Ace of Spades — Motörhead's Lemmy Kilmister Still Touring at 65

The guy is legend.

I remember seeing Lemmy hanging out at gigs in London in 1985. I thought it was amazing seeing him out and about, partying like a regular guy. And I guess he is, actually. At LAT, "Lemmy: Rock 'n' Roll's Ace of Spades":

From the beginning, Motörhead played fast and loud, drawing inspiration from the MC5 and Deep Purple, while setting a pace for the coming generation of thrash metal bands: Metallica, Anthrax, Slayer, etc. The newest Motörhead album, "The Wörld Is Yours," is set for release Feb. 8, and delivers on the same driving, back-to-basics grind.

Motorhead, with guitarist Phil Campbell and drummer Mikkey Dee, is set to perform at the House of Blues in Anaheim on Jan. 25, and return to Los Angeles on March 11 at Club Nokia.

"The music is damaging. It bruises you," says Henry Rollins, the former Black Flag shouter and spoken-word artist. "He still has this force in the universe, and that is not mellow music. He is not going gently into the good night."

Kilmister has managed to survive decades of hard living, the booze and recreational drugs, including a taste for speed, but never heroin. "It was dumb luck. We all could have gone anytime. Especially in the '60s, when it was, 'If it fits in my hand and my mouth, I'll take it,'" he says.

He's still able to rage easily through 90 minutes of hard rock onstage night after night, but diabetes means his legs aren't always up to the two-block stroll from his apartment to the Rainbow and back. He was treated for a heart murmur in 2003 and now takes blood pressure medication, but retirement is no option. And the age limit to rock edges ever higher.

Guitarist Scott Ian of Anthrax calls Kilmister "a true pirate" in the tradition of Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards and gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson, "People who live life exactly on their own terms."

More at the link.

And there's a new biopic, "Lemmy: 49% Motherfucker, 51% Son of a Bitch."