Motorhead

Motörhead are a British heavy metal band formed in 1975 by bassist, singer and songwriter Lemmy Kilmister (real name Ian Kilmister) after his ejection from the iconic space-rock band Hawkwind. The name was derived from a slang term for an amphetamine user. more...

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It has been said that "Motörhead's overwhelmingly loud and fast style of heavy metal was one of the most groundbreaking styles the genre had to offer in the late '70s" and suggests that their blending of punk rock's speed and attitude with more traditional heavy metal music "created speed metal and thrash metal." Whether they created these genres might be subject to debate, but Motörhead are unquestionably influential.

While the band are typically classified as heavy metal or speed metal, Kilmister, just like AC/DC's Angus and Malcolm Young, has refused such labels, preferring to describe Motörhead's style simply as "rock and roll." Motörhead's lyrics cover such topics as war, good versus evil, abuse of power, promiscuous sex, substance abuse, and "life on the road" (the latter is portrayed in songs like "(We Are) The Road Crew", "Iron Horse/Born to Lose", and "Keep Us on the Road").

History

Early years

After being sacked from Hawkwind in 1975, supposedly for "doing the wrong drugs" , Kilmister decided to form a new band, originally to be called Bastard. Doug Smith, the band's manager, advised him that, "It's unlikely that we're going to get on Top of the Pops with a name like 'Bastard'." Lemmy figured he was right and decided to call the band Motörhead, after the last song he had written for Hawkwind. His stated aim was for the outfit to be, "the dirtiest rock n' roll band in the world" and that, "if this band moved in next door - your lawn would die".

The first line-up of the band featured Larry Wallis (ex-Pink Fairies) on electric guitar and Lucas Fox on drums. Their first gig was at The Roundhouse, London, on July 20, 1975. They recorded sessions at Rockfield Studios in Monmouth, during which Fox left. He was replaced by drummer Phil "Philthy Animal" Taylor. The sessions were not released until June 1979, once the band was becoming popular.

Deciding that two guitarists were required, the band recruited "Fast" Eddie Clarke, but Wallis left during the auditions, so the idea was shelved. The trio of Kilmister, Clarke, and Taylor is today regarded as the "classic" Motörhead line-up.

Initial reactions to the band were unfavourable; they memorably won a poll for "Worst Band in the World" in one music magazine.

Rise to success

The band's first official album was the self-titled, Motörhead, released in November the second 1977. By this time, the standard of their performances had improved considerably, and the uncompromising nature of their music was beginning to garner a following from enthusiasts of both metal and punk. Follow-up albums, Overkill and Bomber, cemented their reputation as one of Britain's foremost heavy metal groups.

Read more at Wikipedia.org