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Motörhead with Morbid Angel, Today is the Day and Speedealer
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Judgment Committee Reviews | Rating |
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3 | |
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3 | |
| Solomon's Review | 4 | |
| Go to Reader Reviews |
Death's Review (4/30/02, WWF World, New York City):
photos by Ylana
MotörheadThis past Tuesday night brought the arrival to Manhattan of one of the more eclectic bills currently making the rounds -- Motörhead w/ Morbid Angel. I've heard a lot of talk from friends about what an odd pairing this is, but frankly, I thought it made sense. It's all metal, right? There wouldn't be a Morbid Angel if Motörhead hadn't inspired Metallica and Slayer. Plus, Morbid Angel adds a little technicality, brutality and overall "metalness" to what otherwise might be seen in this day and age as more of a "punk" / garage rock type of bill-- Motörhead/Speedealer/Today is the Day. So it all makes sense to me.
Our streamlined lineup for this show was Hel, Solomon and Ylana along with myself. Solomon had the line of the night. I was checking out a "guitarist wanted" poster by the box office window, and I told Solomon about it, 'cause he is a killer guitarist and has just moved to New York. Apparently, he isn't looking to join a band just yet, so when I told him about the ad, he said, "naw, I wouldn't fit the bill, 'cause I'm full of that bullshit rockstar attitude and it says 'no bullshit rockstar attitude'." I laughed, and then checked the poster again, noticing that it didn't actually state that particular "guitarist wanted" ad cliche, and that once again I had fallen vicitm to Solomon's deadpan sense of humor. It was that kind of a night.
I wasn't sure how this tour was going to do, and so I was shocked to learn that the gig was jam-packed sold out. Wow. Somebody must have done something right putting together this pairing, either that or Motörhead alone is simply much more popular than I had realized. Either way, it made for cramped quarters at the WWF.
Hel and Solomon went inside before me, and so by the time Ylana and I got in we had unfortunately missed Today is the Day. That sucked, as I had wanted to see them. We got a beer and just hung out a bit, saying hello to folks (it seemed like everyone was there-- totally the opposite of my expectation) and grabbing a few beers. Of course, anyone who was at this show can tell you that as the night wore on and the place filled up, simply grabbing a beer was not all that easy. There were like 4 or 5 bartenders serving a crowd of close to 2,000 people. But who can blame the club? It's not like they could have expected Motörhead to draw a heavy beer drinking crowd or anything! Here's a tip-- hire three more bartenders and you'll double your drink profits, guaranteed.
SpeedealerSpeedealer apparently used to be REO Speedealer but had to change their name. Also of note is that Jason Newstead had something to do with the production of their new record. Cool. I was intrigued. And for the first few sludgy chords, I was interested. But ultimate, Speedealer proved too "garage" and too "punk" for my tastes. I'm a metalhead, and-- while heavy-- Speedealer just wasn't my cup of tea.
In between acts, we worked the crowd. Saw Pepper Keenan of C.O.C., in town for the next night's opening stop on the Down tour, no doubt. I also saw Jack and Kelly Osbourne's names on the guest list, although I did not see them in the venue. Instead the crowd was full of the usual New York metal-industry types and all sorts of trashy Motörhead fans-- you know what I mean, the fun, cool trashy type of folk you'd expect to see at a Motörhead show. One thing I've noticed lately at New York metal shows is it isn't just guys-- there have been lots of women out at these shows lately (besides Hel, Redwolff, Cyn and Ylana) and this show was no exception.
I checked out the merch booth and played the role of stupid consumer by purchasing a $5 Bic lighter with a Morbid Angel sticker on it. Hey, what do you want from me? I was bored! And now I am with flame!
Morbid AngelMorbid Angel came on and played what felt like a very similar set to what I've seen from them the last few times. I've seen a surprising amount of Morbid Angel in the past year, starting with the first Pantera tour, then the "Extreme Steel Tour" with Pantera, Slayer and Static-X, then the recent Morbid Angel/Deicide show at this same venue, and now this. Sure, the vocalist may have changed (a couple of times!!!) but the bottom line remains the same: Trey and Rutan kick ass -- their lead tones searing through the mix and enveloping the room in blistering sound. Pete Sandoval also shredded as always. A good time was had by all, even if I did need to fight my way onto the floor just to be able to see.
