Motörhead
Club Nokia
May 14, 2013
The privilege of watching Motörhead thrash on their instruments is certainly a good way to spice up any Tuesday night. But there is no way to start this review without discussing the insanity of their opening act, Anvil, who took the stage with a vengeance in front of a packed house at Club Nokia. Last night, the criminally underrated Canadian metal gods smashed through a barrage of headbanging tunes, setting the bar high for iconic Englishman Lemmy Kilmister and bandmates Phil “Wizzo” Campbell and Mikkey Dee. Despite all the times I've been told I need some Anvil albums in my music collection, it was last night's live show that inspired my devotion.
Phötös! Motörhead & Anvil @ Club Nokia
Lead singer Steve “Lips” Kudlow is one hell of a show man. Not only was he pumped, but the middle-aged rocker created the lighthearted, almost hippie energy amongst the metal heads in the crowd, which is a rare thing to achieve because a lot of metal heads make fun of that kind of stuff. They have a new bassist, Sal Italiano, who thoroughly contributed to the band's tight-knit chemistry.
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After Anvil set the mood, Motörhead came roaring out on stage to greet their legion of fans. But even though the guitars, bass and drums were spot on, unfortunately the vocals for Lemmy were not nearly loud enough to compete with the rest of the sound. If they would have had the vocals up a few notches, it would have been perfect but for songs like “Stay Clean,” the chorus sounded kinda muddy. Aside from that they were fantastic on stage. Lemmy is obviously still a beast despite holding his usual stoic pose because he is playing his bass and singing. Though if you watch his hands, he still plays faster and better then half of the musicians out today. Not only was he playing with all of his energy but also guitarist Phillip “Wizzo” Campbell and drummer Mikey Dee both had some tremendous solos. One of the nice things about Motörhead is the fact that they allow each member of the power trio gets a chance to show their strength.
The song selection that was chosen was a very large array, ranging from 80s classics like “Ace of Spades” and “Rock It” to unheard tunes from their forthcoming album–which seems to slide easily into their pummeling discography of bluesy metal riffage. It is nice to hear that their music hasn't changed with age or time because sometimes bands lose momentum, but thankfully Motörhead keeps on running strong. In fact I think Lemmy will probably die of old age on stage with his four-string Rickenbacker in his hands, still rocking out as fast as possible.
The Crowd: Mainly older thrash metal people some in their early 20's, L.A. metal skanks dancing around looking slutty, and a few young kids with their dads.
Phötös! Motörhead & Anvil @ Club Nokia
Random Notebook Dump: I saw Dave Grohl when I went to get my press pass. I am a huge fan of his and instead of saying hello I starred at him with my mouth open when he saw me I ran away. Yep, that's what kind of music journalist I am.
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