01:00 AM EST on Sunday, March 5, 2006

BY RICK MASSIMO
Journal Pop Music Writer

It's been 25 years since Motley Crue's first album, Too Fast for Love. Last year, the band came back from six years of inactivity to release the single "Sick Love Song" and head out on the Carnival of Sins Tour, which comes to the Dunkin' Donuts Center, in Providence, on Wednesday.

They've sold enough records (particularly 1989's multiplatinum Dr. Feelgood); they've made enough of a mark through their music and their, um, freewheeling personalities. So why are they doing it all over again?

"We love music and seeing the people walk out of the arena, having their minds blown," bassist Nikki Sixx said in a recent conference call. "You know, there's a lot of entertainment out there. . . . And for us to go out and do what we do and feel pure about it and have them walk out and say, 'I was blown away,' with all the other information that's out there -- that makes me want to spread the love around the world, you know."

The Carnival of Sins show is designed to blow minds. It's a circus-style spectacle of women on trapezes, carnival acts, pyrotechnics and the like. It's been released on DVD, and frontman Vince Neil said in a separate phone conversation that the show coming to Providence is "exactly the same" as the disc.

Sixx said that the spectacle was crafted democratically.

"We have crazy ideas. We're like, 'Wow, that's a cool idea. What if we did this?' And Mick [guitarist Mick Mars] is like, 'What if we did this?' And I'm like, 'What if we did this,' and Tommy [drummer Tommy Lee] is like this, 'Vince is like painted this color or' -- next thing you know we've got the craziest rock show out on tour right now."

Along with the stage show, of course, is a full-on Motley Crue show -- more than two hours with no opening act.

"When we started this," Sixx said, "I remember saying to Vince that, you know, one of my dreams is to play 2 1/2 hours. And he thought I was crazy. And I said, 'You know what, we've been brothers a long time, will you trust me on this one? I think that . . . you'll never want to do a short show again.' "

Sixx was right, Neil said: "You're able to not only play the hits but the obscure songs, which you can't do when you're only playing an hour, an hour and a half."

The reunion

After six years apart, getting it back together took a little work at first.

"Obviously, there was a rough spot musically," Sixx said. "Songs we haven't played in a long time. Some songs, we haven't played maybe even ever.

"But I felt chemistry, you know. As soon as Mick plays his guitar and Vince starts singing, it sounds like Motley Crue."

Another obstacle was the health of guitarist Mars. Diagnosed with ankylosing spondylitis, a chronic degenerative condition, Mars had dropped out of sight for a long time.

In November, Mars, sporting a replacement hip, said he felt "great. Of course there's more stuff that I'd like to do, you know, like move my head, but I've been doing really great. I guess I'm like Iron Man or something. . . .

"What I do is what I love. So, you know, nothing is going to keep me down."

Last month, Neil confirmed that "Mick's doing great. He's playing better than he ever has; he's moving around better than he ever has; he's an iron man."

An overzealous fan pulled Mars off a stage a couple of months ago, which Neil said was a scary moment, but "he stood up and just shook it off. Everybody was so concerned. . . . It didn't hurt him at all."

Playing for today

Lee (who didn't participate in the conference call) had been quoted at the beginning of the tour as saying that he wasn't sure the band would stay together for the duration. Neil played down the perception of a schism.

"Nobody wanted to do this unless everybody was 100 percent in. Everybody loves being in this band, everybody is getting along. The press made more out of the little fights than we did. Me and Tommy, we've been friends for almost 30 years. And believe me, in 30 years you're going to fight with somebody."

There were also early reports of the band not getting along as the tour started, but last month, Neil denied that.

"We've been getting along great for a long time. . . . Because we're traveling on separate buses, they say, 'Oh, they must be arguing and fighting and can't get along.' No. It's because we're rich; we can do it. You make yourself comfortable on tour."

The plan, Neil said last month, is to continue touring through next month, rehearse in May, record in June and July, then do a string of European dates opening for The Rolling Stones, then start recording a new album over the summer.

He makes it sound like a bit of a grind, and he said sometimes it is, but "once you hit the stage, it all disappears."

There has never been a grand plan with Motley Crue, Neil said.

"We didn't think about anything, except for, where are we playing next? Can we get a weekend at a club in Hollywood, and striving toward that. We just wanted to be the biggest band in L.A., and it just snowballed.

". . . Right now, tonight is the future. And tomorrow. And getting a new album out. We're just playing. We're just a rock band, you know?"

Music -- with icing on top

Even though the show is a spectacle, and the band members' lives have often become a spectacle of reality shows and sex tapes, Sixx said that the music has to remain at the core.

"I think that's why it's important that we play live, so people know that's really, at the core, what we're about. . . . The other stuff is icing on the cake. It's cool but, you know, without the cake, you've got nowhere to put the icing."

Sixx's sobriety probably has a lot to do with it. He once had to be revived after a drug overdose (and wrote "Kickstart My Heart" about it and continued scoring), but he said he stays clean now, and that it gives him a clarity of purpose.

"I just really saw things a lot clearer and just focused on music and my friendship in the band -- a lot more selfless, and more about being a team player and stuff. So this has been a great time for me to be in this band."

At the same time, when asked how the band has changed since they've cleaned up their offstage behavior, Sixx responded:

"We've cleaned up our offstage behavior?"

Motley Crue are at the Dunkin' Donuts Center, in Providence, Wednesday night at 8. Tickets are $37, $47 and $77 and are available at the box office, at www.ticketmaster.com and by calling (401) 331-2211.

rmassimo@projo.com / (401) 277-7206

LISTEN as Rick Massimo talks to Motley Crue's Vince Neil:

projo.com/audio/