Motley Crue bassist Nikki Sixx claims ex-bandmate Mick Mars is “a little bit confused and being misled by representatives.”
The 71-year-old guitarist accused the glam metal band of trying to force him out after he had to step back from touring due to longstanding health issues that have worsened.
He filed a lawsuit at Los Angeles County’s Superior Court in early April, in which he claimed his bandmates had been “gaslighting” him and belittling his musicianship.
The Crue’s attorney Sasha Frid later told Variety that Mick filed the suit to “badmouth the band”, saying: “After the last tour, Mick publicly resigned from Motley Crue. Despite the fact that the band did not owe Mick anything – and with Mick owing the band millions in advances that he did not pay back – the band offered Mick a generous compensation package to honour his career with the band. Manipulated by his manager and lawyer, Mick refused and chose to file this ugly public lawsuit.”
Nikki, 64, and the rest of the band – Vince Neil, 62, and Tommy Lee, 60 – wish Mick all the best for the future, but believe he’s been taken for a ride with regard to the lawsuit he filed.
In an interview with Planet Rock, Nikki said: “If a member of a band tells you that they can’t tour because of health reasons, you have two choices. You can quit as a band [after] 42 years of work. Or we could look at each other and go, ‘Are we done yet?!’ We’re really peaking and we understand [Mick’s] health issues.
“We wish him the best and we know that he’s a little bit confused and being misled by representatives right now. But we still have to stay focused on why we’re here.”
Mick has been replaced by John 5, 52, despite Mick claiming he would remain a member of the ‘Home Sweet Home’ group regardless of his retirement from touring.
And Nikki admits that having another musician play with them makes the rest of the band “play differently” – but it’s inspired them to work on new music.
He said: “It’s nothing against any other musician that you play with, just that when you play with new musicians you play differently. We’re still playing the same songs that people wanna hear but it kind of like re-inspires you. And I’m sure the same thing would happen if they got a new bass player. They’re like, ‘Oh wow, he’s attacking it differently.’ So it’s never about how bad anybody was.
“It’s a nice time [for Motley Crue] and it’s kind of inspired us to write a little bit.
“We love our history, we’re very proud of everything we’ve done. We’ve always been really supportive of Mick no matter what Mick was going through. We’re just happy with where we’re at right now.”