GODSMACK Frontman Slams MÖTLEY CRÜE For Bringing 'Rock-Star Garbage' To 'Crüe Fest 2'

GODSMACK frontman Sully Erna has told Artisan News Service that taking part in this summer's Crüe Fest 2 was a good move for his band and their fans, and at the same time was the worst tour they've ever done. Erna and the rest of GODSMACK joined with headliners MÖTLEY CRÜE plus support acts THEORY OF A DEADMAN, DROWNING POOL and CHARM CITY DEVILS for this year's travelling rock festival, which kicked off on July 19 in Camden, New Jersey.

On why the tour was good:

Erna: "The tour has been really good. We've come out here to do a job, to show our fans that all the rumors that have been stewing and brewing about, 'Is this the beginning of the end?' 'Did GODSMACK break up? We haven't heard from them in a couple of years.' We came to just kind of rectify that, because, really, what it's been about is us poking our heads out and saying, 'We're here, we're healthier, we're alive, we're getting along better than ever.'"

On what it was like for GODSMACK off stage on the Crüe Fest 2 tour:

Erna: "I will tell you, it's been the most dramatic tour we've ever been on. I mean, talk about just craziness, man. Sometimes egos run high, man, and there's definitely been some rock-star garbage on this tour that just have never seen in our career. Every band — from BLACK SABBATH to AEROSMITH, RUSH, METALLICA... you name it... They've always... I don't think there was ever a threat, you know what I mean?! Like who's gonna dwarf METALLICA anyways? But there's always just been this mutual kind of like, 'We wanna put on a great show, so bring your bells and whistles, bring your show, so between you guys and us, we can make these people get a bang for their buck.' And that's really what entertainment has always been about. And so, I've never been in a position before where we felt we had to really protect this thing; it's kind of like a dog with a bone — you put us up against a wall and we're gonna come out swinging."

On whether MÖTLEY CRÜE might have been acting out of ego competition between Crüe Fest 2 bands or living up to previous travelling tours like Ozzfest:

Erna: "I don't know who needs to live up to whose reputations and I don't know why some people consider music as a competition, but I will tell you that I have never been in a situation where I felt like I was out for blood, and honestly, this was the first time that I felt like, 'You know what?! If there's gonna be some people that are gonna treat other people a certain way, then I'm gonna go out there every night and fucking crush you on stage — make sure that we make you look old and fat, and go home with a nice big fat paycheck. You can sit in your world and I'll sit in mine, and [I'll] see you at the top again, I guess, somewhere...' I don't know. All I care about, really, is playing music and enjoying myself on the road. I'm not here to compete. Everybody has their fans, everybody has their own music, and it's supposed to be more like a brotherhood, but... I don't know. It's been a good time for us out here, but in other situations, there's definitely been some uncomfortable moments."

Watch video footage of Sully Erna talking about Crüe Fest 2 at this location.

The 32-city trek had its final performance on September 5 at the Darien Lake Performing Arts Center in Darien Lake, New York.

GODSMACK recently released a new single called "Whiskey Hangover" in conjunction with its appearance on Crüe Fest 2.

The next GODSMACK album will be the band's first collection of all-new material since 2006's "IV".

In late 2007, the band released a greatest hits collection called "Good Times, Bad Times - Ten Years of Godsmack" and announced that it was going on hiatus. Erna worked on his solo album during this period, while the other three members of the group started a side project called ANOTHER ANIMAL.

Altitude TV has posted quality video footage of GODSMACK performing the song "Re-Align" at a stop on the Crüe Fest 2 tour. Watch the clip below.