Such a contradiction, this one! Hold on tight folks, cause this track feels like riding some huge lion with a biker gang escorting you through a metropolis filled to the brim with the loudest bars, brightest neon signs, all the capitalism in the world’s worth of advertisement billboards on the buildings, the most ridiculously tuned up cars, Spikiest hairstyles, and the crudest fashion sense in the entire universe!
I’m talking about “Wild Side” by Motley Crue. Written by Nicki Sixx, The band’s founding bassist, Wild Side was published on the album “Girls, Girls, Girls”, their fourth studio album. It became an “MTV item” as stated by Steve Huey, which is not at all surprising because the song’s got so much of the “glam” and “arena” feel in it, it’s almost gonna burst out!
The song as stated above is far from tame with its 116 bpm tempo. It’s got enough energy in its intro alone to pull you into a head-banging craze. Guitarist Mick Mars’ guitar howls like a motorcycle engine, to a degree that the first time I listened to the song I very honestly thought the very first sound was the sound effect of a rowdy biker revving up his trusty bike. Tommy Lee doesn’t fall behind a single bit with the drums and rolls along with a vigorous beat. Remember that huge lion I told you we’re gonna ride with a crew of bikers with us? Well, the intro feels like getting the lion all saddled and getting on his back, as the beast growls and paws the ground and the bikers gear up. On the 12th second of the track, the ride starts. On the 26th second Vince Neil’s bombastic vocals come into the fray and “takes us on the ride on the wild side” through the verses and choruses. Now what’s interesting is the song’s in G minor, so it’s not exactly happy with what’s going on. what’s the song protesting? What’s it mad about? Now here’s where the contradictions I mentioned show themselves. It’s 1:27 and the song slows down, as if you, your beast, and your biker gang are starting to have second thoughts about what you’re seeing in the streets. You’re still riding on but much slower now, taking a closer look at what’s going on in the city. The crimes, the sickness, and the overall superficiality of it all. 2:04 and overtaken by disbelief and disappointment you rush your trusty lion onwards and pick up the pace again. The ride goes on with the same intensity till 3:07 when the things you keep seeing are too much and it just occurs to you that you don’t want to stand idly by anymore, that you want to protest against it, you want to be angry at all this mess! Slow the posse down king! Rage against this world! Kick some ass in the wild side!
This song is a protest, almost a mockery of some aspects of the modern world. With its juxtaposing upbeat and inspiring beat and melody and incredibly dark and stinging lyrics. Talking about all the things society holds highest and dearest, such as money and fame and all their entailing burdens such as addiction, corruption, murder, and so on and so forth, and loosely basing some parts of the lyrics on “The Lord’s Prayer”, this song is quite the critique of the world’s current “merits”.
So let loose the beasts! Tear down on the neon signs! Don’t let corruption win! And I’ll see you at the next review!
Sincerley,