The Mick Mars solo album has been something of a mythological phenomenon for as far back as I can remember. If I recall correctly, Mars first started mentioning this album’s existence as far back as the early ’10s, when yours truly worshipped the very ground Mötley Crüe walked on. We all know what happened after that: Mötley Crüe spent two years touring the globe, swearing up and down that this was their “final tour”…which ended up being complete bullshit come the 2019 announcement of The Stadium Tour. This itself would be pushed back two whole years due to COVID, and to add insult to injury, the cursed trek ended with the unceremonious departure of none other than Mars.
Throughout all these years and the straight up tomfoolery of his bandmates, diehard Crüe-heads wondered, would the Mick Mars solo album ever see the light of day? If so, what would it sound like? Surely, with Crüe off his plate once and for all, there couldn’t be a better time than now. Well, it only took damn near 15 years, but we’ve finally arrived. Mick Mars’ debut solo album, The Other Side of Mars, is finally here. Now for the $2 million a night (the figure Crüe was allegedly paid by Live Nation for The Stadium Tour) question: Was it worth the wait?
I’d like to preface this by saying a lot of fans made the mistake of thinking this was going to be Shout at the Devil 2: Electric Boogaloo. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t delusionally optimistic for such, especially considering the downright depressing state of Crüe’s recorded output from Generation Swine (1997) onwards. Instead, we have an album that is blatantly modern in style…and by “modern”, I mean FM rock radio circa 2008. Between the Monster energy drink flavored production job and the fact that singer Jacob Bunton is a dead ringer for Avenged Sevenfold’s M. Shadows, I’d be lying if I said these weren’t obstacles that stood in my way as far as tackling this release goes. Nevertheless, I persisted, because that’s just what I do, especially when it comes to my readers.
At its best, The Other Side of Mars channels the brooding aggression of Mötley Crüe’s classic self titled 1994 album. This is especially evident on cuts like the groovy “Broken on the Inside”, catchy “Right Side of Wrong”, and anthemic “Ready to Roll”. One can only imagine how much stronger these songs would be with John Corabi on vocals, as was initially rumored, but I digress. Unfortunately, these strong moments are weighed down by a barrage of downer ballads and pedestrian modern rockers. Admittedly, I do enjoy “Alone”, if only for the nostalgia factor. This sounds like something I would’ve slow danced to at my junior high dance with the neighborhood scene girl. The rest of these songs, however, limp about, sounding like every other band who’s polluted mainstream rock radio airwaves for the past 15-20 years.
As the old saying goes, Mars did save the best for last, treating us with an elegant heavy blues instrumental in “LA Noir”, which made me wonder: Why wasn’t the whole album in this vein? Surely, an instrumental guitar rock album isn’t any less commercially viable than an album that sounds like a cross between A7X and Breaking Benjamin, right? Besides, by his own admission, Mars’s heart always lied with the blues. Let’s hope his next album showcases this other, other side of Mars: The unsung guitarist who was the strongest musical link of his band.
5 out of 10
Label: 1313
Genre: Alternative Metal
For fans of: Avenged Sevenfold, Ozzy Osbourne, Mötley Crüe