Post by Father_Doom on Apr 18, 2002 10:40:31 GMT -5
Motorhead/Morbid Angel/Speedealer/Today’s the Day
Pop’s, Sauget Illinois (Greater St. Louis, MO metro), USA
April 14, 2002
Ah, there’s nothing like a little Motorhead to bring the generations together! My bro Mike and I have been Motorhead enthusiasts for decades, while his son – ordinarily a death metal fanatic - is a more recent convert to the cause. When we found out that Motorhead and Morbid Angel were coming to the area, well, there was not much doubt about where we had to be on April 14.
We arrived at Pop’s, a good-sized venue next to a prominent strip joint on the edge of an industrial zone, fashionably late, about 30 minutes after the doors were scheduled to open. No problem, right? There’s usually a good hour in most venues before the first band even begins. I could hear music pounding the walls and assumed that it was the show openers, Today’s the Day. Imagine our chagrin to find out that Today had started playing at 7:30, half an hour before the doors were set to open! What the hell? The group on stage turned out to be Speedealer, just starting their set. Right away I noticed Karma to Burn’s former bassist, Rich Mullins, in his trademark cap n’ glasses. I had seen Speedealer the previous summer, with Karma to Burn and Corrosion of Conformity, and while they were good that time, they were noticeably better this time. Their unique brand of thrash, combining as it does punk, Slayer, and a bit of stoner, was honed as sharp as a razor. Their music is rich in dynamics, going from a softly strummed guitar to ultra-thrash in less than a minute. It was hard to believe that Rich had been with them less than a month! Speaking with the band members afterwards, they confirmed that this is indeed a permanent thing for Rich, and I have to admit that Speedealer’s the…uh…”richer” for it.
Next up was Morbid Angel. They got lots of respect from the audience, and as pioneers of death metal they probably deserve it. The drummer was blastin’ it like a robo-octopus, and the guitars were good and, at times, great. The bass player/singer…well…he did the guttural vocals thing, spending a lot of time glaring down his nose at the audience and saying “fuck” in every between-song sentence. Not my thing, but the “lad” in our party loved it.
After a good long break, Motorhead hit the stage, complete with a huge backdrop of their first album cover, a smoke machine, and banks of strobes overhead. Cool, I thought, where’s the drugs? Heh heh. They opened with the anthemic ‘We Are Motorhead’ off the recent album of the same name. The first few songs were plagued with PA problems (“hey, we just got this PA yesterday”), but once that was ironed out, there was no stopping them. In fact, the sound quality was the best I’ve ever heard from them, as their sound is usually so loud and muddy that you can hardly tell what tune they’re playing. Not this time. The set was the usual mix of old and new, with a heavy emphasis on ‘Overkill,’ their second album. There’s nothing groundbreaking about that, as its pretty much what they’ve done every time I’ve seen them. What was different was the passion and intensity they brought to every song. ‘Metropolis,’ from ‘Overkill’ was the best I’ve ever heard, just white-hot. I was somewhat surprised and pleased that they did ‘God Save the Queen’ by the Sex Pistols, after Lemmy surveyed the crowd for “Real punks. Are there any out there?” Well, not many as it turned out, although there were quite a few there who could remember when the tune was new. Other highlights included a song I’ve never particularly cared for, ‘Just ‘cause you’ve got the power…doesn’t mean you’ve got the right.’ Well, I was converted. It was heavy as hell. There was a killer rendition of ‘Killed by Death,’ and naturally the crowd freaked when they did ‘Ace of Spades.’ I wonder how many times they’ve played that song over the past 22 years?
And speaking of the crowd, there were about 500 or so crazed Motorhead freaks on hand, ranging in age from 15 to 55. They were almost as entertaining to watch as the group on stage; maybe even more so. There were drunk chicks taking their shirts off and surfing topless through the crowd, writhing drunks being carried screaming out of the hall by 5 bouncers at a time, and even a woman, smiling distractedly, lifting her skirt for the benefit of anyone with a camera.
In all, everyone of all ages seemed well-impressed with Motorhead. Speaking for myself, I can say that this show was the best of the three times I’ve seen them. See them this tour; it’s the best they’ve been for years!
