Tag: Motorhead (Page 1 of 2)

This is the final album to feature Motörhead’s classic and best line up . It’s well documented that Eddie hated the recording sessions for this album, as he thought they were being rushed and his opinions were not being heard, he ultimately quit the band to form Fastway.

Iron Fist is often regarded as the worst of those classic albums, but I am here to tell you it’s not as bad as you think, even though the production is a bit flat. The title track opens up the album in fine style, it’s a classic Motörhead romp that only they could do. I’ve always liked Heart Of Stone because it’s a tune with a very simple riff, as are most Motörhead tracks, the track also has Phil’s trademark double kicks and one of those ear worm hooks. I’m Your Doctor is one of the tracks Eddie didn’t like as he thought it was too throwaway, he does have a point as it’s the weakest song. Go To Hell has a really cool riff and progression, a classic Head tune. I’m A Loser almost feels like a pop tune, at least at the intro and the chorus. Side 1 closes out with Sex & Outrage, a full on pedal to the metal Motortune.

America opens up Side 2 and has a very mid-seventies riff and heavy blues groove, a bit like Capricorn from Overkill. Shut It Down has a classic Eddie riff and that groove only the gruesome threesome could do. Great track!!! A song about themselves is next with Speedfreak, it’s definitely my favourite track. A killer Eddie riff and the trademark Motörhead groove, this track could have graced any of the classic albums. Boy do I miss these guys! Don’t Let Em Grind Ya Down starts with Phil playing a very un-Phil-like busy beat and groove, adding a bit of spice to proceedings. Lemmy always used to introduce the band by saying “we are Motörhead and we play rock n’ roll.” Well, the intro riff to Don’t Need Religion is pure rock n’ roll, and I would say it’s a bit close to Johnny Kidd and The Pirates. The album closes with Bang To Rights, a trademark Motörhead blast through three and a half minutes of your life driven by a great Eddie riff.

I’ll admit if I want to listen to Motörhead my go to’s are usually Overkill and Another Perfect Day, but I really enjoyed listening to this for the first time in a long while.

8/10 from The Grooveman.

This is studio album Number 21, and the the penultimate one at that. They probably will keep wheeling out live recordings and endless substandard things just to cash in on what was (at their height) a killer band. I thought this album and the two before (Motorizer and Kiss Of Death) were really good albums and a return to that old spirit, mainly thanks to a great production by Cameron Webb. Let’s be honest here, there are a bunch of mid period albums that aren’t that good and the band suffered because of these. I don’t think you can beat the Lem, Phil and Eddie days as they were untouchable. I’m glad I got to witness that line up numerous times. However, in Mickey Dee, Lemmy had found the best drummer he had, and he is a great driving force on this record. Phil Campbell’s contribution to this record are probably the best in terms of riffs and leads.

As well as the usual double kick sledgehammer songs, there is a bit of subtlety as well with tracks like Lost Woman Blues, which starts off as an almost traditional blues standard but ends in ZZ Top style boogie. End Of Time could have been a classic line up tune – it’s a belter. One of my favourite modern Motorhead songs is Going To Mexico. It’s a killer track which has Phil playing his ass off and a typical desperado lyric from Lem. The close out track, Paralyzed, is one of the heaviest tracks the band had done at this point.

The sad thing about this is that you can hear Lem struggling on some of the songs. On the album after this, Bad Magic, you can tell the end is not far away. If this album would have been the last album, I think it would have been a fitting end as they would have gone out on a high.

9/10 from The Grooveman.

I think the running order is all messed up on this 180g reissue – it starts with I Got Mine, and I thought it was Back At The Funny Farm. It makes perfect sense to have Farm as the opening track because of the humorous beginning with Robbo twinkling away on the guitar, and then Lemmy says Fuck That, and BOOM, monster bass time. I can remember all the hardcore fans losing their minds when Eddie left, and Robbo was announced as his replacement. On paper it should have worked, as Robbo is a way better player than Eddie. I have to say I love this album and it’s one of my favourite Motörhead albums. But Robbo being Robbo, he went out of his way to piss the fans off, and his tenure in the band only lasted this one album.

Shine was the most commercial sounding single that the band had done up until this point, and for me, this was Motörhead about to be accepted into the mainstream – with that perfect blend of crunch and melody. There are also some classic sounding Motörhead tracks like: Die You Bastard, Marching Off To War, and Dancing On Your Grave, with that added sparkle of Robbo’s tasty licks. I guess with Robbo’s addictive personality and Motörhead’s love of illegal chemical substances, it would have never lasted long anyway. I know Lemmy loved this album, but it wasn’t meant to be.

9/10 from The Grooveman.