Review Summary: …or in other words, more honest than everyone else.
Integrity tends to be an underrated quality in life. There are people who overdo it and end up being closed-minded and there are others who, because of their own selfish motives, go with the wind. Whether he was rippin’ “Good Golly Miss Molly” a new one alongside musicians from opposite backgrounds, making history on
Ace of Spades with the classic Motorhead lineup or sending shivers down your spine while performing
Whorehouse Blues live, Lemmy remained unchanged, sincere to his principles; everyone else adapted to him. So next time you decide to criticize Motorhead for being repetitive, why don’t you try to stay unaffected and successful at the same time? But I guess we all love change anyway, right?
Everything Louder than Everyone Else’s success lies exactly on the fact that it showcases a real band that reeks of integrity. It isn’t Motorhead’s best live album but it was the most complete at the time of its release and features Motorhead before the wear and tear started affecting their leader. In addition, it offers the opportunity to experience a “true” live appearance as it is not a product of various live appearances and contains no overdubs. This means that you can listen to guitar solos go slightly wrong on “Burner” and Lemmy trying to sing melodically on “Lost in the Ozone”, which make the album sound even more live. Furthermore, the audience can be heard only when the sound wave stops between songs which is also a great chance to enjoy Lemmy’s interaction with them such as when he dedicates “No Class” to the then recently deceased Wendy O. Williams.
On the other hand, some may find that
Everything Louder than Everyone Else is mixed very loud and that, even though it is a double album, lacks a few of their earlier tracks from classic albums such as
Another Perfect Day or
Motorhead. Admittedly, songs like “Shine” and “Dead Men Tell No Tales” – who they performed on other dates of the same tour – would have worked marvelously. But at the same time, we get the chance to listen how successfully they incorporated “weak links” such as “Civil War”, “Overnight Sensation” and “Sacrifice” among classics like “Killed by Death”, “Overkill”, “Ace of Spades” and “Metropolis” and don’t miss a beat.
Going back to the concept of integrity, when Lemmy announced to the German audience that night of the 21st of May 1998 that they’re gonna kick their ass, that was the exact equal to a warrantee. Motorhead could have sold tickets with a “money back” guarantee, which was due to their high work ethic, Mikkey Dee’s blistering performance and Phil Campbell’s underrated presence. However, it was the man who got fired from Hawkwind who, regardless of lineup changes, kept the spirit alive not only for Motorhead but for generations of people who hate change. Kilmister’s ascension to Valhalla unfortunately makes even more apparent the fact that a whole generation of legends, along with a piece of our younger impressionable selves, is becoming dangerously thinner; true rockers who despite their limitations, worked hard, rarely complained, were persistent, resilient and didn’t give up easily. They say that nobody is irreplaceable but this is a lie we tell ourselves to sleep easier at night.
“Integrity is everything to me. I will not die ashamed. I will live on my deathbed knowing that I gave it my best shot, and everything else is meaningless to me.”
