Back in the day, when Motley Crue would assemble, the biggest concerns would be who would get arrested, who would almost OD, who would smash up a car and whether or not fathers should lock up their daughters.

But the 49-year-old Nikki Sixx sounds absolutely nothing like the infamous 29-year-old Nikki Sixx, a violent, misogynistic half-dead drug addict who managed to make 99 percent of the rock stars before and after him seem mild by comparison.

"For me, the hardest part about touring is leaving my family," the bassist and songwriter said during a pre-tour teleconference. "At my age now, you know, my kids are such an important part of my life. And to leave is difficult. Once I'm on stage I'm good. But, you know, I won't lie to you, I mope a lot on the road. You know, so, for me, it's like keeping busy. If I can be working on another book. If I can be writing an album ... I think one of the main reasons I try to stay so busy is because I'm not with them. It's pretty difficult."

Crue, now in its 27th year, is on the road headlining Crue Fest, a hard-rock bill with Buckcherry, Papa Roach, Trapt and side project Sixx A.M. that Sixx believes fills a niche in a somewhat tame summer concert schedule.

"These bands are all about snotty rock and roll," Sixx said. "So let's put 'em all together and put it out in front of tens of thousands of people around the country. That's something to be proud of. ... It's important for us that rock continues.

"There's always people saying that rock is dead, rock is over. People are always out to kill rock 'n' roll. We're the ugly stepchild of the music business. And yet we're the one brand of music that continues to be viable and valuable. We want to go out there and stand up for rock like we have been our whole career."

Crue Fest coincides with the release of "Saints of Los Angeles," a return to form for the band that terrorized the Sunset Strip in the early '80s with a new brand of trashy glam-metal. It's the first Motley Crue album in eight years and the first since 1997's "Generation Swine" to feature all four original members (Tommy Lee was absent for 2000's "New Tattoo," due in large part to his disgust with singer Vince Neil). With everyone on board for a concept album that sums up at a career captured in the shocking 2001 best-seller "The Dirt," it's no surprise that "Saints" is a throwback to early records such as "Shout at the Devil."

"Anybody I've played it for has gone 'Wow, Motley's back! But it doesn't sound dated,' " Sixx said. "The album is loosely based on 'The Dirt.' Each song is like a mini-story and you can plug into the book. ... I wanted to hear a lot of guitars and snotty lyrics. I didn't want loops and samples. I don't want to be Nine Inch Nails or Jay-Z or Rage Against The Machine or Gwen Stefani. I don't want to be over-thought or over-processed. Me and Mick [Mars] just wanted to sound like [expletive] Motley Crue."

To be honest, Sixx says it's pretty hard for them to sound like anything other than Motley Crue.

"To give you an example, one time we were working up a song and I forget what it was. I think it was 'Saturday Night' by Elton John. And we were thinking about, you know, banging the song out live or something for a show. And we just looked at each other and we're like -- it just sounds like Motley Crue. We couldn't make it sound like Elton John. Motley Crue has such a definitive sound that when the four of us wrap our fangs around something it just sounds like Motley Crue."

Needless to say, the members of Motley Crue have been accused of a lot of things, usually for good reason, and they've all paid dearly for it. Sixx says one thing the band can't be accused of is trying to cash in on current trends or fit the market.

"If we were trying to appease radio, appease the video channels, appease the press, we probably would have made a different kind of a record. Because let's face it -- a raw, dirty, heavy Motley Crue record in 2008 is, you know, not what's in. But maybe that's why it'll work."

Asked if Sixx, one of the principle songwriters, was dealing with darker rock themes on "Saints of Los Angeles," he countered with, "I mean, what are rock themes? Is it 'Quadrophenia'? You know, is it 'Dr. Feelgood'? What is it? Is it Neil Young? Is it Queen? Is it Kiss? I mean what are rock themes? I guess, what I'm saying is music in general -- rock music, you know -- gives us a feeling, you know. I feel a bit of a celebration when I hear loud guitars. And it makes me feel like jumping up and having a good time. And Motley Crue's been all over the place, too, because we're a band that really writes about our experiences. So whether it's me personally exposing parts of my life, or exposing parts of the band's life, I think that's what we're supposed to do. ... In our case, Motley Crue, you can pretty much listen to the song and go, 'Those guys lived that experience.' "

During Crue Fest, Sixx will take the stage twice, first with "Sixx A.M.," more of an alt-rock sounding side project created in 2007 for "The Heroin Diaries Soundtrack," based on his book. The band features singer James Michael, guitarist DJ Ashba and drummer Joshua Stevens.

"Motley Crue's been a priority for me," he said. "And it was a break in Motley Crue. And it was an opportunity to finish the book, which was 'Diaries.' And then to write a soundtrack to a book, and accidentally put together a band, which is cool. Because Sixx A.M. is now on the Crue Fest tour, I get to hold double-duty. And it's a completely different kind of thing. And I'm hoping that people really enjoy that."

Next up for Motley Crue is a film version of "The Dirt." How long this goes on after that is anyone's guess. "We're not even supposed to be alive first of all," Sixx said, adding later, "There's really nothing to prove for us. We've done just about everything we can do except for, you know, get into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and a few other things that probably in the end don't really make a difference anyway. I mean, musically, we've made so many diverse kinds of records. And we've put on such different types of shows live. And, you know, I guess now it's just about seeing how long we can survive."