ALBUM REVIEW: No Sleep ‘Til Hammersmith (40th Anniversary Edition) – Motörhead
There are some bands that just need no introduction. Chief among them however, must be England’s greatest cultural export and legendary speedfreaks MOTÖRHEAD, who across their lengthy career produced truckloads of frantic, excellent music and who influenced pretty much anyone who picked up an instrument and did anything even remotely interesting with it for the next 40 or so years. Few bands can lay claim to such an indelible and undeniable mark, but one who certainly can is Lemmy and company. Their classic live album No Sleep ‘Til Hammersmith has been re-mastered and re-released in an enormous and expansive four-disc edition for it’s 40th birthday, but has it truly stood the test of time?
Turning to the first disc, it is essentially a remastered version of the seminal, earth-shattering No Sleep ‘Til Hammersmith live album from its original master tapes, lifted of course from the Leeds and Newcastle dates of the band’s Short Sharp Pain In The Neck Tour. From the opening apocalyptic rumble of Ace Of Spades to the murderous swagger of original closer Motörhead and off through the bonus tracks, it not only showcases the classic line-up of extreme metal’s filthiest forefathers on absolutely tremendous form, but it has been polished to an incredible degree.
Every note, every drum beat and every one of Lemmy’s immediately recognisable growls is masterfully displayed, it still makes for an utterly devastating wall of noise but now it is one from which every tiny detail or subtle bit of musicianship which may otherwise have been lost in the sheer aural assault can be fully appreciated. This has the effect of drawing attention to the fact that despite being legendary indulgers (“wasted forever, Ferociously stoned…”) these men were also world class musicians who could outplay any single one of their contemporaries and in double time, while full to bursting with whiskey and amphetamines to boot. There is nothing more that can be said, there is a very definite reason why this album became MOTÖRHEAD’s only number one hit. It remains fierce, tight and utterly brilliant.
Those familiar with the story of No Sleep ‘Til Hammersmith will no doubt be aware that the name was gleamed from a slogan daubed on the side of the band’s van and that they did not in fact even play a date at Hammersmith on this tour, instead trawling around Norfolk, Leeds, Newcastle and Belfast across five dates in the space of a week. Three of the five dates were recorded in full (Leeds and both nights in Newcastle) and they are included here as bonus material. The first of which, recorded on March 30th, is where just over half of the original album is taken from and so presents an expanded version of familiar territory. The second, recorded the night before and also in Newcastle, is dirtier and nowhere near as clean as the album itself or the following night, but still contains that chemical gut-punch that nobody ever did better than these three lunatics. The third disc contains the mostly unused material from the Leeds date, which went largely unselected due to subpar sound quality of the recording, but still makes for an interesting listen.
If you never managed to see MOTÖRHEAD live and in the flesh, then this album cannot possibly come highly recommended enough. It is a polished and expansive version of the band’s biggest commercial hit and probably the best live album in heavy metal, a glimpse of an experience that can never be repeated. If you’re fortunate enough to remember what the thorough assault on the senses a MOTÖRHEAD show provided, the fearsome, unforgiving wall of noise that would thunder through you, rattling your skeleton and leaving you with hearing damage for days, if not weeks afterwards, then it is highly likely that this remaster will bring fantastic memories flooding back, perhaps it will even mist your eyes slightly.
Regardless of whether you saw them or not though, one thing is for certain, It will make you remember that not too long ago, there was a band that came and struck a chord so hard that its reverberations are still felt throughout the world of metal to this very day, almost 45 years after they were formed. They were MOTÖRHEAD, they played rock ‘n’ roll, and this is a passionate celebration of what was arguably their finest moment.
Rating: 10/10
No Sleep ‘Til Hammersmith (40th Anniversary Edition) is out now via BMG.
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