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MOTORHEAD EVERYTHING LOUDER THAN EVERYONE ELSE Lemmy Kilmister and his men celebrate their big day in a manner that's doubtlessly most typical of them: with the release of their current live album EVERYTHING LOUDER THAN EVERYONE ELSE. A total of 25 songs, spread over two CDs, which means going the whole hog in true Motörhead style. Starting with tough numbers like 'Iron Fist', 'Civil War', 'Burner' or 'Overnight Sensation', this live opus fights its way through an impressive twenty-five stations of the band's successful history and closes with the four ultimate Motorhead classics 'Killed By Death', 'Bomber', 'Ace Of Spades' and 'Overkill'. The result leaves nothing to be desired and accounts for all eventualties. The question of which particular category the Motörhead material should be filed under is countered by the musicians with a simple yet plausible retort. "It's fuckin' rock'n'roll", Lemmy Kilmister, Motorhead mastermind and the world's most likable grump, defines the approach of their current album. Yet he emphatically denies the oft-quoted heavy metal analogies — and rightly so. After all the spirit of classic rock music, which has its roots back in the Seventies and to this day hasn't lost any of its timelessness, wafts through the most recent product of Motorhead's seemingly unbridled creativity, in line with the band's very British sense of humour aptly entitled EVERYTHING LOUDER THAN EVERYONE ELSE. 
Mr. Kilmister, his guitarist Phil Campbell and drummer Mikkey Dee continue to thrash out their straighforward power rock effortlessly and without any signs of old age. Particularly the former Dokken/King Diamond skinsman Mikkey Dee seems to have a rejuvenating effect on Messrs. Campbell and Ian Fraser Kilmister, who already look back on a long and honorable musical career. When Mikkey Dee joined the band in 1992 and recorded large parts of the MARCH OR DIE material after only a few rehearsals, it was widely felt that this drumming Adonis would merely consider the group an intermezzo and take to his heels after the next album at the very latest. These days Mr. Dee can point to some seven years with Motorhead, and by the looks of it this working liaison could well continue for ever. At least as far as Lemmy, who's still highly enthusiastic on the subject of his drummer, is concerned. "Mikkey's really great. He's arrogant, that's what I like about him. It's good to be arrogant if you want to be a true rock star. I always say: believe in your mission! You have to sure of your cause! Mikkey is 100 per cent sure of himself. He knows that he's the best drummer in the world. I think Mikkey's excellent, I'm proud to have him in the band." Lemmy bestows similar praise on his long-standing guitarist Phil Campbell, who left Persian Risk in 1984 to join Motorhead and has continued to gain importance for his band ever since. The departure of the band's second guitarist 'Wurzel' — who bid his farewells in 1995 just before the band were due to embark on a major tour, thus temporarily creating organisatorial problems for his former colleagues — added special importance to Campbell's performance. After a brief discussion, the chieftains Kilmister and Dee decided to embark on the tour as a trio. Their many fans were delighted, and Lemmy saw his rather unorthodox decision confirmed retrospectively. "We explicitly let Phil stand on his own feet. You have to let him get on with things, not compare him to anybody else but always judge him as Phil Campbell on guitar. During the last tours he really delivered a full-time job, after all he practically had to take over the parts of the second guitar as well. Yet this was a very natural process for Phil, he has an idea, and his fingers translate that idea immediately. He doesn't even have to practice, sometimes he leaves his guitar in some corner for a whole six months, then picks it up again and sounds as good as he did before. Phil is amazing! It's great to be on stage with him." Motorhead as a trio: the concept almost automatically brings back memories of the early days way back in the mid-Seventies, when Lemmy had just recorded the Motörhead debut with Fast Eddie Clarke (g.) and Phil Taylor (dr.) and still had to face fierce critical attacks from all sides. 
