Mötley Crüe recently announced a Summer 2026 North American tour with strong support from Tesla and Extreme. However, bassist Nikki Sixx reveals that the Crüe unsuccessfully tried to get a few other bands to reunite for the bill.
The 33-city tour, dubbed “The Return of the Carnival of Sins,” launches July 17th in Burgettstown, Pennsylvania, and runs through a September 26th show in Ridgefield, Washington, with tickets available here.
In a recent interview with Minnesota radio station 93X (as transcribed by Blabbermouth), host Lyndsey Marie asked Sixx how the bill for the tour came together. “It’s who’s available, which is not easy,” responded Sixx. “And who’s still around, which is really not easy. There’s a few bands that we actually talked to about getting back together to do this tour with us, and there’s a couple of bands I just couldn’t get ’em to understand that it would be better for the fans than their egos. And so we try.”
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While he didn’t name any names, the most obvious band Sixx is likely referring to are Crüe contemporaries Skid Row. Egos have gotten in the way of the band reuniting with classic frontman Sebastian Bach, who has expressed interest in rejoining the group. Moreover, Skid Row haven’t yet announced a new singer to replace their most recent vocalist, Erik Grönwall, who exited the band in 2024.
Another band Sixx may have been alluding to is RATT, whose original members Stephen Pearcy and Warren DeMartini have been playing shows together recently. And, less likely, Sum 41, who supported the original “Carnival of Sins Tour” that took place in 2005-2006. The Canadian punk band broke up earlier this year, although the split seemed amicable.
Still, Sixx is excited about the 2026 bill, continuing, “Tesla and Extreme both were available, and we couldn’t believe it. We were so happy because that’s just — from the opening chords of Extreme to the last chords of Mötley Crüe, it’s really good songwriting, and I just love good songs. Whether it’s done Metallica style, Rammstein style, Norah Jones style — I don’t care — Al Green style, Mötley Crüe style, a great song is a great song. And it’s just gonna be a night of just singing everything.”
Hear the full interview with Nikki Sixx on 93X below.
