Vince Neil and Tommy Lee Discuss New Era of Motley Crue with WMMR
Vince Neil and Tommy Lee of Mötley Crüe checked in with Radio Sara on WMMR to give us the dirt on new music, their current lineup, the Rock Hall, deep cuts, and more.
The World's Most Notorious Rock Band is entering a new era. Vince Neil and Tommy Lee of Mötley Crüe checked in with Radio Sara on 93.3 WMMR Philadelphia to give us *the dirt* on new music, their current lineup and the band's latest label partners.
"Dogs of War" was just released today (4/26) and the song has a modern polish over the classic Crüe sound. Hear the song in the official video below, which is an all-CGI clip that had major creative steering from the band through the lens of director Nick DenBoer.
So does a new track mean that a new album from Mötley Crüe will follow? A string of singles is more likely, Vince Neil tells MMR: "You put out 10, 11 songs (in an album) and half of the songs never get heard by anybody. And we figured if we do a couple songs at a time, we'd give it the full attention that it needs and put out singles. That's what we want to do right now."
Tommy Lee adds: "I think it's cool. Because what's going to happen here is you're going to get more, more frequently. The albums take forever to kind of conceptually put together, to record, do all that stuff, (and) it could be several years between a release. Now we'll just go in and record something and we'll just put it right out."
Earlier this week, the band announced their partnership with Big Machine Records, who released "Dogs of War" and will deliver Crüe's upcoming singles for the foreseeable future.
With a new era comes growing pains, and the departure of longtime guitarist Mick Mars has caused a ripple of skepticism through the band's fanbase. Mars retired from touring in 2022, but the following year he was dismissed from the band's lineup entirely. The move came as a surprise to their fans and to the industry; Mars claimed he was boxed out of the band, and the other members have shown concern over his physical and mental health. A breakdown of Mick's exit is here.
RELATED: The 40 Best Motley Crue Songs, Ranked
Here's the good news: the next guitarist to step up to the amp on Mötley Crüe's stage is more than qualified for the job. John 5 joined the lineup last year, and his resume includes an extensive run with Rob Zombie, plus David Lee Roth, Rob Halford, and many collaborations with Crüe's own bassist Nikki Sixx.
It's clear that the guys are ecstatic to have John 5 on board. Tommy exclaims, "He's the s***! He's one of those guys that, stylistically, is capable of playing (anything). You could just go, 'Dude, play me some blue grass mixed with some Beethoven' and he will just play it... and above and beyond that, the guy's a f***ng sweetheart. You can be an amazing musician, but if you're an a**hole, none of it matters. He's the sweetest guy and brings such a great new energy within us."
Mötley Crüe are touring the festival circuit in North America this summer, and they're kicking off a tour with a double-header in our area. They'll be in Atlantic City at the Hard Rock Live at Etess Arena on Friday May 3rd and Saturday May 4th. Vince confirmed that at the first gig, fans will be treated to the LIVE DEBUT of the new song "Dogs of War," telling Sara in the interview "Oh yeah, it's there!"
MMR's own Jacky Bam Bam will host our VIP pre-party and meet-and-greet with the band on the second night. Get tickets in info on MMR's Official Concert Calendar.
Watch the full interview below, where Vince and Tommy revealed the deep Crüe cut that they miss playing live, plus their thoughts on the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and at the end of the conversation, they comment on the most controversial topic of all…
FYI: Video contains NSFW language.
Watch the interview with Vince Neil and Tommy Lee of Motley Crue:
Motley Crue and Other Band Origin Stories
Today (December 11) is Nikki Sixx's birthday, and to celebrate, we thought we'd look back on some of the pivotal moments in rock history that lead to the creation of Motley Crue and some of the biggest bands ever. Enjoy!
Motley Crue
Kevin Winter/Getty ImagesSixx and Tommy Lee formed Motley Crue in 1981. Shortly thereafter, the two came across Mick Mars’ infamous “Loud, rude and aggressive guitar player available” ad. The weird kismet moment, of course, was that Sixx and Mars met before in a liquor store where Sixx worked as a cashier. It’s all in The Dirt. If you haven’t read it yet, shame on you!
U2
Chung Sung-Jun/Getty ImagesDrummer Larry Mullen, Jr., who was only 14 at the time, posted a note on a bulletin board at his high school saying he was looking for musicians to start a band. Six people responded to the note, and among them were Paul Hewson (Bono), David Evans (The Edge) and Adam Clayton. Who would have thought that a simple note would evolve into one of the biggest bands in history?
Van Halen
Ethan Miller/Getty ImagesObviously, this story starts with brothers Eddie and Alex, but those two came across David Lee Roth, because they would often rent his PA system. Roth at that time was in a band called the Red Ball Jets. The brothers Van Halen, in an effort to save money, asked Roth to join the band and bring his PA with him. The rest is history.
The Rolling Stones
Rich Fury/Getty ImagesThe Stones earliest beginnings can be traced back to Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, who were school friends when they both lived in Dartford, Kent, England. However, the two drifted apart due to Jagger and his family moving away to a different town, but the two would fatefully meet again about six year after the move on a platform at the Dartford Railway Station. The station even has a commemorative plaque on display at the station marking the historic moment.
Nine Inch Nails
Trixie Textor/Getty ImagesNIN really came to be because Trent Reznor was a janitor at a recording studio whose owner let him record for free during open studio time. The lesson? Even if your job isn’t exactly in your desired field, you never know what might come from it.
