Chrome Division - Doomsday Rock 'N Roll
Nuclear Blast
Rock 'N Metal
12 songs (46'03)
Release year: 2006
Nuclear Blast
Reviewed by Crims
Surprise of the month

Chrome Division is a side project of Dimmu Borgir’s Shagrath and one that will probably appeal to very few Dimmu Borgir fans. Playing a style of Rock and Metal that is entirely reminiscent (blatantly so) of Motorhead. Though a very fun CD to listen to it shares many of the same shortcomings a typical Motorhead CD would.

Featuring 12 songs Doomsday Rock ‘N Roll bludgeons the listener over the head with fast, dirty, punk inspired Metal tracks that every now and then show off some traditional leads and harmonizing. This and only this is the only thing separating this bands style from Motorhead. So the question becomes: do we really need a band emulating Motorhead when Motorhead have been releasing CD's in this style since the late 70’s and continue to do so on a semi-regular basis? The answer largely depends on how much you like this style to begin with. If you enjoy it there is a lot to enjoy here. The production is excellent with the guitar tone being appropriately heavy and dirty. While the vocals are deeper than Lemmy’s, they have the same raspy tone with a lot of back up gang vocals accentuating many choruses and even some verses. This part of the band has more in common with many punk and hardcore bands of the scene, but we’ve also heard it in Motorhead. The drumming is perfect for the style, using very fast punk/hardcore rhythms while mixing in more traditional Metal runs including tasteful double bass. Meanwhile, the choruses are catchy and the songs to the point with no frills, just as the style should be.

Anybody who is familiar with Motorhead’s extensive catalogue would likely agree that Motorhead have made some really generic and run of the mill songs in the past. They populate almost every release, some more so than others, and are largely overshadowed by what many people consider to be classics, and rightfully so, also found on almost every release. Chrome Division suffer the same fate with a few songs being, clearly, not as good as the rest. When you have so many, “to the point” songs with the exact same dirty rock mentality you end up experiencing blending songs syndrome. To be more specific: while you listen to the song you enjoy it, because there isn’t anything inherently bad about it, but also nothing makes it stand out because you’ve already heard other songs on the CD (and on other Motorhead CD's in this case) that have better riffs and better choruses.

This is the type of CD you put on as back ground music while your driving, working out, drinking with friends or doing other things; something that will instantly make you bang your head, get your energy up, and make you shout along with your favorite choruses. This is not something that you listen to on your head phones, with no distractions, to pick apart and take in every note, every tempo change, every melody, and every vocal line. In this respect Doomsday Rock N Roll is successful and the band obviously set out to record a back to the basics “Rock ‘N Metal” CD and that’s exactly what they did and they did a damn good job with it. The problem is, once again, the style is naturally limited and thus the CD is limited. It should be said that the inclusion of more traditional Metal leads was a nice touch and helped enhance each song when used. Also, the Black Sabbath inspired riff that shows up in Chrome Division wins the CD bonus points. Fans of Motorhead should definitely check these guys out and also those of you who enjoy both Punk Rock and Metal also should get a lot of enjoyment out of this. As for me, I consider myself a moderate Motorhead fan, though I own a good portion of their full-length and live catalogue with only a few holes. With that in mind I did enjoy this CD and likely will return to it, long after this review is done and for many years for instances where I need high-energy and well played background music and my copy of Ace Of Spades, 1914, and Bomber aren’t readily available.

Killing Songs :
Serial Killer, Chrome Division, 1st Regiment, When The Shit Hits The Fan
Crims quoted 80 / 100
Other albums by Chrome Division that we have reviewed:
Chrome Division - Booze, Broads And Beelzebub reviewed by Ross and quoted 77 / 100
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