Orgasmatron

by Steve Huey On the surface, Motörhead appear to be trying something new with Orgasmatron, bringing in producer Bill Laswell to put a slightly different slant on their signature sound. Laswell does beef up the mix with added sonic detail, which works to particularly good effect on the title track -- the densely layered production helps transform the song and its simple riff into a chugging psychedelic noise-fest. Elsewhere, the production sometimes has the effect of muting the band's energy, sounding oddly processed and lacking the raw bite of past work (which foreshadows their decline over the next few years). It doesn't help that the songwriting is somewhat inconsistent, with "Deaf Forever" and "Built for Speed" standing out among a batch of tunes that sometimes sound as though Motörhead were trying a little too self-consciously to do what people expected from a Motörhead album. Still, in Motörhead's case, that distinction is easily lost, so even if Orgasmatron is somewhat erratic, most fans will find a hidden favorite or two.