The threesome went on tour with Blue Oyster Cult, and Lemmy, who had formerly played with Hawkwind (Silver Machine), was regarded as one the more flamboyant characters of the scene even then. From the beginning the band were considered authentic, dyed-in-the-wool rock musicians who deliver their rock'n'roll without any frills and restrict their stage shows to the bare basics — despite initial criticism from the media. Only once during the band history did a musician refuse to submit to this internal code of honour and tried to insist on a special position instead. He, however, had another think coming. "Brian Robertson never wanted to subordinate himself to Motorhead, he always saw himself as 'Brian Robertson featuring Motorhead Artists'. Or 'Motorhead featuring Brian Robertson'", Lemmy declares. "I have no time for that sort of thing, I want a functioning band." As far as that is concerned, thankfully nothing has changed in the course of the years. Even in 1999 Lemmy continues to pursue his uncompromising path, not giving a damn about trends and fashions and unwaveringly steers his band through rough waters. He never seems to run out of ideas. "Rock'n'roll life as such inspires me. To be in a band, to play music, to go out on tour, all that gives me so much inspiration." The most recent Motorhead tour seems to have had a particularly inspiring effect on the 'boss'. After the two successful live releases NO SLEEP TIL HAMMERSMITH (1981) and NO SLEEP AT ALL (1988), EVERYTHING LOUDER THAN EVERYONE ELSE once again goes to prove that Motorhead live are definitely a force to be reckoned with. The tracks on the album were recorded in Hamburg and Bremen, two of the biggest Motorhead strongholds. In these two cities every single member of their audiences knows every song from the entire Motorhead history. Consequently Lemmy's introduction is brief and very much to the point: "We're Motorhead and we're kickin' ass!" And here we have the album's 25 songs in Lemmy's own words: AND HERE WE HAVE THE ALBUM'S 25 SONGS IN LEMMY'S OWN WORDS: DISC ONE IRON FIST: We switch this one around 'cos since people want to hear it, we keep it in the set almost permanently. Opening spot is a good one for this song, but we've moved it again now! STAY CLEAN: Old soldier, together with "Metropolis." Both songs have been in the set since 1979!! But they're gone since this tour. Time to rest them, finally. ON YOUR FEET OR ON YOUR KNEES: This is a song we put in for the album. From the album, "Bastards," a tight little mugger of a song! OVER YOUR SHOULDER: A great favorite of mine. Murderer riff and down in the gutter! CIVIL WAR: This one is destined for all-time standardness - listen to the strobes during the solo!! BURNER: "Burner" or "Bernard" as we know it. Another ignore masterpiece! 100 mph end - Who wouldn't? METROPOLIS: Here's another old warhorse. Been in the set since 1498! Gone now though, so this could be your last chance to hear it live! Or not! NOTHING UP MY SLEEVE: Here's a mungo little bopper! Written for the "Orgasmatron" album and semi-dedicated to Tommy Cooper! Also featured in the movie "Eat the Rich" with humble author playing self with different name. I'M SO BAD BABY (AND I DON'T CARE): I have a great time playing this one. It's also one of the funniest lyrics I've ever written. Just to show you how humorous the radical feminist ranks can get - some woman at Melody Maker called this song sexist when it came out! THE CHASE IS BETTER THAN THE CATCH: Another oldie ('80) - good shuffle number - this is the sexist one!! TAKE THE BLAME: From "Snake Bite Love," a song that motors along a bit! For anyone out there who say Motorhead are burned out, worn out or have sold out. NO CLASS: Even older than "Ace of Spades"! From 1979, a good old time rocker. Dedicated to the memory of Wendy O. Williams who covered it. R.I.P. BORN TO RAISE HELL: Originally written for the German band Skew Siskin, it got on to our "Bastards" album instead. We have Ninca C. Alice from S.S. on live backing vocals here though, so it wasn't a total loss! OVERNIGHT SENSATION: Ironic or what? What a great bass player this band has! SACRIFICE: A completely wonderful exercise in assault and battery of the aural nerves. And it serves you right! DISC TWO LOST IN THE OZONE: This is also one of my favorites! Note the panic-stricken bass solo. Hear the curious backing vocals from Phil "strangle throat" Campbell!! And, it's still one of my favorites! THE ONE TO SING THE BLUES: Another good song, apart from the slightly desperate vocal. Didn't rehearse it quite as well as I should have! CAPRICORN: Back to the oldies. All about my star sign. Egotistical bastard! LOVE FOR SALE: Another from "Snake Bite Love" - what a boogie monster! My God, if I wasn't stuck doing this shit, what a good time I could have at our concerts!! ORGASMATRON: Here's one I wrote in my sleep. Got up in a hotel room at about 4 in the morning, wrote it down and got back into bed! Didn't even remember doing it. Probably my best set of lyrics, too - which might say a lot! GOING TO BRAZIL: As featured on "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno." A wonderful exercise in 12-bar joyful shouting. If not sooner!! KILLED BY DEATH: I must admit, the title is not original to me. Thank you Spike Milligan! Listen to the brilliant Phil Carambo solo at the end. BOMBER: A song inspired by the Len Deighton book of the same name. I suggest you read it - a monster of a book - it might put you in the mood to listen to this album! ACE OF SPADES: Well, Here we are again! I got to hate this number, but then I got to like it again, so here it is! OVERKILL: The most final number in our repertoire! So it's the last one. I hope you have enjoyed our show and that everyone in the world buys it, so I can be a billionaire and develop bad habits!! I'll tell you something, though - they've all been classic line-ups as far as I'm concerned! DISCOGRAPHY
MOTORHEAD (1977) |
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