.Live Wire
7.Don’t Go Away Mad (Just Go Away)
8.Same Ol’ Situation (S.O.S.)
9.Mutherfucker of the Year
10.Ten Seconds to Love
11.Primal Scream
12.Dr. Feelgood
13.Girls, Girls, Girls

(-Dimitris Kontogiannis-)

All photos taken by -manoc- for Crows ‘n’ Bones magazine

About the Author: CnB