Kevin McHugh
Pop’s, Sauget Illinois (Greater St. Louis, MO metro), USA
April 14, 2002
Ah, there’s nothing like a little Motorhead to bring the generations together! My bro Mike and I have been Motorhead enthusiasts for decades, while his son – ordinarily a death metal fanatic - is a more recent convert to the cause. When we found out that Motorhead and Morbid Angel were coming to the area, well, there was not much doubt about where we had to be on April 14.
We arrived at Pop’s, a good-sized venue next to a prominent strip joint on the edge of an industrial zone, fashionably late, about 30 minutes after the doors were scheduled to open. No problem, right? There’s usually a good hour in most venues before the first band even begins. I could hear music pounding the walls and assumed that it was the show openers, Today’s the Day. Imagine our chagrin to find out that Today had started playing at 7:30, half an hour before the doors were set to open! What the hell? The group on stage turned out to be Speedealer, just starting their set. Right away I noticed Karma to Burn’s former bassist, Rich Mullins, in his trademark cap n’ glasses. I had seen Speedealer the previous summer, with Karma to Burn and Corrosion of Conformity, and while they were good that time, they were noticeably better this time. Their unique brand of thrash, combining as it does punk, Slayer, and a bit of stoner, was honed as sharp as a razor. Their music is rich in dynamics, going from a softly strummed guitar to ultra-thrash in less than a minute. It was hard to believe that Rich had been with them less than a month! Speaking with the band members afterwards, they confirmed that this is indeed a permanent thing for Rich, and I have to admit that Speedealer’s the…uh…”richer” for it.
Next up was Morbid Angel. They got lots of respect from the audience, and as pioneers of death metal they probably deserve it. The drummer was blastin’ it like a robo-octopus, and the guitars were good and, at times, great. The bass player/singer…well…he did the guttural vocals thing, spending a lot of time glaring down his nose at the audience and saying “fuck” in every between-song sentence. Not my thing, but the “lad” in our party loved it.
After a good long break, Motorhead hit the stage, complete with a huge backdrop of their first album cover, a smoke machine, and banks of strobes overhead. Cool, I thought, where’s the drugs? Heh heh. They opened with the anthemic ‘We Are Motorhead’ off the recent album of the same name. The first few songs were plagued with PA problems (“hey, we just got this PA yesterday”), but once that was ironed out, there was no stopping them. In fact, the sound quality was the best I’ve ever heard from them, as their sound is usually so loud and muddy that you can hardly tell what tune they’re playing. Not this time. The set was the usual mix of old and new, with a heavy emphasis on ‘Overkill,’ their second album. There’s nothing groundbreaking about that, as its pretty much what they’ve done every time I’ve seen them. What was different was the passion and intensity they brought to every song. ‘Metropolis,’ from ‘Overkill’ was the best I’ve ever heard, just white-hot. I was somewhat surprised and pleased that they did ‘God Save the Queen’ by the Sex Pistols, after Lemmy surveyed the crowd for “Real punks. Are there any out there?” Well, not many as it turned out, although there were quite a few there who could remember when the tune was new. Other highlights included a song I’ve never particularly cared for, ‘Just ‘cause you’ve got the power…doesn’t mean you’ve got the right.’ Well, I was converted. It was heavy as hell. There was a killer rendition of ‘Killed by Death,’ and naturally the crowd freaked when they did ‘Ace of Spades.’ I wonder how many times they’ve played that song over the past 22 years?
And speaking of the crowd, there were about 500 or so crazed Motorhead freaks on hand, ranging in age from 15 to 55. They were almost as entertaining to watch as the group on stage; maybe even more so. There were drunk chicks taking their shirts off and surfing topless through the crowd, writhing drunks being carried screaming out of the hall by 5 bouncers at a time, and even a woman, smiling distractedly, lifting her skirt for the benefit of anyone with a camera.
In all, everyone of all ages seemed well-impressed with Motorhead. Speaking for myself, I can say that this show was the best of the three times I’ve seen them. See them this tour; it’s the best they’ve been for years!
Kevin McHugh
