Nikki Sixx has publicly responded after former Godsmack drummer Shannon Larkin criticized Mötley Crüe‘s alleged use of backing tracks during live performances.
The Mötley Crüe bassist addressed the comments in a post on X (formerly Twitter), taking aim at Larkin and suggesting that some musicians focus too much on discussing other artists instead of creating memorable music of their own.
Nikki wrote: “Who’s this Shannon Larkin hater?
“It’s funny how so many B- and C-level bands seem to spend more time talking about us than writing songs people actually remember. Maybe it’s jealousy, maybe it’s insecurity, maybe ticket sales are a little slow. Either way, borrowing someone else’s spotlight has never been much of a long-term career strategy.
“I genuinely feel for musicians who never figured out that the best publicity is writing great songs — over and over again, decade after decade for fans not critics.
“It reminds me of the endless bimbo podcast crowd that builds an audience by talking about everyone else instead of creating something worth talking about.
“Anyway, maybe he’s [sic] needs to take a nap before he does more press.”
Larkin‘s remarks that prompted Sixx’s response came during a recent livestream on his official YouTube channel. While discussing Godsmack‘s live setup and the band’s decision to bring former Dream Theater drummer Mike Mangini into its lineup, Larkin explained why he believes performing without click tracks or backing tracks preserves the spontaneity of a rock show.
“And so what I try to explain to people about tempo and when you’re not a band that’s a click-track, backing-track kind of band,” Larkin said. “So Godsmack uses no click tracks, no backing tracks. It’s a thing that a lot of other musicians talk about too, I notice now. I’m really noticing it. We’ve been saying it for years as we watched the advent of everybody started adding some, the rhythm guitar or something being played, but there isn’t a guy behind the amps playing it. It’s on a track. Oh, it’s a new thing, kinda. And backups, you see Nikki Sixx up there [with Mötley Crüe]. He’s not really singing, he looks away, but you still hear his voice. Well, it’s a track playing. But in order for those things to happen, the band has to be on a click track — and the band doesn’t have to. It’s just us, the drummer. We’re on a click, so it’s always the same every night. So it’s a homogenization of what used to be the dangerous feeling of a rock show — dangerous from the band’s aspect on stage too. You don’t know what’s gonna go on,” he said.
The topic of backing tracks has followed Mötley Crüe in recent years, particularly after former guitarist Mick Mars stepped away from touring in 2022 and later filed a lawsuit against his former bandmates. In the complaint, Mars alleged that substantial pre-recorded elements were used during the band’s 2022 Stadium Tour, claiming that “Nikki didn’t play a single note on bass” and that portions of Vince Neil‘s vocals and Tommy Lee‘s drumming were also pre-recorded.