After that I was pretty much done. I went back to the bar, waited far too long to get a drink, talked some more with friends and then Motörhead hit the stage. Lemmy looked to be in fine form (from what I could see! Thank god WWF has video screens everywhere showing the action onstage), and although drummer Mikkey Dee has definitely moved on from his days with King Diamond, looking at him I couldn't help but wish I was watching him play "Welcome Home" or "The Family Ghost." Surprisingly, I did not know a lot of the Motörhead material. Beyond, "Overkill," "Ace of Spades," "Orgasmatron," and a handful of other classics, I realized that I am not altogether that familiar with the Motörhead catalogue. In fact, every song they started playing, I thought it was the "Ace of Spades." Seriously - I was like - "oh here it is!" And then seconds later realizing it wasn't. It was actually kind of funny.
But just because I was clueless about Motörhead didn't mean everyone else was. In fact, the whole place was bopping around in some kind of weird, punk-inspired snoopy-dance kind of mosh. Weird. All the trashy, made-up Motörhead chicks were definitely partying and having the time of their lives. Of course their old biker daddies were chillin' out and enjoying themselves as well. In the end, a sold out metal show in NYC is always fun, although I could have ripped it up more had this been held on a weekend night. Still, it was a good, not great show, which was fine for what it was but not really my cup of tea overall. Morbid was cool, but I kinda felt like I'd been there done that. If you like Motörhead a lot, this might have been a five skull night. For me, it was only 3.
Hel's Review (4/30/02, WWF World, New York City):
Once again, I find myself at The World for another metal show. This time, the line-up is Today is the Day, Speedealer (who?), Morbid Angel, and Motörhead. Two of the four bands I was excited to see, but have seen a great many times. The other two I had never seen before, and I couldn't care less. Fortunately, it was an every-other scenario, so I didn't have a giant lull in the center, just a small one named Speedealer.
Few of you will be shocked to learn that I was looking forward to Today is the Day and Morbid Angel. You may be surprised to learn that I have never been much of a Motörhead fan. To me, Motörhead has always sounded repetitive and derivative of themselves. Every song sounds more or less the same. I never like bands like this - I can't even listen to AC/DC anymore, and if Pantera comes out with another re-hash like Reinventing the Steel, I’m writing them off as well. So, considering that criteria, why would I like Motörhead?
MotörheadToday is the Day was, not surprisingly, already onstage when I finally entered the venue. I only saw a song or two, which I enjoyed, but they received a mixed response from the crowd. Many a Motörhead fan seemed not to "get" them, and the usual disparaging remarks were shouted. Too bad, because they really are a great band, but I think it may be unrealistic to think that fans of simplistic 4/4 music of the kind Motörhead churns out will be able to understand and absorb Today is the Day's frenetic songwriting with its constant starting, stopping, and ever-changing time signatures.
Speedealer, apparently, was much more Joe-Motörhead-fan's kind of band, as they received a much warmer response. However, I found them to be extraordinarily annoying, with their country-fried approach to something that seemed to be some sort of combination of stoner rock, nu-metal, and country-western. Not at all my cup of tea.
True fans?Finally, the moment I was most looking forward to came, and Morbid Angel hit the stage of The World once again. It seemed odd to see them play here again so soon after the last time, but seeing them is always a treat. At this point in the evening, the club was getting quite crowded, but I stubbornly stuck to my chosen spot in order to see as much as possible. I was at the very back, where the sound is best, but the giant pole with the giant plasma screen tv attached obstructed my view of Trey. Not surprisingly, the tv was no help, as he was standing as far off to the side as possible, and was standing mostly outside of area where the video camera was aimed. I swear that he'd stand offstage and play if they'd let him. At any rate, the performance was reminiscent of the other set I had seen recently, but was enjoyable nonetheless.
