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Ace of Spades

Born To Booze, Live To Sin - The Ultimate Tribute to Motörhead

Review by Gary Hill

Mot?ö?rhead was, in so many ways, a unique band. A large part of that came from the man, the legend, himself Lemmy Kilmister. His thundering bass and rough-around the edges vocals were an explicit part of the band's sound. The only person I know of who plays bass like him is Alan Boomer Davey, and he's the bass player (along with providing a lot of the vocals) here. Davey is joined by Neal Archer and Magpie to create the core band here.

This live show finds them mostly nailing the trademark Mot?ö?rhead sound. The only thing that lets you know it's not really that band is the vocals. The thing is, no one else has that voice. Truth be told, if you listen to old Hawkwind albums, Lemmy didn't always sound like that, either.

Lemmy was the bassist in Hawkwind in the early days, and did vocals for a number of songs during his tenure. Alan Davey joined in a similar capacity years later, and the two formed a real friendship. That makes it interesting to me that in some ways this makes me think of the Space Ritual era of Hawkwind, while also being decidedly Mot?ö?rhead. It should be noted that this music, while strong throughout, isn't the best suited for track by track reviews, but that's how they are done at Music Street Journal, so I made the best of it.

This review is available in book (paperback and hardcover) form in Music Street Journal: 2023  Volume 4 More information and purchase links can be found at: garyhillauthor.com/Music-Street-Journal-2023.

Track by Track Review
Iron Fist
Coming in fierce and screaming hot, I've always loved this screamer, and they put in a great rendition of it.
Stay Clean
They just come straight into this one from the previous track. This is another that's absolutely on fire. I love the bass jamming mid-track. .
We Are The Road Crew
Another of my favorite Mot?ö?rhead tunes, they definitely do it justice. Driving and meaty, this works well. They throw a few twists into this later that are so cool.
Leavin' Here
This has more of a rock and roll vibe, but it's decidedly Mot?ö?rhead at the same time. I really dig some of the instrumental interplay, call-and-response stuff on this. The bass work is, of course, amazing.
Iron Horse / Born To Lose
This drives with a lot of style and power. It's another solid entry, but not really a standout.
Limb From Limb
I really like this one a lot. The bass riffing that drives it is so cool. The track really rocks out like crazy.
Tear Ya Down
The bass really shines on this number, too. It's another high-energy Mot?ö?rhead screamer. This is also a little punky.
Keep Us On The Road
Here we go with another killer Mot?ö?rhead romp. This isn't a big change, but it's just another effective slab of heavy rock.
Step Down
The opening jam with both killer bass and scorching guitar just oozes cool. The song is pretty much what you expect beyond that. This includes a drum solo.
No Class
Michelle Jiminez-Alder does vocals on this song. It's a nice change, and this screamer works great.
Bomber
Jiminez-Alder sticks around for this one, too. I have always loved this song, and they put in a great performance of it.
Live To Win
Another winner, this is on fire and so strong.
Lawman
Not a big change, this is another effective cover.
Train Kept A Rollin'
The instrumental sections on this are absolutely on fire. Obviously, this is a cover of a song that was, in turn, a cover when done by Mot?ö?rhead. This is actually one of my favorites here.
Shoot You In The Back
Danny Faulkner provides the vocals on this song. This is another killer cover.
Stone Dead Forever
Davey's bass gets to shine in a short intro to this. They drive out building on a second bass line. Faulkner is again handling the vocals here. The bass gets the spotlight again for a time later in the track.
Dirty Love
Another driving Mot?ö?rhead tune is on the menu here. The instrumental section later is especially intense and fierce.
Ace Of Spades.
On the one hand, this might be over-played. I know that Lemmy had from time to time talked about frustration at being expected to play it at every show. The thing is, it's a strong song. Was it Mot?ö?rhead's best? Not as far as I'm concerned, but it's a great tune, and this is a solid rendition.
Overkill
Another driving Mot?ö?rhead head classic is delivered here with the kind of style you expect by this point.
 
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