MOTORHEAD - Bomber

Old School !!!!! Release date Oct 22/1979 (Bronze)

Bought as a brand spanking new release way back in late '79, Bomber was the entry point into the world of Motorhead for this now aging and aged headbanger. Back in those days radio never played metal (at least not in my native Toronto) and there was no internet, so us metalheads had to rely on weekly/monthly music publications (print!) for clues as to how to spend our hard-earned cabbage. There was also the all-important artwork and song titles that were used as supplemental guides as well.

Scouring an issue of NME I came across a two-page article about the latest metal sensation in England called Motorhead. Described as the nastiest band of the day, my interest was piqued, so I dutifully entered the sacred halls of The Record Peddler (Toronto's HM and punk record shop at the time) to check out what all the fuss was about. Holding Bomber (vinyl!) in my hands for the first time, the cover seemed magical, a bomber commandeered by the three band members being strafed by ground fire, easily passed the visual check. Song titles like 'Sharpshooter', 'Lawman' and 'Dead Men Tell No Tales' then provided sufficient comfort level convincing me to make the purchase post haste.

I'll always remember listening to Bomber for the first time later that day. It was immediately evident that this was something different - heavier, dirtier and more insistent than what had preceded. To ears that were attuned to the heaviest bands at the time (Priest, Sabbath, the Nuge and the like) Motorhead was a gift from the gods. The power was undeniable and sustained (something unique at the time), while Lemmy's bass-as-lead and croaking vocals only added to the overall din.

When the smoke cleared, it became clear that the band were the first to marry metal with punk ... and music would never be the same. The birth of most of the branches of the extreme metal tree can be traced through Motorhead album numbers 2 thru 4, making Bomber one of the most historically significant HM albums of all time. Buy or die!

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