Inferno

Most still consider the line-up of Lemmy, Fast Eddie Clark and Philthy Animal Taylor as being the quintessential Motorhead line-up but the current line-up of Lemmy, Phil Campbell and Mickey Dee has produced a catalogue of material over the last 13 years or so that rivals any of the band's career. Ever since the somewhat of a comeback album, 1916, Motorhead has released one solid album after another (with March or Die and Snakebite Love being possible exceptions). The formula is still the same but the band uses a little more punch and clarity with the production of their new albums versus the somewhat bass-less efforts of the 80's. With this new album Inferno, there are few surprises (well O.K. one...but I'll get to that later) and other than the appearance of Steve Vai on a couple of tracks the Motorhead freight-train of sound just keeps motoring on.

The album kicks into gear quickly with Terminal Show, a fast driving track in true Motorhead fashion that has an older Ace Of Spades era sound to it. Lemmy uses his usual scowl and with his demented prose, draws comparisons between life and a terminal disease and the common ground they share for some. The next track Killers is one of many including Life's A Bitch, Down On Me and Keys To The Kingdom that uses a fast but bluesy style that's always been a part of the Motorhead sound. Lemmy always defends Motorhead as being more of a rock 'n roll band with a punk edge rather than a heavy metal band. In The Name Of Tragedy is a track that uses a different sort of vocal arrangement and vocal chants during the chorus and is one of the best tracks. The slower and menacing side of the band is seen with tracks like Suicide and In The Black uses some great sliding riff styles that add a different energy of their own. The punk-edged Smiling Like A Killer is another highlight as is the Priest/Accept style of Fight. This one has a Fast As A Shark like feel to it and I can even picture Udo (Dirkscheider) singing it. The one surprise is the last track Whorehouse Blues. With just Lemmy singing over a couple of acoustic guitars (one with slide), it's a track that's very similar to Johnny Cash's Folsom Prison Blues. Way out of character but I hear Lemmy wants to do more of this sort of stuff for his upcoming solo record.

Inferno may not be a classic Motorhead album but it is a great one at that. It does get a little average sounding mid-album for a couple of tracks but there's many blistering and classic sounding tracks here to overcome that. Motorhead has a way of taking a simple riff or series of riffs, adding some witty and clever phrasing and transforming it into a great song. It's always been their formula for success and that's why they're still alive and well after all these years. Some people want to see a band progress but with band's like AC/DC and Motorhead, people like them just the way they are. What you see is what you get and with this album....we get another great Motorhead album to add to our collection.