In a new interview with Jeremy White, Mötley Crüe guitarist John 5 talked about one of their latest shows in a smaller venue.
During the chat about the rumors of backing tracks, the rocker was asked whether or not their intimate club shows were planned to dismiss the rumors. It appears that there was no intention to do so. John 5 explained:
“It wasn’t the statement. We were like, ‘Let’s go.’ I actually think it was Vince’s idea or something like that, I’m not sure, but we’re like ‘Oh let’s go play at a club,’ because we rehearse and we practice and we are sounding great. When you see it in a club there’s no hiding, you’re feeling that air from those amps. It is a rock and roll band. I watch it online and stuff and it sounds killer. I’m very proud, I think it sounds incredible. I love playing those club shows. It’s like my favorite thing to do because you’re so close, you’re like squeezed in with everybody.”
John 5’s Response To The Claims
Throughout their career, Mötley Crüe members have been accused of using backing tracks.
More recently, John 5 himself has also been getting the same comments about his guitar playing. In response, the rocker took to Instagram and shared two separate videos at different times to show that he wasn’t using any backing tracks and that he was actually playing.
In the videos, the rocker was seen playing the ‘Wild Side’ riff and Mick Mars’ solo. He then explained what he did in the video:
“So I’m just hammering that sus chord on. Very simple. I’ll do this quite a bit throughout the show.”
‘Nobody Sounds Like Vince Neil’
The accusations included both Vince Neil and Nikki Sixx too. Fans have noticed Vince doesn’t sing as well at live shows anymore. They say he has trouble hitting high notes and keeping his singing consistent.
However, his bandmate Tommy Lee dismissed the comments by saying no one else sounds like him:
“Being friends for that long and then being in a band with him, there’s something special that Vince has that absolutely nobody else has and that’s his f*cking voice. Nobody sounds like Vince. That’s a big deal to say because so many people sound and look like other people and aspire to be like somebody else. Vince is Vince. This is a beautiful thing. I love him to death.”
Carmine Appice’s Thoughts On The Matter
In addition to his bandmate, rockers from other bands also commented on the issue with Mötley Crüe.
Carmine Appice talked about using backing tracks in an interview and said he got into a fight with Sixx. However, he acknowledged why people would use backing tracks:
“I got into this big fight with Nikki Sixx about that which I didn’t mean to do anything. Somebody asked me about Jeff Beck and they asked me about Mick [Mars]. I was talking to Mick and Mick told me what he told me and I just said it to somebody and it blew up all over the place, but I think that’s terrible. It’s like Milli Vanilli back in the day. Their career got destroyed from that. I mean I could see if you want to put it some vocals or background vocals or something or keyboard.”
He added:
“Some guys do that, I could see that you had a little depth to it but to do it on bass and drums and guitars I mean there are a lot of people doing that. Boy, that’s terrible.”
You can watch the interview below.