The Volcom Tour with Motorhead, the Misfits, Valient Thorr and whoever else
September 7, 2008
The VooDoo Lounge
Better Than: Having a Saint Bernard bite your ass.
By JASON HARPER
Anything that happened before that shot of Wild Turkey 101 really isn’t that important
But…
We rolled into Harrah’s just before 9, and arrived just as the Misfits were starting their set. Jerry Only, Misfits bassist and singer, still looks every bit the collectible action figure of his early days. He was supported by original Misfits drummer Robo and Black Flag guitarist Dez Cadena, who had enough makeup on to make JonBenet Ramsey look like a slouch.
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A circle pit opened up and didn’t close until the end of the night. The Misfits show consisted of about 17 two-minute punk songs interrupted only by Jerry’s barks to play the next song. “Blahblahblah1234” was his typical announcement. I marveled at his GI Joe getup, with his devilock, Skeletor bass and HR Giger boots. If anything, the Misfits reminded reminded me that punk is totally rooted in doo-wop and pop of the 1950s.
After a long interlude, Motorhead took the stage. Three Marshall stacks on left and three on the right heralded their British allegience, with a massive, two-story drumset in the middle for Mikkey Dee to have his doublekickin’ ways with.
The trio pummeled through a mighty hourlong official set that resembled a scene out of Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure. I’m not sure what the actual songs were, but here’s what they evoked.
I EAT MEAT
STAY CLEAN
GOING TO A BELLY SHOW
ROCK OUT
METROPOLIS/CINNAMON GIRL
OVER THE TOP
TRAVEL AT NIGHT
I’VE GOT MIND
"WHO LIKES THIN LIZZY, MOTHERFUCKERS? THIS SONG IS FOR PHIL LYNOTT, HE STILL LIVES!!!"
LOWER THE BEAK
HHUUGGEE DDRRUUMM SSOOLLOO!!!!!!!!!!
THIS SONG IS ABOUT POLITICS – THEY WANNA TAKE ALL YOUR MONEY!!!
BRAZIL
KILLED BY DEATH
It was at this point that my mate and I drank the aforementioned Wild Turkey and advanced upon the dancefloor. We were greeted with an acoustic-toting Motorhead doing “WHOREHOUSE BLUES.”
Afterward, the lights went down, the mosh pit fired up, and Lemmy and co. came full iron-wielding with THE ACE OF SPADES. I was knocked onto my back in the circle pit three times and picked back up by men who looked like they wanted to kill me. I was so focused on making devil horns for the next 15 minutes that I don’t know what the next song was. But after about 27 encores and endless moshing, MOTORHEAD came back on and did OVERKILL.
I have never been so sweatily happy at a metal show. There was a 9-foot-tall woman there who was the largest human I’ve seen in person in my life, and I could have put my entire head in her navel. I think she ate several men who wanted to harm me, or at least strip me of my denim jacket. Thank you, giantess. Thank you, Motorhead.
Critics' Notebook
Personal Bias: Giantess fetish.
Random Detail: The hallway into the VooDoo Lounge, in which I got metal detected, was littered with unwrapped sticks of gum.
By the Way: My vampire name is "Hanzi Brown."
Showing 1-8 of 8
Show was beyond incredible. Reminded me of concerts from 70s and 80s. Small venues and lots of volume. Motorhead are still billed as the loudest band in the world and, after this show, I believe it. I have never heard anything so loud in my life, and I have been to many, many concerts. Hail Lemmy!
Motorhead destroyed my ear drums. I hear nothing but ringing/humming. It's entirely worth it. Lemmy tore it up.
You missed Jerry Only's 15-minute (at least) sound check. Jerry wasn't happy and apologized for the poor sound before The Misfits started. How could they not play Where Eagles Dare? And I don't remember hearing Bullet, unless they played it and it was unrecognizable. Kinda sad.
You also missed a helluva show by the bearded, hairy beer bellied, stoner rocking space truckers Valient Thorr. They gave a shout out to their Missouri Thorriors. The singer stripped off his shirt and kept flexing his biceps (what little was there). These guys f**king rocked it. I have not idea what they said, other than something about ghosts haunting Jesse Helms' soul, being from Venus and intro-ing Tough Customer. Bad ass.
I liked the forty-year old woman crowdsurfing, because you're never too old to have your crotch groped by strangers. Party on.
Yes! The Amazon! Couldn't miss her.
And I loved it when Lemmy said something like "This song was written in 1983, before most of you were born."
Badass 62-year-old muther effer that he is.
Dang.
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