Motörhead are a
band that no matter what age they are, or duration their careers are, they will
keep on rolling. Especially for Lemmy, who has recently come down with problems
with his health, for the age of 67, however he's done better than most people
that age would. Sometimes it's good, sometimes it's shit, however This World
Is Yours was one of Motörhead's best albums in recent times. I saw them
live a few years ago and they sounded great, Orgasmatron was fucking
great live... And to the point - I'm here to talk about Motörhead's new release, Aftershock.
The first track kicks off with energy, the same energy which would come from "Ace of Spades". The guitars
sound fierce, as do the drums, linking nicely with Lemmy's voice, prominently
ageing, yet still intact and keeping up with the thrash feel of "Heartbreaker".
The speed slows down, but not too much with "Coup De Grace". The heavy distorted
blues rock still flows through, keeping Motörhead's sound typical, but in a way
where you would never want it to change. Phil Campbell's solos don't age, they
do splendid to keep up with the pace of the tracks and proving that he should be
just as iconic as Lemmy.
The first three tracks slow down in tempo per tune, kind of like a formula 1 car slowly creeping
around a corner on a race circuit. Next is "Lost Woman Blues", a slow yet ass
kicking tune which you would hear in the 80s at a strip bar - that
is because I've watched films like Roadhouse and you hear bluesy rock playing
whilst some blonde haired super breasted bitch flaunts her camel toe like a dog
flailing a chew toy, it suits. "End of Time" brings the pace what "Heartbreaker"
gave, it reminds me of the song "Overkill" cut in half, only the solo leads out
the track nicely.
About a third
through the album and the solo from the previous tracks gives the song "Do You Believe" an energetic rock n roll vibe which makes the guitarist stand out
completely by packing it with a great solo seizure. The heavy chugging "Death Machine" follows, during the chorus the riff gives you a nice reminder of "Foxy Lady" by Jimi Hendrix, it's a bit weaker compared to previous songs but certainly
doesn't lack. Here comes another softer track, only this one doesn't stand up
to the quality of "Lost Woman Blues". "Dust and Glass" is alright instrumentally,
it sounds like a track you would here on a 70s classic rock album. However, the
vocals don't match it at all. They seem too quiet, or even so, nothing that can
match the music. Phil Campbell keeps up his form by supplying a great solo.
Next comes
"Going to Mexico", it's a nice track to nod your head to, it's nothing too
special. "Silence When You Speak To Me" has one of the best riffs on the album, a
song that's just as in your face as the music, and a fly hovering around your
Sunday dinner, only less fucking annoying. In comes "Crying Shame", the riff at
the start just reminds me of someone riding on a motorbike with a big beard,
tattoos of tits on my arms and leather jacket with loads of band logos
ironed / stitched on. The verses are nice with the solos in between, the track has
a standing out presence compared to the rest, due to the length and the tempo
of the track.
The speed of
the album picks up once again with "Queen Of The Dawned". The heavily distorted
bass-line comes in and is followed by the guitar, it's short yet it carries a
nice pace which is good for a listen, very similar to "Heartbreaker". "Knife"
carries that on, keeping the tempo constant whilst the riffs and bass remain
heavy.
We're nearing
the end of the album, and "Keep Your Powder Dry" is a highlight of this. Offering a
great rock n roll guitar riff and a chorus that's the exactly description as
the riff, it's a good tune. The bass does a fantastic job chugging through this
as the guitars sound more calm yet still heavily distorted. It's like when you're a kid and you have your Smarties tube taken away from you because you've
pissed your parents' off in some way, so you start throwing a tantrum until
they calm you down, but yet you still want them Smarties - on to the last track. "Paralysed" offers yet again, that "Overkill" feel that "End of Time" gave me. It's
got the speed and and solos which we all know and love from Motörhead songs
like this. It's an outro song which seems anti-climatic when the album finishes
with it, but yet it gets you slightly hooked to play it again and keep the
tempo with "Heartbreaker". The production
of the album focuses sorely on the volume of the tracks from what I've heard.
If you listen
to these tracks with crap headphones, then the vocals would seem swamped by the distortion
coming from Phil Campbell's guitar. Lemmy (though age is catching him a bit)
still sounds unique and healthy on the album, and we hope this will be the same
whilst gigging after his health scares. When they're live they're loud and
proud, and to be honest I wouldn't want them any different. The lyrics are
good, though somewhat naff on tracks like "Going To Mexico" and "Paralysed" if I'm
absolutely honest. The speed in half of the tracks get similar sometimes, the
intro track "Heartbreaker" and also "Queen Of The Dawned" stand out pretty fine.
The slower songs are hit and miss, "Lost Woman Blues being" a firm hit while
"Dust and Glass" is abit stale. It's a great album, just as good as This World Is
Yours that was released three years ago or so. The songs on Aftershock still have
that signature 'speed rock n roll' Motörhead have made their own thing, it's a
good album in my eyes as fans will adore this album and I'm sure any lover of
classic metal music would appreciate this too.
~Matthew
Clewley
7.0
