Motorhead-Kiss of Death review

Code · 30-08-2006, 10:31 PM

Who?
Motorhead have been around for 31 years now, and Kiss of Death is their 26th album. They are best known for the songs Ace of Spades and Overkill. The current lineup have been together since 1995, consisting of bassist/vocalist Ian 'Lemmy' Kilminster, guitarist 'Filthy' Phil Campbell, and drummer Mikkey Dee. They are infamous for their brutally loud live shows and relentless touring schedule.

Any good?
Well it's certainly more diverse than you might expect, ranging from drop-D powerchord-athons to bluesy metal licks, via (bizarrely) an acoustic lighter-waverer.

When you buy Motorhead, you're not gonna expect anything more than down and dirty rock 'n' roll, and this album delivers on more than one level. Particularly impressive are the superheavy riff and awesome drumming on Under The Gun, and if it wasn't for Lemmy's trademark sandpapery vocals on Be My Baby, you could swear you were listening to a Slipknot/KISS collaboration. As I mentioned before, the epic God Was Never On Your Side is mainly acoustic-based, and it's odd to hear Lemmy's signature vocals being used for anything other than loud, distorted rock. That's not to say it doesn't work, though, and for the most part this album is awesome.

I bought a limited edition copy, which also contains the awesome Metallica cover Whiplash, which won a Grammy in 2004.

Overall?
If you like any of Motorhead's old stuff, as well as any bands from Pantera to Led Zep, I can almost guarantee that you'll like at least 10 of the 13 tracks on offer on Kiss of Death.

Rating: 9/10.
This is the sound of veterans showing the young ones how it's done, and proving that there's more to them than Ace of frigging Spades. I hope you're listening, all you young emo metal upstarts!