Review:

on 2011-03-25 CharlesMartel Said:

I will have to fess up that I was never a great fan of Motorhead. I mean, Lemmy turned all metal when he formed the band and this, if you are a metalhead who can think of nothing else, perhaps did more to shape the future of metal than any band since Black Sabbath. But for my part, by the time Motorhead formed I had moved on, musically, and was no longer interested in this hard-driving rock which to me had begun to pass into oblivion once punk had come along and shattered the mold of popular music.

Having said that, I have started to listen to some metal in more recent years, but am by no means able to tolerate the ultra-fast thrashing or the deep, ursine growling which some metal bands seem to resort to. Indeed, we can blame Lemmy for the growling - so many vocalists wished to imitate and build on his naturally throaty style of singing that the growl developed. So thanks a lot, Lemmy, you utter bastard.

Still, when you see a second-hand copy of this album sitting in the bargain bin at a local charity shop going for only two quid fifty, you think what the hell? Well, you do, don't you? Well, I did. And that is how this album came to end up in my possession.

Now this hasn't really changed my opinion of Motorhead much. Most of the songs on this are relatively short, with a lot at under three minutes and quite a few at just over that mark. This is the length which is typically attributed to songs released for the singles market, not that I remember much Motorhead ever occupying a place in the UK singles charts. And generally, most of it all sounds the same. The guitars drive their way across a thundering beat with Lemmy's limited range of vocals spluttering over the top of them. No, this is the same Motorhead to which I have not paid that much attention to for all these years.

As a result, listening to this soon makes me switch off somewhat and concentrate more on what I am otherwise doing. As a result, the songs generally merge together into something of an indistinguishable mess. However there are a few tracks which do stick out, for one reason or another. The first is "Lemmy Goes to the Pub". There is nothing here, musically, to distinguish it from the other tracks, but the stupidity of the title does make you wonder what it sounds like, and the answer is, pretty much like everything else.

Then there is "Please Don't Touch", performed with Girlschool. This is distinguishable only by the fact that the female vocals provide a break to the normal monotony of the rest of the album. In terms of its other qualities, the only thing I can say is that the lyrics are incredibly stupid - references to Eskimo Nell come on! The final track, "Deaf Forever" was, however, a bit different. This was Motorhead doing Bathory. References to swords and sinews and even Valhalla. Somehow, Lemmy would not seem to make a convincing Viking standing on the prow of his long ship and going a plundering. In fact, the visual that conjures up is pretty comical.

So far, for a metal album, this has been short of memorable riffs. I mean, what is the point of a metal album without them? Well, we are rescued by one riff which stays with you long after the song has gone - the only song that you can say this about. "I Got Mine" is far and away the best track on this album, and provides something of a relief from what is otherwise monotonous - not unpleasant, just not that enthralling.

If then you feel the need to have a Motorhead album in your collection, you might as well have this one. If you are not a fan of the band I doubt this will convince you otherwise, but at least "I Got Mine" is worth playing a few times.
Rating: 6/10