Almost 10 years ago, the members of Motley Crue told audiences they were calling it a career. The band wrapped what was at that time its farewell tour with a huge hometown bang in Los Angeles, CA. Of course, now everyone knows that retirement of sorts would end up being only temporary, but to mark the occasion in case it really would have been the end, the band released that concert in November 2016 in the form of The End: Live in Los Angeles. Now more than seven years after its release, Mercury Studios (nee Eagle Rock Entertainment) will revisit that recording with a first-ever 4K UHD release of the concert. Set for release April 5 through Mercury Studios, the forthcoming re-issue is just as entertaining as its predecessor despite one glaring negative. That negative – its packaging – will be addressed a little later. It is not enough to doom the recording’s re-issue. To that end, there are at least two positives, not the least of which is the general presentation, which will be addressed shortly. Knowing that the general presentation is so positive, the production therein pairs with the production to put the finishing touch to this presentation. It will be examined later, too. Each item noted here is key in its own way to the whole of the recording’s presentation. All things considered they make the forthcoming re-issue of The End: Live in Los Angeles a mostly positive new presentation of said recording.
Mercury Studios’ forthcoming re-issue of Motley Crue’s 2016 live recording, The End: Live in Los Angeles is a mostly positive revisiting of the iconic concert from the equally iconic band. That is due in large part to the recording’s general presentation. More specifically, the presentation that audiences get here is the exact same concert that they got in the recording’s previous Blu-ray/CD presentation. Every song from the nearly career-spanning set list (which reaches all the way back to the band’s 1981 debut record, Too Fast For Love all the way up to its 2008 album, Saints of Los Angeles) is here just as in the previous recording. The bonus content from that original recording was carried over, too, making for even more engagement and entertainment.
The band’s collective performance of the expansive set list and its stage show are just as important to discuss as the songs that the band performs. From front man Vince Neil’s nonstop energy and rapport with the audience and his band mates is incredible to see. He makes it clear that he is putting his heart into every single song as do his band mates. Tommy Lee is just as enjoyable to watch as he keeps time. Audiences will enjoy seeing Lee’s reaction as his drum rig gets stuck at the end of its run across the Staples Arena. Rather than get angry and react negatively, he just goes with the flow and makes plenty of proverbial lemonade out of the lemon that was that situation. Bassist Nikki Sixx captures everything that has always made Motley Crue a fan favorite both as he works his way through each song and as he discusses chasing one’s dreams with the audience in an equally powerful moment. Then there’s guitarist Mick Mars. Mars looks like he could play Dracula, the way that the light hits him throughout the show. Yet even as unassuming as he seems throughout the show, he still presents so much power in his playing. It is quite the juxtaposition to note. Neil’s tears at the show’s end (not to give away too much, by the way) are real. Those are not crocodile tears. The passion that he presents as the band’s last-ever show comes to an end is a beautiful and powerful final statement. It’s one more way in which the band shows the importance of its performance throughout this concert and hardly the last way in which said performance proves important, too. Considering that, the band’s stage show should not be ignored here. It is just as important to the concert as the band’s performance.
While the band gives its all to its audience (and vice versa) its performance only goes so far for audiences. The band’s stage show works hand-in-hand with the group’s performance to make the concert even more outstanding and memorable. There’s pyro. There are lights. There is Tommy Lee’s arena-spanning drum rig and so much more. Each element of the band’s stage show plays its own important part to the band’s stage show. What makes them really stand out is the timing of their use. Audiences will note the timing in the use of each element. The pyro isn’t used in every song nor are the fast-paced flashing lights or other elements. It is obvious that a lot of thought and time was put into each element’s use. Because so much time and thought was put into each element’s use, those elements couple with the band’s performance to give the concert experience in whole a very positive aesthetic. Keeping all of this in mind, the band’s performance and stage show–while clearly just as important to this recording’s presentation as the songs that are performed–are collectively only part of the recording’s presentation. The editing that was used in the program’s presentation is just as important to note as the previously discussed elements.
