MOTÖRHEAD's LEMMY: 'I Haven't Seen Anyone Better Than Me, So Why Should I Jack It In?'

October 8, 2007

MOTÖRHEAD mainman Ian "Lemmy" Kilmister recently spoke to Stuff.co.nz prior to the band's two New Zealand concerts in late October.

"People sometimes suggest rock 'n' roll is dead, but it will never die, because it's always exciting to hear a decent rock 'n' roll song," says Lemmy.

"Look at AC/DC, man. They're still as fucking excellent as they were when they started out, all them years ago. ZZ TOP are another one. They just keep finding great riffs. There's something about a great guitar riff that moves both your body and your soul. It speaks to something basic, you know. It gets in you. That's never going to change."

MOTÖRHEAD have never been a band overly concerned with change. Kilmister formulated his winning biker-rock-meets-punk recipe in the mid-70s and has stuck with it ever since, despite numerous line-up changes and shifts in musical fashion. In those three decades his band has made more than 30 albums, and most contain at least a couple of killer tracks.

"That's why we're still together," offers Kilmister. "Because we're still good. Somebody said to me recently that I should retire and make room for some young ones and I said: 'Fuck you! I haven't seen anyone better than me, so why should I jack it in?' People think rock 'n' roll is all about teenage rebellion, but why can't there be old rebels as well?

"If people find the sight of an older guy playing rock 'n' roll distressing to their eyes, they can just not watch. Some people get better as they get older, if they really care about what they're doing, which I do. Certainly, I've never done this for the money, because we've never sold many records. A lot of crap bands are millionaires, but not us."

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