"You've got to work hard," said Nikki Sixx-bassist, primary songwriter and conceptualist for California's mega-platinum sensation that is Motley Crue. "I think the key is to let yourself evolve naturally. I'm sure we'll look and sound different with each album, but it won't be 'OK, now what are we gonna do?' Because I don't want to bore anybody staying the same musically and visually - but then again, I don't want to sit down and change drastically. So if we just evolve, be ourselves and kick ass, we'll be O.K. The key to success is the songs."

Bore anybody? Nikki shouldn't have worried. That was the Crue leader doing a bit of crystal-ball gazing in April 1984, during one of the countless road stops on the Shout at the Devil tour. Over a year later, the black-tressed rocker's words have proven prophetic. With their new tour underway at last and their razor-sharp third album, Theatre of Pain (Elektra), slicing its way into the charts-a tour and an album many doomsayers had predicted would never happen - Motley Crue have come back, and then some.

Even their numerous detractors among the press and general public now concede that Theatre of Pain's 10 tracks contain the Crue's most diverse and accomplished music to date. Who would have predicted the range of material, from the diamond-hard rock of "City Boy Blues", featuring Mick Mars' sleazy slide guitar and Vince Neil's blustery vocals, to the ballad "Home Sweet Home", with wildman drummer Tommy Lee's near-sensitive ivory tinklings? And who could have guessed that the Motleys would grab hold of Brownsville Stations' teenage rampage anthem, "Smokin' in the Boys' Room", and squeeze it into something so fully realized that even long-resistant radio broadcasters have been compelled to surrender and admit they love the damn song. Nikki Sixx is kicked back in the lounge of Cherokee Studios in Los Angeles. He's been taking a break from listening to a playback of some nearly completed album tracks. Though it's the early afternoon, he's feeling a bit worn out, likely a combination of jet lag resulting from a recent visit to Mexico and a bit of late fun the previous evening. "I've got a lot of work to do," Nikki explains, as the late June release date of his band's third LP rapidly approaches. "I can't lay in bed all day." Sipping at a light beer, Sixx is trying to explain how Theatre of Pain has been the next logical progression for the Crue. "We were very rambunctious on the first album [Too Fast for Love]; we fine-tuned it on the Shout at the Devil album. Those were hard, violent years before the second LP," the songwriter notes, referring to the reallife events that would later find their way into the lyrics of "Bastard" and "Knock 'Em Dead Kid." After the release of Shout, Sixx soon discovered the California clone syndrome: "Every other band then had our identity." And so, Motley Crue's sound and vision evolved again, providing a new mutation. "We don't have to prove anything," he confidently asserts in 1985, "we just want to prove our ideas for ourselves." Those ideas help set the Crue apart from the Current pack offaceless, interchangeable Los Angeles metal acts. "Basically, our albums will have a conceptual feel - the cover, the stage show - but it doesn't usually affect the songs. I feel that we're theater, we're entertainment.

"That concept - Theatre of Pain - is perfect in that I see us in theaters, with volume," Nikki adds. "It's a little bit of history. The idea is to go backwards rather than forge forward. We're getting in touch with our roots." The roots Sixx refers to might have something to do with Nikki's reported Italian heritage. A friend of the bassist had recommended that he check out Italian theater from the Middle Ages period. Initially skeptical, the rocker soon discovered certain parallels to his own way of thinking. "All the world's knowledge is stored in literature," the bassist states. "In high school it was all music [for me]; I rebelled against learning. But for the past six years I've educated myself. I've got a book called The Italian Comedy. . . the cruelty of the Italian comedy, it's like black humor. But it's not necessarily evil. It's not like 'I'm going to stab you or take your baby,' but more like Jack Nicholson's humor in The Shining: 'Here's Johnny!' "Theatre of Pain is an idea I've had for four years now. Actually, Shout at the Devil was almost called Theatre of Pain, but the idea wasn't fully developed yet," he contends. The Motleys' current stage show and dress reflect these dramatic themes. Theatrical masks of Comedy and Tragedy, the stage backdrops and the black and white diamond-adorned stage suggest a harlequin or court jester's clothing. For their new look, the Crue have chosen a strange brew of the jester's style, French bordello frills and aristocratic dandyism (the noble, ruling class look). But all of this would just be window dressing without the songs to back them up. "They cover a broader range," says Theatre producer Tom Werman. "They're not all about sex and violence [this time]." "I wrote all the lyrics," adds Nikki. "I had more collaboration on the music from the others for this album. We let it flow from our souls instead of pushing it in any direction. We know what we want now-we all want the same thing. "A team has developed," Sixx remarks about the bond between the Crue, Werman and Baron. "There's no one person dictating anything. It's a good feeling." Werman echoes these sentiments: "The band and I have gotten to know each other - there's a real trust and friendship. When we go into the studio, everybody shows up and slaps everybody else on the back. We get down to work. And it's fun: we don't argue, we don't whisper - there's no politics."

