The end is near for heavy metal stalwarts Mötley Crüe
Los Angeles rockers rewrote the book on rock excess
There will be fire and explosions. There will bone-shaking guitar riffs, scantily clad dancers and an upside-down drum solo. Middle-aged men and women will pump their fists and bang their heads, remembering younger days when monsters of rock roamed the earth.
Throw your devil horns in the air, Eugene, Oregon. Mötley Crüe have come to town.
On a July afternoon, the four founding members of one of rock's most notorious bands - singer Vince Neil, guitarist Mick Mars, bassist Nikki Sixx and drummer Tommy Lee - stand onstage at the Matthew Knight Arena, preparing the set list for an upcoming show.
Heavy-metal anthems such as Shout at the Devil, Girls, Girls, Girls and Kickstart My Heart that thrilled Reagan-era teenagers and horrified their parents echo through the empty venue as dozens of crew members move heavy equipment, tweak sound levels and prepare the show's over-the-top pyrotechnics, which include a giant burning pentagram and a bass guitar that shoots flames. Their backstage passes read "The End Is Near".
Thirty-four years after exploding out of the Sunset Strip in a blaze of hairspray, skin-tight leather and power chords, Mötley Crüe are kicking off the last stretch of the final tour of their career, an 18-month global farewell that will culminate at the end of the year with three shows at the Staples Centre in downtown Los Angeles.