Mötley Crüe guitarist John 5 took to Instagram to share a video of himself playing guitar after the backing track comments.
In the video, the rocker was seen playing two different riffs. The video came after some YouTube videos suggested that the band members were using backing tracks. One of these videos claimed that John 5 wasn’t playing during ‘Wild Side,’ showing that he wasn’t moving his hands while the music played. In a new Instagram video on June 24, John 5 explained to non-musicians how he achieved that effect:
“I think the part in ‘Wild Side’ that’s on the Internet saying, ‘Oh, look, John’s hand isn’t even on there.’ I do this thing where I flip the pick around on my neck. Very simple. So, it’s not a big thing. You know, a lot of things are played with one hand. A lot of musicians know this, so, uh, nothing to worry about. No backing tracks. Very simple.”
He wrote in the caption:
“I just wanna clarify and clear things up here there was a false news story saying I was using backing tracks and I find it very comical so check it out and here is an example very simple technique.”
Comments About Nikki Sixx
The guitarist received many comments about Nikki Sixx and the claims about him using backing tracks on stage.
One user said:
“And what about Nikki?”
Another wrote:
“Where’s Nikkis video?”
One user even said the issue wasn’t about John 5 but Nikki Sixx instead:
“We know you can play. We knew Mick can play. People think Nikki is using backing tracks.”
John 5 Defended Nikki Sixx
Mötley Crüe still continues to face accusations of using backing tracks. The headlines focus on Mick Mars’s comments before leaving Mötley Crüe in the past two months. One of the main claims was about Nikki Sixx using backing tracks. Nikki took these accusations seriously and responded on his social media many times.
John 5 came forward to defend the band too. Earlier in a chat, he turned the situation around by saying he views these accusations as a compliment rather than an insult. He said:
“It doesn’t really make me crazy when people say we’re playing to backing tracks; I take it as a compliment. I know that sounds crazy, but I take it as a compliment because we rehearse so hard. We even have penalty flags if someone messes up at rehearsal; we throw a penalty flag at them. We rehearse so much, and I take it as a compliment because that means we sound that good live. So, in my heart of hearts, I know that course we’re playing live.”
He added:
“If you listen to these concerts that I do with [Nikki], you hear bum notes. Do you really think that we would put a mistake on a track? No! It’s so crazy, but a hundred percent he plays every single note on there. Just listen to the shows before you make these statements because you’ll hear mess-ups. And that’s what rock and roll is. Yes, we do rely on technology for backup vocals, intros, outros, sirens, and horn hits. Of course, they’ve been doing that since ‘Dr. Feelgood.’ I’m not saying we don’t rely on technology for things that we can’t replicate ourselves, but me, Nikki, Tommy, and Vince; we’re all live up there.”
You can see John 5’s Instagram post here.