Motley Crue's new Saints of Los Angeles CD represents the Motley Crue Motley Crue fans grew up with and loved (or hated) in the 1980s. This CD, inspired by the group's sleazy 2001 autobiography The Dirt, feels much more like the natural follow-up to 1989's classic Crue CD Dr. Feelgood than the band's forced attempts at trying to fit their glam metal sound into prevailing (fleeting) trends in the 1990s when they attempted grunge, techno and sullen rock with predictably lame results. It's the first CD since 1997's unlistenable Generation Swine to feature the original lineup of Vince Neil, Nikki Sixx, Mick Mars and Tommy Lee.
Saints traces the foursome's '80s rise from the underbelly of the Sunset Strip to the world of big time rock and roll where they wallowed in drugs, booze, sex and alcohol-related car crashes (one of which, with singer Vince Neil behind the wheel, killed a member of Hanoi Rocks in 1984) and interband clashes. This time, the boys remember to bring the catchy pop-metal hooks that came naturally on '80s albums like Girls, Girls, Girls, Shout at the Devil and Dr. Feelgood. The track White Trash Circus sums it up:
"Been livin' on the road about a year and a half/If we go another mile we're gonna kick each other's ass/Someone's gonna quit or someone's gonna die/And we don't give a s--- because we're busy gettin' high/Another lawsuit and another arrest/Wouldn't change a thing because we love it to death."
The band plays West Palm Beach on July 1. Look for my review of Saints of Los Angeles in the July 4 Weekend section of The Miami Herald.
I can't say I would necessarily want to see them now, but I'm sorry - Dr. Feelgood is an AWESOME song. (Girls Girls Girls too).
I realize this shows a character flaw on my part, but I'm good with it.
Posted by: can't fight this feeling anymore | June 27, 2008 at 12:21 PM