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 Established in 2008. Unbiased ever since. |
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 Aging, but still vintage.- |
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Everyone knows Motörhead. Period. Well, ok, maybe not everybody, but it feels like these guys have been around forever, and simply refuse to never give up. The group also has never really changed their music style over the years, sticking to the same catchy mixture of Heavy and Speed Metal, which carries on today, though the band hasn't really composed anything as fast, or as catchy as "Ace of Spades", taking the material a little slower now, but still as equally catchy. The World Is Yours marks the band's twenty first full-length offering, and it doesn't disappoint in any sense, full of classic Heavy Metal goodness we've all come to know, love, and expect from the gods themselves, especially any project that bares Lemmy's name. The World Is Yours kicks things off with "Born to Lose", which sets the tone for the rest of the album as many of the songs basically sound the way this one does as far as the overall atmosphere goes. The music blends in some classic Heavy Metal sound that sometimers comes off more Hard Rock with more of an edge then anything, with a slight Punk approach to the tracks, which has always been something the band has included. Anyone who has ever heard a more recent Motörhead album knows what to expect as soon as the CD goes into the player, but this track has a slight issue that may stir up some fears in the listeners, and that's with the vocals. It's actually more in the production of the vocals when you think about it though, as the vocals actually have a little higher of a pitch then the rest of the material on here, with some deeper vocals layered over it. This isn't anything new, but it's due to the pitch that these vocals are done, it sounds more robotic then anything. Luckily, the music is still catchy enough that it can pretty much be overlooked. But, sadly, it's not the first and only time it happens, as it rears it's head again in other tracks, such as "Devils in My Head", but mostly during the chorus. From here, it's just vintage Motörhead. Sure, the songs aren't as fast as they were, and Lemmy's age seems to show more in the vocals then anything. It doesn't hurt the album, and it's to be expected, but sometimes the vocals can seem a little weak, not in without charisma and energy, but physically. Other then that, there's nothing really wrong wtih the album outside the fact that sometimes the music doesn't really seem to offer much variety. Yes, the music has a good deal of differences in the chords, but for the most part it seems to have the same structure and approach. Motörhead have always put albums together that had a good amount of differences with the speed and general structuring, simple as that structure may have been, with Lemmy's rhaspy vocal performance being the only constant but this one seems to follow the same tempo, only altered slightly, with exception to the clearly Rock inspired "Rock 'n' Roll Music" that goes at a slower pace then anything on this album. Of course there are other moments on here that do offer variety, but too many seem to take the same Rock foundation and alter it just enough to make each song sound different enough, but not really offer anything too new from the last song you heard. Aside the more lighter "Rock 'n' Roll Music", the band does throw a few curve balls that really spiral the album into a different light compared to the more generally-the-same atmospheric tracks. "Brotherhood of Man" is actually a quite dark sounding song that has a menacing atmosphere, brought on mostly by the deep, rough vocal harmonizations that capture the animalistic theme of the song, man being like animals, by also sounding animalistic. One can go so far to say that the dark sounds and menacing atmosphere, coupled with the more primal sound in the vocals, would put the image of Motörhead being pioneered by a pack of werewolves. This feeling and imagery only lasts for this song, however, as the music picks up a little more for "Outlaw", which takes the general Rock sound from many other tracks and weaves a song that feels perfect for a song about the outlaw way of life, almost in a Western style, though lyrically not quite along those lines. This track also features the best guitar solo of the entire release, and is just the right length to work well with the release. "Bye Bye Bitch Bye Bye" is definitely the fastest track on here, and it has a stronger Punk vibe then any of the other Hard Rock oriented tracks here. It makes a nice closer that has attitude, a fast pace, a lot of energy that feels like it's missing on many songs, and a fantastic ending that closes the album out nicely. While "Born to Lose" and "Devils in My Head" both sound like vintage Motörhead, this track captures the heavier, energetic sound of the band that this album misses. Of course, The World is Yours has been issued in a few other variations, one coming with a poster, and another supposedly coming with a bonus DVD that has an "EPK", music video and acoustic song on it, though I have yet to actually see this one. Instead, the most common one to find [at the time of this recording] is the CD/DVD digipack, but the DVD includes the band's performance at Wacken back in 2006. The band seems to have a fixation of delivering live footage mushc later then when it was shot, and this is no exception. Of course, the quality of these recordings is typically great, and this live performance is no different. The camera work is great, having some nice close-ups and angles throughout, capturing the entire performance perfectly. The audio is recorded from the sound board, and the energy of the performance can just be felt though you really aren't there. While the DVD is free (pending where you buy it as some stores will up the price more due to it being more then one disc though the MSRP doesn't reflect it) it only contains six songs from the performance. Sure, given that it's a festival, they probably had a small set, but a little more to the DVD would have been nice, like including a quick interview with the band, or even just the most recent music video. In the end, the most common format of The World is Yours is great, and the music is solid, though sometimes not offering the most diverse tracks due to how simple some of them wind up being. Other then that though, The World is Yours is yet another catchy offering by Motörhead with a nice companion piece included in the DVD. If you've already heard Motörhead, and are a fan, then chances are good you already know what to expect of the group, or have already picked the album up and felt like reading this for fun. Chances are good that will make up a good majority of the readers of this review since Motörhead really is a band that doesn't need a review for their material anymore. The band continues to play the same catchy Punk-laced Hard Rock and Heavy Metal music they've played their entire career, though a little lighter nowadays, but no matter what, the material is always highly infectious, and never really needs an introduction. If you haven't picked it up already, then make a point to grab it the next time you're out. |
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Physical copy purchased for review with personal funds.
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