MOTÖRHEAD — 1916 (review)

Album · 1991 · Heavy Metal

4.5/5 · 2020-06-01
UMUR

"1916" is the 10th full-length studio album by UK heavy rock/metal act Motörhead. The album was released through WTG Records (a subsidiary to Sony BMG) in February 1991. It had been four years since the release of "Rock 'n' Roll (1987)", which at the time was the longest time between the release of two Motörhead studio albums. The long waiting time was due to problems with the band´s former label and lead vocalist/bassist Lemmy Kilmister´s move in 1990 from the UK to the US (where he would settle in West Hollywood and live for the rest of his life at a close proximity to to his beloved Rainbow Bar and Grill). Motörhead initially started working with producer Ed Stasium (Living Colour), but they did not agree on how the album should sound and Stasium was fired (He is credited for producing 3 tracks on the album though) although he claims to have quit because he couldn´t tolerate Lemmy´s drug and alcohol abuse. The band hired producer Pete Solley to complete the album.

"1916" turned out to be a turning point in the band´s career. Since their glory days in the late 70s/early 80s (especially the release of "Ace of Spades (1980)" made them a household heavy rock/metal name), Motörhead experienced decline in record sales and problems with labels over the decade, but "1916" generally received favorable reviews and positive fan reactions, and the album even received a Grammy nomination for Best Metal Performance at the 1992 Grammys. They lost to Metallica's "Metallica (1991)" album (The Black Album).

Listening to "1916" it´s obvious why the album is widely regarded as one of the peaks of the band´s long and glorious career. They´ve simply taken everything up a notch here from the performances, to the sound production, to the quality of the songwriting. Most Motörhead albums feature a couple of standout tracks, quite a few good quality tracks, and a couple of fillers, but that´s not the case with "1916", which features a well constructed tracklist and a more varied songwriting approach than what we usually hear from them.

"Nightmare/The Dreamtime" is for example a dark an eerie sounding track, which doesn´t feature much of the hard rocking blues based heavy rock that is the usual style for the band, "R.A.M.O.N.E.S." (which is a tribute to the legendary New York punk rock act Ramones), is a full on punk rock song, "Love Me Forever" is something as rare as a Motörhead power ballad, and the title track is something even more rare in the Motörhead catalogue as it´s a ballad type track (and a quite brilliant one I might add). All four tracks are among the highlights of the album, but hard rockers like "The One to Sing the Blues", "I'm So Bad (Baby I Don't Care)", and "Going to Brazil" are definitely worth a mention too, but there are no fillers on "1916", and the remaining tracks on the album are also high quality material. Powerful and memorable rockers.

While there is more variation on "1916" than what is usual for Motörhead, the basis of the band´s sound is still intact. Hard rocking drums and blazing guitar riffs and solos, a rumbling distorted bass, and in front the unmistakable rusty roar of Lemmy. The latter delivers one of his strongest and most varied vocal performances on "1916". His performance on the title track is so honest and emotive, that it´s hard not to feel the impact of his words about the horrors of war.

Despite the change of producer a while into recording the album, the sound production turned out great. It´s an organic, clear, and detailed sounding production, which suits the material perfectly. So upon conclusion "1916" is a high quality release by Motörhead and to my ears one of the peaks of their recording career. It´s no coincidence that this is the album which effectively put Motörhead back on the map of the heavy rock/metal elite. It´s simply such a high quality release that it cannot be ignored. A 4.5 star (90%) rating is fully deserved.