Nikki Sixx expected to ‘crash and burn’

Motley Crue bassist Nikki Sixx says he expected to crash and burn at a young age.

And he reveals the reason he threw himself into music and the accompanying hedonistic lifestyle was because he didn’t have a stable family life and never thought he’d make it through the other side.

He tells The Guardian: “I never had a template of what a family was. I never really thought I would ever make it to that place in my life. I thought I’d be one of these crash and burn kids. So I threw myself headlong into music and that lifestyle – I never really figured I’d get out of the other side.

“A few years later, when I got sober and was able to become a father and have a family, that was when some of the greatest lessons came.”

He says the track Search And Destroy by Iggy And The Stooges struck a chord when he was younger. He continues: “By the time I got into the heavier guitar stuff I was going through that adolescent anger thing.

“It’s a common story but mine was also fuelled by a father and a mother that were gone and not really knowing where I fit into society. That song really connected with me.”

Motley Crue will wrap up their touring commitments for good next year – but Sixx echoes frontman Vince Neil’s comments that the band still have a future.

He adds: “December 31 2015 will be the last one – 100%. We signed a contract that the band cannot go on as a touring entity.

“Of course, we’ll continue to license our music to movies and do cool things with merchandise. We’re proud of what we built. We’re not just going to walk away from it. But as a touring band, we feel that our time has come and gone. We want to leave it intact.”

His side-project Sixx AM recently launched their third album Modern Vintage. They’ll hit the road on their first headlining tour of the US next year with Apocalyptica as support.

Scott Munro
Louder e-commerce editor

Scott has spent more than 30 years in newspapers, magazines and online as an editor, production editor, sub-editor, designer, writer and reviewer. Scott joined our news desk in the summer of 2014 before moving to the e-commerce team in 2020. Scott maintains Louder’s buyer’s guides, scouts out the best deals for music fans and reviews headphones, speakers, books and more. He's written more than 11,000 articles across Louder, Classic Rock, Metal Hammer and Prog and has previous written for publications including IGN, the Sunday Mirror, Daily Record and The Herald, covering everything from daily news and weekly features, to video games, travel and whisky. Scott's favourite bands are Fields Of The Nephilim, The Cure, New Model Army, All About Eve, The Mission, Cocteau Twins, Drab Majesty, Marillion and Rush.