I am sure that when the Montreux Jazz Festival first opened on 18th June 1967 the founders never imagined for a minute that 40 years later it would still be going, or that one of the filthiest and loudest bands in existence would be taking the stage by storm. Yes, what we have here is the 19-song, 87-minute-long, set by Lemmy, Phil and Mikkey. They had been working as a trio for 12 years by now, so to say they were settled in and knew what they were doing is something of an understatement. There will never be another Motörhead, with a bassist who never played it as a bass but as a guitar, meaning they had an underlying rhythm sound like no other, combined with punk and rock ‘n’ roll to create a metal sound which has influenced countless others.
Am I going to say it is as good as ‘No Sleep”? No, of course not, but that is because that album rapidly became a soundtrack to my life when it was released and was something I have often turned to when I have been feeling down as it is impossible not to brighten up when that is on the player. I actually am not a fan of the extended reissue for the same reason, as it is the original I love so much – but that was taken from multiple shows on the tour to the Hammy O, whereas this was just one night, so much more like the excellent ‘Live at Brixton Academy’ but instead of being a special show here we have a band on tour, promoting their latest albums. This means we get tracks from ‘Inferno’ and ‘Kiss of Death’, and while there are songs missing from the setlist I would have loved such as “Orgasmatron”, I was over the moon to hear their cover of “Rosalie” which was a new one on me.
Great production, Lemmy and the boys on form, what is there not to love? As Lemmy says at the beginning, “We are Motörhead, and we play rock ‘n’ roll!”
Rating: 9/10
