MOTORJESUS – Hellbreaker

It is beyond any doubt that the German Metal scene has always teemed with quality bands. Anyone who has Metal run through their veins could easily list quite a couple without even needing to think. There are, however, some German bands that may not be 666% Metal, but deciding not to take a closer look at them would be a loss for sure. Here are the German Rockers Motorjesus with their new album Hellbreaker.

According to the German Wikipedia and a few other sources, Motorjesus are a Heavy Metal band. Yes, they for sure are Heavy Metal, but considering the amount of existing subgenres, labelling a band as just “Heavy Metal” is something extremely vague these days. The music by Motorjesus is a solid mixture of Hard Rock, Classic Metal, Nu Metal and Punk. No, there are no elements of Rap here nor does the band have a DJ. And their songs are not about three chords and some screaming. It’s just pointing out that a die-hard Judas Priest or Dio fan might be in for a bit of a shock if they saw Motorjesus being put on the same par as the aforementioned Metal legends. But if they’re open to new experiences, then they shouldn’t be disappointed because there is a whole bunch of positive things to say about the Moto Rockers from western Germany.

Hellbreaker starts off with an ambient, quite churchy sounding intro that might make the listener think of “Gateways” by Dimmu Borgir. But soon the song starts all the way and all similarities to the Norwegian Lords of Symphonic Black Metal are as good as gone. The song – which, by the way, is titled “Drive through Fire” – is a high energy mix of Classic Metal and the sound typical to more modern bands, such as Mudvayne or even Papa Roach, though to a lesser extent. The following track titled “Battlezone” is quite different – here one might think of Motörhead spiced up with some Bad Religion. Fans of Lemmy and friends might definitely want to get Motorjesus checked out. And lest anyone be deceived by the name – this is not a Motörhead rip-off, not a rip-off of any band, for that matter. Despite clear similarities to quite a few well-known acts the boys at Motorjesus certainly do work on having their own unique style. It may not be there yet fully, but getting there is it for sure.

Those who appreciate the low frequencies the most may like the 5th track titled “Dead Rising”. That bass could be exposed a bit more, one might think while listening to that – because the whole track is really powerful and full of that positive Metal energy. Fortunately, the following song “Car Wars” also features some nice bass lines that are not drowned by the guitars. If anyone ever wondered what Metallica and The Offspring would sound if blended together, here’s the answer: “Car Wars”by Motorjesus.

Another quite interesting thing to point out is that the guys at Motorjesus are really good at writing songs that are truly heavy and crude, and yet they are catchy. That concerns such compositions as “Black Hole Overload” which is the 9th track on the album. Fans of Lamb of God, Pantera and Machine Head should appreciate that song a lot. It seems like the heavier the songs are, the catchier they get. Also the following song “Back to the Bullet” is literally emanating that kickass Metal energy. That mixture of East Coast Thrash Metal and Groove Metal is probably the best track on this album. Hopefully gigging is possible soon, because this song should be a proper crowd puller!

Concluding a good heavy album with a lot of Punk sound to it with a smooth ballad-like instrumental is a very good idea Motorjesus had up their sleeve. If their intention was to surprise the listener – they sure succeeded in most cases. Overall, Motorjesus definitely are worth checking out. This has already been said, but: despite clear influences from various other bands, these guys are anything but a rip-off. Solid riffs, tasty solos and quality vocals – moshing to that stuff is definitely viable!