Joining hosts Remy Maxwell and Weasel for a special Audacy Check In today is guitarist and songwriter Mick Mars -- formerly of Mötley Crüe -- on the release day of his brand new solo album, The Other Side of Mars.

Mars first teased fans with his solo single, "Loyal To The Lie," back in November of 2023 following his tumultuous departure from Mötley Crüe at the end of the year, and his brand new full-length, The Other Side of Mars, is out now.

Rounding out Mick Mars' band on the new release are Korn drummer Ray Luzier, bassist Chris Collier, keyboardist Paul Taylor, and lead vocalist Jacob Bunton, as well as singer Brion Gamboa on two tracks. Regarding the two singers on the album, Mick remembers meeting them both through his new Nashville neighbor, Paul Taylor (of Alice Cooper and Winger fame). “I told them I was looking for something different," on the two variations between Brian and Jacob. "It's like this big circle thing that went on, and Ray Luzier also came on board. I really didn't think that he would... I mean, he's a monster drummer.”

Mick also revealed that he worked with singer John Corabi (another Nashville resident and the vocalist featured on Mötley Crüe’s 1994 self-titled album, which just happens to be turning 30 years old next month) on some of his solo songs at the very beginning stages.

“I put out a couple little teaser things on I forget what it was, but I listened back to them again,” Mars admits, "and they just didn't hold up song-wise. No fault of John's. The songs in my feeling were a little weak, a little dated as well, and I didn't want to go back to that. So, I started over again... John and I had no commitment together or anything... and I wanted to kind of depart from that whole era anyway, step away from the 80s -- maybe 80s and 90s and 2000s, and 2020s,” he laughs. “The only people who can do that is The Stones, come on!”

Speaking of his move to Nashville after spending the better part of his life in Los Angeles, Mars simply said he felt it was “time for change. The house that I was living in was just kind of a, oh, you know, I wanna get outta here and do this. Just empty, just had a couch, and Marshall Stacks, and guitars. That was some heavy touring days though, too. So I go, ‘Eh, I'm gonna get outta here -- and weather changes would be good,' that kind of stuff. So, my wife and I decided. We came out here to Nashville a few times and looked at some houses, and we're like, 'Yeah, this would be cool.' And we found the Castle. My studio, when you look at the door, it looks like a dungeon.”

That dungeon studio will be getting plenty of use in the foreseeable future, as Mars admits that after waiting close to 40 years to put out his first solo record, he’s already got plans in motion for a follow-up.

“Well, you know, it took me 40 years because Mötley was priority,” he says. “Now that I'm retired, I'm just me, you know? I mean, if Mötley wanted me to write songs with them again, of course I would. But right now I'm just like me. So, I'm writing, and it's not Mötley, and it's how I feel. My ideas and my kind of thing, and trying to reinvent myself or bring myself up to date. I listen back to some of the other things and I'm going like, ‘Wow, I was stuck in the 80s then. This time, after the final tour, I really got a chance to really hardcore buckle down and try to do something that's more new to me reinventing myself, like I say.”

Check out Remy Maxwell and Weasel's full Audacy Check In with Mick Mars above -- and stay tuned for more conversations with your favorite artists on Audacy.com/live.

Words by Joe Cingrana Interview by Remy Maxwell and Weasel