While the show’s set list and bonus content is directly pulled over here from the original recording and the band’s performance thereof is something great in its own way, there is still at least one notable issue with this recording’s presentation. That issue is in the recording’s packaging. Where the original Blu-ray/CD package is the familiar gatefold packaging that Mercury Studios has used for so many of its live recordings over the years (which is really great packaging despite its somewhat bulky look), the new, single-disc 4K UHD packaging places the disc very tightly inside a very thin cardboard “case” of sorts. It forces audiences to have to risk ripping the packaging in order to slide the disc in and out of its “sleeve” inside the package. Meanwhile the companion booklet is placed in the much easier to access outer “sleeve” of the “case.” The easy rebuttal here would be to switch the disc and booklet. That is easier said than done. If the disc were to be placed into the booklet’s “sleeve” it would easily slide out and fall, increasing its odds of being damaged. The discs in the BD/CD combo package much more safely housed in the set by comparison. By having to go to the lengths that they will have to go with the new 4K UHD package, audiences will constantly find themselves having to wipe off fingerprints and hope they do not unwittingly mar the disc with scratches as they slide it out. It is just a very disappointing aspect of the presentation.
As disappointing as the packaging for this new 4K UHD presentation of The End: Live in Los Angeles is, it is not enough to doom the recording. It cannot be ignored, though. To that end, there is one more positive to note. That positive is the recording’s production. That includes the work of the crew that captured the concert on stage and those responsible for its post-production. There are moments throughout the show where the cameras’ frame rates are slowed to fully capture the emotion of the moments. The editing of the camera crew’s shots fully captures the immensity of the moment. From the close up shots of the band on-stage to the views from high above the arena to all the shots in-between, the end result of the editing gives viewers at home the best seat in the house. The sound editing is just as important to note here as the video editing. Those behind the mixing boards are to be commended for fully capturing the size of the Staples Center. The sound is not some spit-shined production here. Audiences actually feel, in watching the concert’s 4K UHD recording that they are actually there without it sounding like some bootleg recorded on a smartphone. There is a lot to be said of that. When the overall editing of this concert is joined with the band’s performance and stage show, and the show’s set list, those collective items make the overall presentation such a joy even despite the one notable issue of the recording’s less than stellar packaging. All things considered they make the new 4K UHD re-issue of The End: Live in Los Angeles a mostly positive revisiting of this iconic concert recording.
Mercury Studios’ 4K UHD re-issue of Motley Crue’s The End: Live in Los Angeles is a mostly positive new presentation of the concert event originally released in late 2016. The Re-issue works in large part to its general presentation. The general presentation is important to note because it is the exact same presentation offered to audiences in the concert’s initial Blu-ray/CD combo pack. That includes the same set list and bonus content from that presentation. As much as this does for the recording, its packaging detracts notably from the presentation. That is because of the risk of marring that it poses to the disc. Audiences risk not only marring the disc but damaging the packaging itself in order to remove and replace the disc from its very thin “case.” Thankfully as much of an issue as this is, it is not the do all end all for the recording. The concert’s overall production puts the finishing touch to the whole, giving audiences the best seat in the house once again. That includes the work done to capture the concert in house and in post. Each item examined here is important in its own way to the whole of this re-issue. All things considered they make the re-issue of The End: Live in Los Angeles a presentation that is imperfect but still mostly positive.
The new 4K UHD re-issue of The End: Live in Los Angeles is scheduled for release Friday, April 5 through Mercury Studios. More information on the concert’s re-issue is available along with all of Motley Crue’s news at:
Website: https://motley.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MotleyCrue
Twitter: https://twitter.com/MotleyCrue
More information on this and other titles from Mercury Studios is available at:
Website: https://mercurystudios.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MercuryStudiosCo
Twitter: https://twitter.com/mercurystudios
