Vince Neil at the Wolf Den at Mohegan Sun, Uncasville, CT – January 5, 2018

At the end of 2015, legendary rock band Motley Crue finished up their farewell tour. This hasn’t stopped singer Vince Neil from keeping busy on the road. With a backing band made up of the musicians of Slaughter, he brought the music we know and love to the fans who weren’t ready for Motley Crue to hang it up.

As Motley Crue was wrapping up, bassist and songwriter Nikki Sixx was moving on to a new chapter, releasing music and touring with a band called Sixx A.M. At the show we saw, there was no Motley music represented in the set.

Vince seems aware that there are still loads of Motley Crue fans who still want to hear him sing those songs, and he brings a show full of all the greatest Motley Crue hits. There’s no solo Vince Neil material, and nothing deep out of Motley’s catalog, just the songs that put Motley Crue on top of the world.

From the moment Vince hit the stage with “Dr. Feelgood,” this was a great show. His band consisted of guitar player Jeff Bland, bassist Dana Strum, and drummer Zoltan Chaney, who all also play in Slaughter. Watching Zoltan play the drums is a show in itself. There’s something extra in every movement he makes, with frequent stick tosses, the occasional feet in the air, and even jumping off the stage set onto the drums… It’s a sight to be seen.

The only downside to this show is it was fairly short. It’s hard to complain about a free show, but the band played for about 70 minutes total. In that time, Vince took a little break, and the rest of the guys played Zeppelin’s “Whole Lotta Love,” and “Heaven and Hell” by Black Sabbath. Those are not short songs, so in total, Vince was probably on stage about 55 minutes. That said his voice sounded strong, and he seemed to be in really good spirits, genuinely enjoying what he was doing. Considering the last time I saw Vince performing at Mohegan Sun, it was with Motley in the Arena, full stage production, pyro, etc, it would be understandable if he wasn’t happy where he was at. He really seemed to be enjoying where he’s at.

A lot of people are critical of Vince and his tendency to turn the microphone to the crowd to have them sing his parts. While he did have the crowd sing, it felt to me like it was all at points that made sense, and it never seemed like he was winded or forgetting the lyrics. Let’s be real, who doesn’t want to sing “WOAH! YEAH!” in the chorus of “Kickstart my Heart”?!

All around, it was a really fun show, and it was great to hear the music of Motley Crue kept alive.

Setlist
Dr. Feelgood
Looks That Kill
Home Sweet Home
Don’t Go Away Mad (Just Go Away)
Same Ol’ Situation (S.O.S.)
Whole Lotta Love
Heaven and Hell
Kickstart My Heart
Girls, Girls, Girls
Wild Side