The bond between Crue members is currently as close as that between blood brothers, and there is little doubt that this collective strength helped them rebound after the ordeal of Vince's tragic car crash. Werman notes the importance of the group's unity, saying: "It's essential because they consider themselves - and I think justifiably - to be one of a kind. They have their own place in 1980s rock & roll, which is getting stronger all the time. They love Motley Crue - it's something they can depend on, cherish and need, because it's not show business - it's the real thing. These guys understand each other. They know that there are very few people on the face of the earth who do understand them, except themselves. There's a significant difference between Motley Crue and most other rock & roll bands that hit it big [Werman should know; he's produced hits for Aerosmith, Ted Nugent, Cheap Trick, Twisted Sister and many others]. I see it as being a believability, a dedication and a sincerity. You don't usually think of Motley Crue as being sincere, but credible, yes. They are what they appear to be. People don't say, 'Motley Crue - individuality, assertiveness, self-confidence.' They don't think in those terms. They think, 'sex-ists,' 'party animals,' etc. If you like them, you see the strengths, and if you don't, it's always easy to look at somebody who looks and sounds different than you and say these [negative] things."

Both Sixx and Werman believe that Theatre is the finest Crue creation to date. "I think this album is musically superior to anything we've done," Nikki asserts. "I may be tooting my own horn, but I don't do it often and only when I think it's right. The music's just as aggressive; the lyrics are more positive, but that doesn't mean it's more lightweight. I've always related to the darker side of life and gotten shit from the guys in the band for it." It is the Crue songwriter's darker side that is ironic in what many consider a quintessential Party Band. But then, nothing involving Motley Crue is really all that simple. Theatre exhibits, for example, an unexpected maturation in lyrical themes. According to Sixx, "Use It or Lose It" is not about sex, but about time. "It's about people who have lived fast - J.F.K., Marilyn Monroe, James Dean. What it is saying is, 'Get the most out of life.' " "Fight for Your Rights" seems to address social and political problems, in particular the issue of racism. As the Crue leader bluntly says, "We're all people," after he quotes two lines from the song: "Martin Luther [King] brought truth/the color of our blood's the same." Not all the songs are such dramatic departures. " 'City Boy Blues' is about the street," Nikki notes, while "Tonight" is a piece he calls "a good Motley Crue sleaze song, one of the sleaziest we've written." Then there are two straight rock messages, "Louder than Hell" and "Raise Your Hands to Rock," the latter being "a real positive song about when you're fourteen and your dream is to rock."

Like the lyrics, life has changed a bit for the Crue. "We can't go out any more unless it's a Sunday night at 6 p.m.," Sixx says, weary of being recognized. "We've been staying home more and working on the music," the haystackhaired bassist adds, "but then again, we were on the road for thirteen months." Still, it's not all a workaholic's life. "One night all of Ratt and Motley Crue were at my house, kicking back, getting drunk. And we were trying to think of one way for us to tour together again. [Editor's note: Both bands are now too popular to play double bills in arenas. The ticket cost would be prohibitively expensive] I'm sure we'll play together again," Nikki says hopefully. "From the Troubador to Anaheim Stadium, and all still having a good time."

Editor's note: Vince Neil's pre-trial hearing, at which a judge would rule whether his case should go to an actual trial, was postponed for a fourth time until June 28. The outcome of that hearing was not known at press time. And though no information could be obtained on Lisa Hogan's condition, Circus Magazine has learned that Daniel Smithers, the other occupant of the car that Neil's Pantera slammed into, is improving. Sgt. Paul Rossiter of the Redondo Beach Police Department reports he's "up and about and doing quite well. I believe he's gone back to work." Rossiter also reported that Smithers is not quite "100% yet" and is walking with a limp more than six months after the accident.