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Review by Dan Hunter
Over two decades since the beginning of their reign of terror, recovered addict Nikki Sixx has seen the error of his ways and decided to publish his diary entries. The entries come from 1987, the year that marked the lowest depths of his spiralling drug abuse, as a warning to people who may follow the same dark path.
The diary entries alone are shocking (and in some cases hilarious) enough, in order to convey the full effect that Nikki’s substance abuse had on himself and those surrounding him. But the book also includes accounts from friends, family and colleagues to add to the picture. The other members of Mötley Crüe as well as former Guns N’ Roses guitarist Slash are all given a chance to tell their side of the story.
Whilst Nikki’s principal aim with this book is to sway people from drug addiction and explore what makes a person an addict, the book also provides an insight into the actions of a band that has been heralded as the unshaken champion of rock and roll debauchery and excess. Every page of the book is a work of art: scruffy, splattered and decked out with scratchy sketches of needles, skulls and an emaciated Nikki. The periodic photographs both provide evidence that this is not an elaborate lie and serve to throw in some staple rock n’ roll images including lingerie shots and live photos.
Somehow Nikki’s message and the sickly glorification of excess in the images do not add up and what is produced appears more of a celebration of debauchery with a nice moral to wrap the package up.
For those who have experienced addiction first hand The Heroin Diaries must be heart wrenching. For everyone else, yes it is shocking, often it is soul-searching, but mostly it is just unforgettably entertaining as it follows the twists and turns of paranoia and excess that one individual finds himself wrapped up in. Whether you’re a fan of Nikki Sixx, Mötley Crüe, or just rock n’ roll, this book will have you hooked.
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