Motörhead at their best 

Following Lemmy Kilmister’s death in 2015, Motörhead decided to retire in his honor. However, this past February, Motorhead surprised fans by releasing Bad Magic: SERIOUSLY BAD MAGIC, which is a follow up to the band’s last album Bad Magic.

Motorhead’s latest album is stunning because each song chronicles the musical legacy they left behind for their fans and the instrumentation on each track is filled with heart stopping instrumentation and killer vocal performances.

“Victory or Die” opens things up with a righteous vocal performance and bass guitar playing by the late Kilmister. Kilmister’s vocals remain strong and authoritative while his bass guitar skills shake the background with bittersweet noise. “Victory or Die” shows how professional Kilmister was as a musician due to how each vocal pitch and bass guitar note can be felt blaring through the speakers.

Motorhead performs a cover of The Rolling Stone’s song “Sympathy For The Devil” and as a whole, the tune is simply fantastic. The piano playing brings the main melody on this composition while the guitar and drum playing adds more rhythm to the tempo. Also, the electric guitar solo toward the end of this piece is fantastic because the sound captures how passionate Motorhead are with their music.

Another great cover song by Motorhead is David Bowie’s “Heroes.” Motorhead’s version is soul-shaking thanks to the ear bleeding guitar playing and Kilmister’s vocal performance carries Bowie’s legacy with a commanding lead performance. “Heroes” will always be a classic Bowie tune and Motorhead kicked things up with their own version of this masterpiece.   

Toward the end of Bad Magic: SERIOUSLY BAD MAGIC  are tracks from the band’s live performance at the Mt Fuji Festival in 2015 and “Damage Case” gives listeners a chance to hear how powerful Motorhead were live. The instrumentation brings solid heavy metal vibes while Kilmister uses his vocals to contribute to the musical madness.

Of course, in true Motorhead fashion, the band does a live performance of “Ace of Spades.” Kilmister’s love for the music can be felt through each vocal tone and the instrumentation brings an iconic heavy metal vibe. Fans of Motorhead will not be disappointed with Bad Magic: SERIOUSLY BAD MAGIC because the band’s legacy is still alive through their jaw dropping music.