Motorhead

Calling Lemmy Killmeister a “legend” nowadays is fairly clichéd. Sure, the 2010 rockumentary flick "Lemmy" cemented his legacy (as there is not a person in music today who does not have the upmost respect for Lemmy) and added to the Motörhead fanbase, but the legend thing is to simple a tag to put on Lemmy -as he is so much more.

In support of their superb new CD “The Wörld Is Yours,” Motörhead’s tour stopped in Boston (on March 1st) at the House of Blues (Boston’s best new venue for live music by far).

Kicking off with a three song blitzkrieg (“We Are Motörhead, “Stay Clean” and “Get Back In Line”) Lemmy and his band mates, guitarist Phil Campbell and drummer Mikkey Dee, assaulted the sold-out crowd (there were many outside the club on Lansdowne St. who where just begging for a ticket) with a ferver that is lost on many of today’s young-turk musicians.

While considered by many to be the “Godfather of Metal,”Lemmy describes what he does as pure “Rock and Roll” (as he often states he was influenced by rock pioneers as Eddie Cochran) and he demonstrated his knack for sticking to those roots when he pulled out “Going to Brazil.” A steady backbeat that pays homage to the sound of early rockers (combined with an instrumental attack that Metallica would be proud of), but lyrically – it is miles away from a 50’s song. Lines as, “Watching all the roadcrew attacking little girls, Joined the mile high club, goin' round the world,” would not have flown so well during the early stirrings of rock and roll.

There was a touching moment (if you can imagine that happening at a Motörhead gig) when Lemmy dedicated “In the Name of Tragedy” to the late Ronnie James Dio. And the band even got dead serious at one point with the policitaly charged “Just 'Cos You Got the Power.”

Climaxing with the set ending “Ace of Spades,” followed up with the sole encore of “Overkill,” Motörhead effortlessly proved their vitality and power - and while some poke fun at Lemmy and his 65 years of hard living – he is having the last laugh as he has nothing to prove to the naysayers.

Akin to C/DC, nothing changes about Motörhead - but that is what makes them both great. No bowing to style changes, no ”sell-out” ballads, and no catering to record company wishes. Take them or leave them. And last night, the crowd was more than happy to take all the trio could deliver.