Motörhead
The World Is Yours
Producer Cameron Webb
Future PLC/Motörhead Music
Release date: January 17 (UK) | February 8 (U.S.) 2011

In 1975 Ian “˜Lemmy’ Kilmister was fired from British space-rock group Hawkwind. He wasted no time in getting back on the music horse and quickly formed a new three-piece band which almost as a direct opposite to Hawkwind was loud, fast, and if it moved in next door to you “˜your lawn would die’. Lemmy continued to play the bass (despite having no experience when he joined Hawkwind four years earlier) and a suitable name was chosen. Sadly Lemmy was persuaded against calling his new band Bastard and changed it to the infinitely superior Motörhead.

An incredible 36 years later Motörhead is still going and continues to record new albums at an admirable rate. The World Is Yours is Motörhead’s 20th studio album and sounds as fresh as the first.

Motörhead‘s new album, The World Is Yours, comes out in the U.S. on February 8, 2011, while the band’s frontman Lemmy Kilmister is the subject of the the recent documentary Lemmy: 49% Motherf**ker, 51% Son Of A Bitch, which will make its way to DVD and Blu-ray on February 15, 2011. On top of that, Motörhead is currently touring the U.S. and Canada in support of the new album, so after over rocking the world for 35 years, what’s the band to do next?

How about selling their own wine? And some Motörhead wine glasses to match.

Today commemorates the 32nd anniversary of the death of one of the most infamous musicians in history: Sid Vicious.

Born John Simon Ritchie in London, England, Vicious began his music career in the 1970s appearing in various punk bands around the city. In 1977 he got a huge break when he was asked to play bass guitar for the notorious English punk band, the Sex Pistols.

Punk rock has always been far more about attitude than musical ability; Sid Vicious had little ability, but more than enough attitude. He had the gnarled, dirty look that early punk rock displayed and the snarling, dangerous personality that few genuine punk rockers before or since have been able to emulate. The late 1970s is defined by punk rock and Vicious has always been the poster boy.

He persuaded Motorhead bassist Lemmy to teach him to play, which according to the rock god, was not a success. But Vicious persevered and taught himself to play along to records by the Ramones, reportedly over the course of one night. He could also sing and his version of “My Way” plays over the end credits of Goodfellas.

Butch Vig, best known as the producer of Nirvana‘s Nevermind album and drummer of the band Garbage, recently discussed that he reunited ex-Nirvana members Dave Grohl and Krist Novoselic for a track on an upcoming Foo Fighters album. The track is titled “I Should Have Known,” and will be featured on the next album from Grohl’s band.

The new song sees Novoselic contribute both bass guitar and accordion (!!) to the track. Recording for the as-of-yet untitled album was completed at the beginning of this year, and is being held for a release during April.

Grohl and Novoselic first worked together in the band Nirvana, led by frontman Kurt Cobain. Their breakthrough album was Nevermind, released in 1991, and produced by Butch Vig. The release of the album would usher in a new attitude, sound, and feel for the hard rock/metal and punk community that would eventually be labeled as the “Grunge” genre by the media. During their career, Nirvana released songs such as “About a Girl,” “Smells like Teen Spirit,” and “All Apologies.”

Lemmy
Directed by Greg Olliver, Wes Orshoski
Starring Lemmy, Dave Grohl, James Hetfield, Kirk Hammett, Lars Ulrich, Robert Trujillo, Henry Rollins, Scott Ian, Billy Bob Thornton, Ozzy Osbourne
Damage Case Films
Released: December 7, 2010 (Limited UK)

He is ex of psychedelic space-rockers Hawkwind, master of many a collaboration, a skilled lyricist, and the bass-playing gravel-voiced leader of the neverending metal machine that is Motörhead. He is Lemmy, the “˜baddest motherfucker in the world’.

Lemmy describes the music that influences you the most as the stuff you listened to when you were 20 that knocked you out. For many, like me, that was Motörhead. Although I was nearer the age of 10 and my dad let me watch an episode of the chaotic comedy The Young Ones in which each week they would have a musical “˜guest’ where a band would play a song in the young ones’ house while all hell was breaking loose in cutaways. While Rick, Vyvyan, Mike, and Neil made their way to the train station to make an appearance on University Challenge, a man in shades with long hair played the greatest song my pre-teen ears had ever heard: “Ace Of Spades.”

The man who can’t sing, but no one can sing like him, became a fascination. Onstage Lemmy hardly moves but is a frighteningly captivating and charismatic performer. Lemmy’s book, White Line Fever is a great read of some of the most unbelievable drug stories and one incredible rock and roll life. He never tells his drug stories in any kind of salacious way. It is honest; it is what it is.