Motley Crue - Theater of Pain

Background-
Okay, I don't have figures, but this has to have been the biggest selling hard rock/metal album of 1985 and the tour was huge as well. This album took the Crue from being on the brink huge success to being one of the biggest hard rock/ metal bands of the time. The album came out in the summer and it was probably one of the most anticipated albums of the year by many people. Vince Neil had the accident that killed Razzle just months before. The Crue were all over the metal magazines in the months leading up to the release of this album. I was at a christian camp the week it came out, but my counselor was a metal fan and he brought along his radio even though he wasn't supposed to have it. One night that week 98 Rock was going to play the entire Theater of pain album so we stayed up to hear it. My reaction was although not bad, it wasn't what I expected. On their first two albums, the Crue had been wild and full of energy. Theater of pain wasn't completely toned down, but it certainly lacked some fire and seemed a bit plain. Theater of pain came way short of my expectations. There were no completely horrible songs, but no great ones either. I have not heard this album in it's entirety since at least 1994. So let's see if I think it's any better than I did on that summer night back in 1985.

Review
I fire up the turntable and whip out the album and slap it on. City Boy Blues starts thing off and right away you can tell this is the most polished Crue album so far. That has both positives and negatives to it. This song is not as heavy as a lot of songs from the previous two albums, but it's not bad. I like the vocals, but the song goes on a bit too long for me. Smokin' in the boys room is up next. The original of this song is just okay and I think the Crue did a decent job of making it better. I have never been a big fan of covers, but if you are going to do it then you should add something to it. Never cover a song and do it note for note because nobody wants to hear that. The Crue manage add some of their sound to the version and it works. Louder than hell starts out a little more like Shout at the devil style Crue, but it equally gets into that smooth sound and then we get the chorus that gets repititous and again the song goes on a little too long. Keep your eye on the money is a little better than the other two original songs that I have heard so far. Again the vocals are good if you like Vince's voice, but the rest song is lacking somewhat. By this point I am really getting this impression that the songs don't have the kind of personality that most of the first two albums had. Well, on to Home sweet home which is the last song on side one. I will admit that I did not like this song in 1985 and it's still no Red Hot or Take me to top. However, when compared to the rest of the songs on side one, it is actually a breath of fresh air. A slow and sappy one maybe, but fresher than the rest of the songs so far. It flows nicely and despite the pace, it is far less dull than anything so far. So ends side one and we have a ballad (although a pretty good one), a cover and three songs that aren't all that different from each other. Let's see what side two has going on. Side two starts off with the somewhat odd Tonight (we need a lover). I say odd because it almost seems like the song plunges straight into the chorus without a very distinctive rhythm and little set-up. It's almost as if the chorus is the centerpiece of the song and it so, well that's not a good thing because it is way short of spectacular. Next track is Use it or lose it and I had to really think about what I thought about this one. It's does have the same overly repetitive chorus that plagues most of this album, but it's also the fastest song so far. The song has a slightly more distinct guitar sound than most of the previous songs although it's still very basic. It's not great, but it's likeable enough and it does move along. Some how I get the feeling that someone higher up told Nikki Sixx something like "Hey, since you guys were labeled devil worshippers after the last album, how about you write a song where you admit you're sinners, but you sort of ask for forgiveness." Well, maybe that didn't happen but Save our souls is certainly a very uninspired and just downright dull song. This was the closest I came to skipping through a song, but I stuck through it. Raise your hands to rock comes on and I am reminded that the Crue were never the best writers in the world. Yet, there was some growth between the first two albums, but this song is one of several that make it feel like the Crue took half a step backwards in the writing department. The last song Fight for your rights comes on and I do like the riff here as it actually sort of sounds like something from Shout at the devil. Unfortunately the riff just seems to be a little too below the surface to make much of a difference and the song is way too long for what little is being done here. Okay the final tally says Home sweet home and Use it or lose it are good, Smokin in the boys room is decent then on the other end of the spectrum is Save our souls which is a stinker. The other six songs file in somewhere between Smokin' and Save our souls.


Verdict/Final Word
My opinion has not changed on this album, but I am more sure now of why I feel the way I do. This is not a bad album, but it is nothing special either. I like the vocals and if that's all Vince then he did well and if it's due to the production then hats off to the producer. However the production on the music is just too slick for my liking. The rough sound of the first two albums was great and they could used some of it here. I am afraid the Crue (or the hands that guide) played it too safe with this album. It is just a bit too tame for me and well below the standards that the Crue had already set. If I had to listen to Motley Crue I am afraid this album would not be the one that I would choose.

There you have it even though it's about six weeks later than I promised
For October I want to do something Hallowen related so I am going to review Grim Reaper's Fear no evil.