The delay between Morbid and Motörhead was, as is usually the case with the set change just prior to the headline act, excruciatingly long and boring. This is the time of night when my colleagues are usually all reaching their most wasted of states, but with the absence of Abyss, there was no one really leading the charge and therefore the normal states of entertaining drunkenness were generally not attained. So, in my usual state of sobriety and lacking my usual drunken-friends entertainment, I was beginning to long for the evening to end. As I had already stated, I don't really like Motörhead, so I was not particularly excited for them, but at this point I really, really, wanted them to start so I could, theoretically, watch a few songs and get my ass home.
Morbid AngelWell, literally seeing Motörhead turned out to be an impossibility. The place was packed, and there was just nowhere to go. Since I had not devoted the time between sets to staking out a spot, the battle was lost before it even began. I tried to watch the monitors, which are everywhere in the club, but the camera must have been set on auto-focus because the picture was continually alternating between clear and very fuzzy. After five songs or so, I finally managed to glimpse the stage for a second, and I decided, at that point, I had put in as much effort as could reasonably be expected to enjoy a band I didn't really like to begin with, so I bid Motörhead farewell and headed for home.
So, in the end, the night went much as expected. I have to give Motörhead big points for their merchandise, which included not one, but TWO different shirts for us gals (which, of course, I passed on since I don't like the band and all, but still!), pins, bandannas, and a great many other fun items. I settled on an overpriced (merchandise at this venue is always marked up since they have their own employees man the booth) Morbid Angel lighter, but had a lot of fun looking. As I had anticipated, two of the bands were great, and two were "eh" - so the night as a whole receives an average score.
Solomon's Review (4/30/02, WWF World, New York City):
Ah, now that I've transplanted myself to The Big Apple, I can take advantage of the plentiful concert pickings in abundance here. When it comes to NewYork, you can see a good show about every other day, as long as time and money hold out.
MotörheadThis was my first NYC show since I got into town two weeks ago, and the WWF hall isn't too bad of a venue, I have to say. Two bars and two levels give plenty of room to an average size crowd, but when the place is packed like it was Tuesday night, seeing the stage becomes a problem. Even as I walked around the semi-circular upper floor, finding a spot to plant myself was difficult, to say the least. Getting up and down between the floors with that many people was a challenge as well, but no matter, the more the merrier! The WWF does provide an ample number of TV screens scattered throughout the joint, so there's really no way you can actually miss something. Of course, as a side-effect of growing up in front of the tube, there's the temptation to just stare at the screen and forget there's actual flesh and blood fifty feet in front of you. If you go to a sold-out show at the WWF, come early, grab yourself a beer or two and find a spot against the railing before they're gone!
Today Is The Day opened the show with a brief set of death/doom/sludge rock that was entertaining to a point, but failed to really grab my attention. They were rather slow compared to the other acts present that night, and I hope to see them later when they have more time to shine. I had never heard Speedealer before now, and they impressed me with Anselmo-styled vocals and a Lynyrd Skynyrd-meets-Metallica sound.
Morbid Angel
Morbid Angel, I have to say, ruled the evening, and I'm not a big death metal guy, myself. Sheesh, the only song I recognized by name was "Rapture" (remember that video with the guy caught in the fishnet? haha!). You know, I have the theory that music is always more fun live, even if it's not something I listen to on a regular basis, and this proves that point. MA was tight, fast and cool to watch, and new bassist/vocalist Jared Anderson used his real voice when addressing the crowd (wow)! The real winner here is the guitar team of Erik Rutan and Trey Azagthoth, the Man With The Weirdest Name In Metal. Holy shit, can you say "guitar solo?" These guys are still using hand-tapping for crying out loud! My heros! Eat that, Hoobastank/Linkin' Park/Blink 182/blah/blah/blah!
SpeedealerMotörhead ended the evening with a solid delivery of new and classic 'Head tunes spanning the band's twenty-five/thirty year history. Not exactly stuff you want to slam-dance and sprout devil horns to, but it's good, gut-level rock 'n' roll, just the same. Actually, "Just 'Cos You Got The Power" (live track off No Sleep At All) was the real stand out piece from Lemmy and Co. This one has a slow, simple, raw groove that cooks live. "Overkill," "Ace of Spades"-- it was all there in full force. You may be wondering why such a diverse group of acts were on the same bill, and maybe it is strange, but I think this kind of organization is positive. In one night, you can get your death metal, stoner rock and classic speed/punk fix all at once.
True Fans.
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