Motörizer

iTunes Review

The contemporary metal scene has splintered into countless sub-genres, but Motorhead are one band on which every headbanger can still agree. The band’s twentieth studio album, Motorizer, is plugged into every era of hard rock history. “Runaround Man” shows that the band’s foundation still comes from Chuck Berry, while “English Rose” is one of the most tuneful songs Lemmy has ever written. Of course, real fans will delight in the slaughtering energy of “Rock Out” and “Buried Alive,” two songs that follow in the tradition of “Ace of Spades.” With grisly production from longtime producer Cameron Webb, Motorizer will appeal to fans of Velvet Revolver and Mastodon as well as old-school followers of AC/DC and Black Sabbath. And while no one can accuse Motorhead of toning down their sound in their old age, closing their record with a scathing anti-war song (“The Thousand Names of God”) is a stance that few of their younger protégés have the nerve to take.