With all of the holiday hustle and bustle coming up, it’s best that we share our last report from 2009 with you! The prize for the Last Gig of the Year was given to legendary MOTÖRHEAD on December 16th, at the Helsinki Ice Hall. Check out the gallery here.
MOTÖRHEAD reminds me of my early teenage years, when I was slowly transferring my taste and views from the punk music I was into over to metal. This band was my first step towards “something heavier.” I was about 15 years old when I heard “Killed by Death” for the first time. I used to look at MOTÖRHEAD the same way as The Little Red Riding Hood would probably look at The Big Bad Wolf. Time has passed, my tastes have gotten more extreme, but once I heard the news about the gig I couldn’t miss the chance to look the wolf in the eyes.
Chances are that I will be given over to anathema by most of the inhabitants of the metal world for the following report. And I do feel like I’m writing blasphemy, so forgive me Lord/Lemmy/dear readers, but I can’t help being honest. I was just bored out of my mind the entire gig. I am not trying to deny the band’s absolute greatness – it’s an axiom – but I felt that I could have had better time listening to the same songs on a CD at home.
However, the audience in the front rows would definitely disagree with this opinion and maybe even throw a few rotten eggs at my head for this. But hey, I’m the one who is writing! So let’s move on from the terrible things I have just said. Once Lemmy and Co. went on stage and greeted the crowd with, “We are Motörhead and we play rock ‘n’ roll,” the forest of devil’s horns arose and didn’t disappear ’til the end of the show. People surely knew how to pay tribute to these monsters of metal.
MOTÖRHEAD started the set with a tale as old as time – one of their golden numbers “Iron Fist.” It seemed as if the audience was hit by an electric charge right from the beginning. I was trying my best to feel just as ecstatic as they did, but failed. “It’s Motörhead in front of you! They made history! Come on! Jump!” – nada, nothing. The cool old guy with his legendary mustache, who stood still most of the time, was undoubtedly worth seeing, but there was simply no energy exchange with the crowd.
It is nevertheless great to be able to see bands like this, who are still touring and not just trying to squeeze some money out of their old hits, but actually create something new. Such set-list regulars as “Killed By Death,” “Stay Clean,” and “Metropolis” were accompanied by more fresh stuff like “Be My Baby,” “Rock Out” (with your youknowwhat out), “The Thousand Names of God,” and some B-sides, like “I Got Mine” and “Over the Top.”
What impressed me the most was Mikkey Dee’s drum solo – it was just smashing. It was like an acrobatic performance in the circus only with flying drumsticks, smoke, and insane drumming. I didn’t manage to note how long it was, but I surely lost the sense of time. There’s only one word – WOW!
The encore homestretch started with “Whorehouse Blues,” which brought the need for a proper sip of Jack. Then it was the time for The Song – “Ace of Spades,” naturally, and the gig was finished with “Overkill,” which was quite self-explanatory. “Only way to feel the noise is when it’s good and loud.”
I may not have shared the common excitement about the concert, but I definitely stand together with those who greatly appreciate these guys and their music. After all, a lot of bands come and go, but Motörhead continue to bring generations together and there is definitely a reason for it!
Setlist:
1. Iron Fist
2. Stay Clean
3. Be My Baby
4. Rock Out
5. Metropolis
6. Over the Top
7. One Night Stand
8. I Got Mine
9. Guitar Solo
10. The Thousand Names of God
11. Cradle to the Grave
12. In the Name of Tragedy (w/ drum solo)
13. Shoot ‘Em Down (Twisted Sister cover)
14. Going to Brazil
15. Killed by Deah
16. Bomber
Encore:
17: Whorehouse Blues (acoustic)
18. Ace of Spades
19. Overkill
Written by Tanja Caciur
Musicalypse, 2019
OV: 7479
Photos by Jana Blomqvist
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