MOTORHEAD
We Are Motorhead
CMC International

VENOM
Resurrection
SPV/Steamhammer

First there was Black Sabbath, then came Motorhead, and then came Venom.... perhaps the three most influential bands in metal music. I use the word influential in terms of bands that actually changed the outlook of metal, bringing a whole new (and extreme) sound to the genre. Black Sabbath are undeniably the masters, the true originators of metal. Motorhead are unquestionably the originators and masters of thrash metal. And Venom.... this is the band that coined the term black metal. Think about it, if it wasn't for these three artists, bands such as Judas Priest, Metallica, Pantera, Slayer, and about 4 million other thrash/death metal bands, probably wouldn't exist today (or, at least they wouldn't sound like they do today.)

It's hard to believe that Motorhead have been together for over 25 years. Unfortunately the group's latest release, We Are Motorhead, sees the band simply going through the motions. Much like AC/DC, the band offers the usual, uninspired tunes that they've hashed out over the past decade. Apart from the breakneck opener "See Me Burning," and a couple other tunes, notably "Stay Out of Jail" and "Stagefright," there's nothing here we haven't heard before. The slick production from Bob Kulick certainly gives the band a healthy, ballsy sound, but the mediocre songs just don't cut it. Their last album was much more memorable, particularly the title track, "Snake Bite Love," which had a great, catchy hook. But this time around, the band is lacking severely. Lemmy's best bet is to re-recruit the classic lineup of Fast Eddie and Philthy Animal before entering the studio again. It's no secret why the last "great" Motorhead album was Ironfist. Lemmy needs to get that chemistry back in order to let the legend live on.

Venom, the black metal gods, are back with Resurrection. It's been 20 years since I first laid my ears to their groundbreaking Neat Records single "In League with Satan/Live like an Angel (Die like A Devil)." That scared the living shit out of me! Released back in 1980, that single had as much a demonic impact as the first time I saw The Exorcist! If you truly think about it, Venom have probably influenced more rock bands than any other single band that came about in the past 20 years. Every black, death, Goth, thrash and hard-core band worldwide were either directly or indirectly influenced by Venom. Resurrection is actually Venom's 13th album (although most Venom fans would argue that their releases from '87 - '97 weren't true Venom records) and the band still haven't lost their metallic, and demonic, flare. With the exception of drummer Annton (who replaces long-time drummer Abbadon), the band remain the same with vocalist/bassist Cronos and guitarist Mantas. The production, courtesy of Charlie Bauerfeind and Rainer Hansel, is awesome, giving the band a much-needed contemporary sound that they often lacked in the past. Annton also breeds new life into the band as his bombastic, pulverizing beats compliment the ultra-heavy riffs provided by Mantas. Cronos also sounds stronger than ever before, and actually sings (quite well) at times, in between his grunts and moans. This CD is a must for the hardcore metal fan. Highlights include the title-track, "Vengeance," "War Against Christ," "Pain," "Leviathan" and "Loaded."

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