Motorhead with Speedealer, Razor and Voivod at the Docks, April 27. Tickets: $29.50. Attendance: 1,500. Rating: NNNN
Rating: NNNN
me ‘n’ lemmy were hangin’ out and chillin’ just before the Motorhead show Saturday night at the Docks, just me ‘n’ Lemmy, hangin’, chillin’, y’know, like pals.OK. I lucked out when I asked for a set list and got to meet him for a few minutes, but I’ll tell it my way. Either way, the encounter made me miss openers Speedealer.
But I caught Razor from Texas, who played an all-out assault of hyperactive speed metal. Then Montreal’s Voivod brought out a nice barrage of more punk-edged noise metal with complex rhythmic structure.
But three opening bands is just too many, and by the time Motorhead got onstage we’d been there for over three hours, and people were getting a little grumpy. Overheard: “What is this, Ozzfest? I came to see Motorhead.”
Fortunately, feathers got smoothed when the band came out and launched into We Are Motorhead. It’s hard to stay mad when Lemmy’s shouting, “We’re Motorhead and we’re going to kick your ass!” With just the three of them — Lemmy, Phil Campbell and Mickey Dee — they still produce a heavy, meaty, nasty sound.
Saving Ace Of Spades for the encore, they played a wicked full repertoire spanning years, including classics like Bomber, No Class, Born To Raise Hell, Sacrifice and more, with the total self-assurance and relaxed, mean attitude you only develop when you’re a seminal, undefeated rock band.
Unfortunately, the sound at the Docks, a long concrete room, was tinny, making Lemmy sound like he was on a CB radio. And being a smallish woman in a sea of big guys, I could not see a damn thing, so I spent most of the show wandering around looking for a good vantage point, which I never found. Pain in the ass.
I’ll have to talk to my new friend Lemmy about that.
