Even though their current stage show is almost completely devoid of their usual pyrotechnics, Motley Crue set Akron, Ohio’s Blossom Music Center on fire Monday night.
The 17-song set was easily the best of the half-dozen or so of their shows I’ve covered since the group’s 2022 reunion, and it might be the best in decades.
Read More: Revisiting Motley Crue’s First 2022 Reunion Show
This is partly because Nikki Sixx and company have assembled a particularly strong set list. The night kicked off with a relentless nine-song run of upbeat early ’80s favorites, including welcome returns from Shout at the Devil deep cuts “Red Hot” and “Too Young to Fall in Love.”
After a quick downshift into ballad territory with Generation Swine‘s “Afraid” and (of course) “Home Sweet Home,” Motley Crue cranked it right back up to 11 for a five-song closing run that concluded with “Dr. Feelgood” and “Kickstart My Heart.”
Other than a quick storytelling segment before “Home Sweet Home,” between song talk was kept to a bare minimum, with a computer-generated carnival barker popping up to play MC from time to time.
For most of the show, drummer Tommy Lee was only visible as a madly whirling silhouette amidst the colored fog that constantly enveloped the back of the stage, but his playing remained impressive and crucial as ever.
At times, he and his rhythm section partner Sixx pushed the sound ever so slightly into the red, resulting in a glorious buzz and rattle like the one you hear when an overloaded car stereo drives by.
As always John 5 made offering a faithful, loving interpretation of Mick Mars’ guitar work his top priority, occasionally adding small and exciting parts of his own.
He also proved quite capable of entertaining the crowd all by himself with a guitar solo segment that concluded with him handling both Jimmy Page and Robert Plant’s “Whole Lotta Love” parts.
Vince Neil turned in his most consistent vocal performance in many years. After years of seemingly being overly concerned with hitting the highest note in each line, often at the expense of delivering understandable lyrics or clear melodies (as pointed out in numerous videos), this was a very welcome change, and the cherry on top of a very impressive group performance.
(I know where some commenters are going next… backing tapes. I don’t know, I’m not going to spend my life Zapruder-ing the videos. The band has openly spoken about supplementing their live performances with backing tapes for decades now. Apart from the fact that their live chorus vocals, as always, sound remarkably like the studio versions, nothing looked or felt fake in the moment. Purists be warned, I guess.)
Motley Crue – with opening acts Tesla and Extreme – still have a month left on the Return to the Carnival of Sins tour. You can see the complete itinerary below. Here’s hoping the band professionally films one of these shows.
Motley Crue Live 2026
The ‘Return to the Carnival of Sins’ tour kicked off in July 2026.
Gallery Credit: Matthew Wilkening
Watch Motley Crue Perform ‘Red Hot’
Motley Crue Aug. 24 Blossom Music Center Set List:
1. “Red Hot” (from 1983’s Shout at the Devil)
2. “Louder Than Hell” (from 1985’s Theatre of Pain)
3. “Wild Side” (from 1987’s Girls, Girls, Girls)
4. “Shout at the Devil” (from 1983’s Shout at the Devil)
5. “Too Fast for Love” (from 1981’s Too Fast for Love)
6. “Looks That Kill” (from 1983’s Shout at the Devil)
7. “Too Young to Fall in Love” (from 1983’s Shout at the Devil)
8. “Take Me to the Top” (from 1981’s Too Fast for Love)
9. “Primal Scream” (from 1991’s Decade of Decadence 1981-1991)
10. “Afraid” (from 1997’s Generation Swine)
11. “Home Sweet Home” (from 1985’s Theatre of Pain)
12. Guitar Solo
13. “Smokin’ in the Boys Room” (from 1985’s Theatre of Pain)
14. “Live Wire” (from 1981’s Too Fast for Love)
15. “Girls, Girls, Girls” (from 1985’s Theatre of Pain)
16. “Dr. Feelgood” (from 1989’s Dr. Feelgood)
17. “Kickstart My Heart” (from 1989’s Dr. Feelgood)
Motley Crue, Return of the Carnival of Sins 2026 Tour Dates
Aug. 28 — Noblesville, IN @ Ruoff Music Center
Sept. 8 — Kansas City, MO @ Morton Amphitheater
Sept. 10 — Dallas, TX @ Dos Equis Pavilion
Sept. 11 — Houston, TX @ The Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion
Sept. 13 — Albuquerque, NM @ Isleta Amphitheater
Sept. 16 — Phoenix, AZ @ Talking Stick Resort Amphitheatre
Sept. 18 — Chula Vista, CA @ North Island Credit Union Amphitheatre
Sept. 19 — Long Beach, CA @ Long Beach Amphitheater
Sept. 21 — Salt Lake City, UT @ Utah First Credit Union Amphitheatre
Sept. 23 — Wheatland, CA @ Toyota Amphitheatre
Sept. 24 — Mountain View, CA @ Shoreline Amphitheater
Sept. 26 — Ridgefield, WA @ Cascades Amphitheater
