Although many Motörhead fans may wish to put a bullet in the brain of those that dislike this recent release from the dormant rockers, it is hard to convince them away from doing so. Bullet in Your Brain is a fantastic bit of heavy rock. Unreleased for some years and featuring a rough around the edges style to it, this track is exactly what fans of The Beach Boys and Bob Dylan are often offered. Songs from the vault, fleshed out, more or less entirely, and thrown toward a ravenous public. Fantastic that is to hear, Bullet in Your Brain is a benchmark moment for the genre, especially when those still-active bands are still failing to reach the lofty heights set out by this unreleased piece from the upcoming Seriously Bad Magic.
Where Metallica failed to strive through and pump up the crowd ahead of 72 Reasons, the same problem does not befall the late Lemmy and company ahead of their collection of materials. Bullet in Your Brain holds within it the classic laments of the band but turned up with a surreal and eager intensity. Phil Campbell and Mikkey Dee do well to crash through with riffs and beats that blur the line between knowable and exciting. There is a movement away from their best-known efforts but also an understanding that to depart it entirely does not suit the vocal lead. Lemmy has a superb, unique voice, and it is a great appearance for the late vocalist’s monumental work. Bullet in Your Brain notes a great deal of confusion, though.
Motörhead fans may question why now is the right time to push on through with a release documenting a collection of unreleased singles, bits of extra tape leftover from days gone by. Why not, is the only response worth offering. An artist does not need any particular reason to release something, and there is always an audience for Motörhead. Bullet in Your Brain proves that ten times over, the classic rock momentum thrown toward the heavy metal fun inherent to the genre. Lemmy pushes forth with some grand vocalisations, the lyrics of which are lost under a thrashy guitar that feels elevated a tad more than it should be, much louder than the vocals. All that can be heard above the sea of solid noise are the gruff mumblings and sounds Lemmy would make when forming words, rather than the words themselves.
There is a danger of pastiche in that manner, similar to the aforementioned Metallica track, Lux Æterna. Motörhead though, is different. These are not new pieces of work, they are materials left over from the days gone by. Reworked and effectively so, Bullet in Your Brain is a tremendously solid start for a band hoping to air out the final bits and pieces they had to offer. Whether it is a farewell or not is beside the point, the band bowed out when Lemmy passed, but they do live on in those fans hungry for the extra bits and pieces. Nothing but good can come from unreleased materials, and for the right audience, this deep dive Motörhead track will be a warm welcome for those deprived of new hard rock in an otherwise emptying genre. Bullet in Your Brain, it is just that.
