MÖTLEY CRÜE bassist Nikki Sixx has offered fans a first glimpse at what to expect from the band’s upcoming 2026 tour, calling it “next level” and promising a show that will push the boundaries of live rock performances.
In a new interview with Jon Smith of 103.5 The Arrow, Sixx discussed the upcoming “The Return Of Carnival Of Sins” tour, which celebrates both the 20th anniversary of MÖTLEY CRÜE’s 2005–2006 “Carnival Of Sins” tour and the 45th anniversary of the band. The 33-city trek, produced by Live Nation, will kick off on July 17, 2026, in Burgettstown, Pennsylvania, at the Pavilion at Star Lake, with support from EXTREME and TESLA.
Reflecting on past tours, Sixx explained the evolution of MÖTLEY CRÜE’s stage productions (as transcribed by Blabbermouth): “Two of our biggest tours was the ‘Dr. Feelgood’ tour and the ‘Carnival Of Sins’ tour 20 years ago. And back then, [we had] probably 20 semi-trucks full of gear — hard goods, as they call ’em — [with] all kinds of stuff. And now, with the advancement of technology, we can just take the fans on a crazy journey. And I just think it’s gonna be the next level. ‘Cause the first one was a lot of people’s favorite tour, so we have a lot to live up to.”
Smith noted that MÖTLEY CRÜE has a reputation for “always upping the level of entertainment when it comes to the shows,” to which Sixx replied: “It’s always our goal. It really is. It’s what we love doing. There’s a lot of stuff that we leaned into so heavy. Like all the way back in the beginning, the ‘Live Wire’ video where the band lit me on fire, and we’ve just constantly been kind of pushing. And then on the pyro thing and actually working with companies and developing kind of — not our own technology, but a lot of times when you mix different fuels together, they create different colors. So we would put one pyro head into a steel wall and another one would hit, and it would change… I mean, this stuff was super exciting for us. And then we kind of outgrew the pyro, because you can watch a baseball game and they have pyro now. So it’s, like, how do we take advantage of new technology? We don’t want you to show up and go, ‘Yeah. It looks just like the last four bands that I saw.’ And so there’s always a lot of pressure on us to do that. And that’s, I think, what really drives us.”
On how MÖTLEY CRÜE develops the production for each tour, Sixx said: “First and foremost, it’s a theme. And a theme, if you talk ‘Dr. Feelgood’, well, when we designed the album cover, it was in the very last moment where we changed it to the green. It was a white hospital linoleum wall with the medical symbol on it, and we switched that to green. Well, once that shifted to green, it all of a sudden gave us a complete color palette for what we would actually do with the show. So those are the type of things. So, obviously, something as colorful as a carnival, our brains are going crazy. And to see what’s out there, what’s available, and especially with video, you can take people on a journey that you just can’t do with a backdrop and some fire. So it’s exciting.”
When asked about the possible setlist for the upcoming tour, Sixx acknowledged the importance of playing fan favorites while also exploring lesser-known tracks: “Obviously, we know the fans wanna hear the hits. And I hate it when a band goes out and doesn’t play their hits. I remember [David] Bowie doing that, and he was one of my favorite artists. I was, like, I don’t wanna go hear a bunch of C and D tracks off of records that I love. I wanna hear those songs, like ‘Rebel Rebel’, and at that point he was, like, ‘I’m so tired of playing the same songs.’ We’re not tired of playing those hits, but we are excited about getting into a setlist and diving into some songs that we maybe never played or haven’t played in a long time and shaking it up. And those type of things, if you’re playing a song like ‘On With The Show’ from the first album, that’s gonna dictate a lot of what production looks like. So, for us it’s this moving creative ball of energy. It’s super exciting.”
“The Return Of The Carnival Of Sins” 2026 tour dates:
Jul. 17 – Burgettstown, PA – The Pavilion at Star Lake
Jul. 18 – Buffalo, NY – Darien Lake Amphitheater
Jul. 20 – Clarkson, MI – Pine Knob Music Theatre
Jul. 22 – Toronto, ON – RBC Amphitheatre
Jul. 24 – Gilford, NH – BankNH Pavilion
Jul. 25 – Bangor, ME – Maine Savings Amphitheater
Jul. 27 – Camden, NJ – Freedom Mortgage Pavilion
Jul. 29 – Saratoga Springs, NY – Saratoga Performing Arts Center
Jul. 31 – Holmdel, NJ – PNC Bank Arts Center
Aug. 1 – Mansfield, MA – Xfinity Center
Aug. 3 – Bristow, VA – Jiffy Lube Live
Aug. 12 – Alpharetta, GA – Ameris Bank Amphitheatre
Aug. 14 – West Palm Beach, FL – iTHINK Financial Amphitheatre
Aug. 15 – Tampa, FL – MIDFLORIDA Credit Union Amphitheatre
Aug. 17 – Charlotte, NC – PNC Music Pavilion
Aug. 19 – St. Louis, MO – Hollywood Casino Amphitheater
Aug. 21 – Shakopee, MN – Mystic Lake Amphitheater
Aug. 22 – Tinley Park, IL – Credit Union 1 Amphitheatre
Aug. 24 – Cuyahoga Falls, OH – Blossom Music Center
Aug. 25 – Cincinnati, OH – Riverbend Music Center
Aug. 27 – Grand Rapids, MI – Acrisure Amphitheater
Aug. 28 – Noblesville, IN – Ruoff Music Center
Sep. 8 – Kansas City, MO – Morton Amphitheater
Sep. 10 – Dallas, TX – Dos Equis Pavilion
Sep. 11 – Houston, TX – The Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion
Sep. 13 – Albuquerque, NM – Isleta Amphitheater
Sep. 16 – Phoenix, AZ – Talking Stick Resort Amphitheatre
Sep. 18 – Chula Vista, CA – North Island Credit Union Amphitheatre
Sep. 19 – Long Beach, CA – Long Beach Amphitheater
Sep. 21 – Salt Lake City, UT – Utah First Credit Union Amphitheatre
Sep. 23 – Wheatland, CA – Toyota Amphitheatre
Sep. 24 – Mountain View, CA – Shoreline Amphitheater
Sep. 26 – Ridgefield, WA – Cascades Amphitheater
Reeder, the visionary behind Metal Addicts, has transformed his lifelong passion for metal into a thriving online community for metal aficionados. As a fervent devotee of black metal, Reeder is captivated by its dark, atmospheric, and often unorthodox soundscapes.