The death of Lemmy Kilmister at the end of 2015 not only put an end to an essential band in the future of heavy metal, but also began the construction of its myth. Photographic and documentary exhibitions; reissues and books; Tributes and Funko dolls… Everything is part of the public vindication of the legacy of the English musician and the eroticism that lives dedicated to both vice and creation suggest.
After its first edition in English in the fall of 2021, Motörhead arrives in Spanish bookstores. The story of the loudest band in the world (2022) by Redbook Ediciones under the Ma Non Troppo sublabel. Based on a script originally written by David Calcano and Mark Irwin and impeccably translated by Ezequiel Martínez, this graphic novel presents in just under one hundred and fifty pages the first artistic steps of Lemmy and his bumpy rise to stardom with Motörhead until the publication of the essential. “No sleep ‘til Hammersmith” (1981), a milestone in his career having conquered number one on the English charts for the first and only time.
A canonical work, in the sense of having had the authorization of the heirs of the Motörhead “brand”, the novel works as an interesting introduction to the universe of the band but, perhaps, it may be little known to all those who already know the documentary. “Lemmy” (2010) or the priceless autobiography “White line fever” (2002), translated into Spanish by Es Pop in 2015. The urgency in a large part of the narration makes obvious important aspects of the band’s emergence but, at the same time, it achieves an interesting effect: discarding superfluous details and focusing on the essence. of the band’s history. And if this approach works wonderfully with the introduction of characters such as guitarist Fast Eddie Clarke and drummer Philthy Animal –musicians who completed the classic line-up of Motörhead– or cameos by Jimi Hendrix, Lars Ulrich and the vindicable Girlschool, yes it arrives. to squeak with the main protagonist: the insistence with which Lemmy is portrayed as a fucking alpha male or the almost sick resentment towards his former band, Hawkwind, weigh down the strength of the story through the reiteration of ideas. There are other surprising details, such as the strong dependency when it comes to associating Lemmy with a very specific aesthetic imaginary. For this reason, it is surprising to see the musician with a mustache, long hair and black clothes in full swing of the rock ‘n roll of Elvis Presley or Little Richard, at the end of the fifties.
Artistic licenses aside, “Motorhead. The story of the loudest band in the world“ offers a pleasant reading experience thanks to the good setting of its illustrations, the work of the team formed by Juan Riera, Alberto Belandria and Jorge Mansilla: the sobriety of a color palette that is based entirely on white, black and bluish tones give it its own character, especially in its night scenes. His exceptional work makes it possible to hide some of the shortcomings of a script that, on the other hand, revives the voice of Lemmy himself from fragments of statements and interviews, detailed in a bibliographical appendix that is offered at the end of the book.
The excellent product presentation – hardcover, dust jacket, quality print/paper – allows you to relive Motörhead’s legacy from a new perspective and, even better, rediscover some not-so-known details about some of the songs that changed rock history.
