Motörhead‘s seventh studio album ‘Orgasmatron’ is set to receive an extensive 40th anniversary reissue on November 6, including a brand-new remix of the classic 1986 record from longtime producer Cameron Webb.
Originally released in 1986, ‘Orgasmatron’ featured the lineup of Lemmy Kilmister, Phil Campbell, Würzel, and Pete Gill. The album pushed the band further into heavier territory while maintaining the speed, aggression, and raw energy that had become synonymous with Motörhead.
While the record’s original production by Bill Laswell and engineering from Jason Corsaro have long been part of its distinctive character, members of the band were reportedly unhappy with how much power and punch was captured in the final mix.
For the anniversary release, the original recordings have been remastered and cut at half speed from the original tapes. Webb has also gone back to the original stems to create an entirely new remix and remaster.
The Motörhead camp explained the reasoning behind revisiting the album:
“Orgasmatron is a special album. Part of that is down to the stylized production of Bill Laswell, who approached the work from a unique perspective. Bill’s work stands in its own right as something special in the Motörhead library, and Orgasmatron stands as one hell of an album. However, there was some controversy in the sense that both Lemmy and Phil Campbell felt that some of the power, bite and energy had been lost in Laswell’s final delivery.”
The band ultimately approached Webb about taking another shot at the album, with the producer having worked on six Motörhead studio albums during his longstanding relationship with the group.
“As old-school Motörhead fans, we found ourselves sitting around the coffee table one night several months ago, drinks in hand, pondering what Orgasmatron would sound like if it were to be remixed by Motörhead’s longtime producer, Cameron Webb. Cameron helmed six studio albums, and it’s fair to say he had the trust, love — and grumbles too! — of Lem, Phil and Mikkey.”
For Webb, the project also carries plenty of personal significance. He recalled first hearing ‘Orgasmatron’ at 14 years old after his brother introduced him to the record.
“My brother introduced me to Orgasmatron when I was 14 years old. I heard the song and thought, ‘Is this even music?’ It was like the devil coming through my cassette tape. And I loved it. That record and Rock ‘N’ Roll were my Motörhead records, so being asked to work on this is incredibly special to me.”
Rather than completely overhaul the original production, Webb sought to preserve the unusual character of Laswell and Corsaro’s work while bringing additional definition and impact to the recordings.
“I love the fact that the original is wild and a little messy. I wanted to be respectful to what Jason Corsaro and Bill Laswell created, rather than simply trying to make it sound like a modern heavy metal record. When we opened up the original 24-track tapes, you could really hear how creative they were with the sounds, particularly the drums. There’s so much character in that recording, and I wanted to preserve that.”
Webb also considered what Lemmy and Campbell might have wanted from a new mix, particularly when it came to the bass and guitars.
“Lemmy and Phil both said they didn’t like the original mix, so I thought about what they might have asked me to do if they were sitting next to me. I tried to channel what I knew about them and their approach to recording — bringing out the bass here, defining the guitars there — while still respecting what was already there. The aim was never to replace the original, but to reveal more of what was inside it.”
The ‘Orgasmatron’ 40th Anniversary Edition will arrive in several configurations, including a deluxe 3LP bookpack and 2CD edition containing the remastered original mix, Webb’s new remix, studio rehearsals and outtakes from 1985, as well as the complete BBC Radio 1 Friday Rock Show session recorded in 1986.
A standalone 1LP edition will also be released on transparent violet vinyl featuring the original studio album.
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