Psychobilly and spaghetti together at last

Last week my Facebook feed was littered with news of the passing of one of heavy metal’s true legends, Motörhead’s Fast Eddie Clarke. Although Motörhead were indeed mighty right up until Lemmy finally proved he was mortal and hung up his cowboy boots on a nail, the band just never seemed as hungry, fearless and gnashing as it was made up of Mr. Kilmeister, Clarke and Philthy Animal Taylor. (Sadly, there is no one left from this ground-shaking trio. Fuck!)

I was lucky enough to see this holy trinity of musicians when I was a wee teen some 37 years ago, which is monumental as it would prove to be Clarke’s last show with the band. I remember going to school the next day and telling the dirtbags wearing Scorpions shirts that they didn’t have a clue what heavy music was and feeling right chuffed that I was able to rub shoulders with dangerous rock ‘n’ roll while they wiled away in the ‘burbs listening to FM radio dross. Thanks for the riffs Eddie — they all kind of sounded the same but you proved that if it ain’t broke…

Fans of Motörhead who want to remember when all three members of the band were in their prime and really turned everything up louder than everything else will want to scoot down to Saturday’s gigs.

Thursday:  La Vitrola is playing host to Generation C’s Benefit Concert for Crohn’s and Colitis, and if you missed the History of Gunpowder at l’Esco a couple of weeks back, you can get another chance with Krystale and Hiles. 4602 St-Laurent, 8 p.m., $13

Friday: If you missed Mardi Noir‘s show last month, you can get another crack at it when they return to l’Esco with Zouz and Ouies. If you are a member of Turbojugend or just an Apocalypse Dude, this is mandatory as Les Paul slinger Nicotine could probably run circles around Euro Boy and they have the best man in town behind the tubs. 4461 St-Denis, 9 p.m., $12

If you ever wondered what the perfect soundtrack to a Cormac McCarthy book would be, you will want to get buried deep in the dark Americana of Elliot Brood with Harrow Fair and Woodpigeon at Sala. Perfect night for these grey days. 4848 St-Laurent, 9 p.m., $18/$15 advance

Saturday: If you are as bummed as I am that the best line-up of Motörhead isn’t around to give you a headache anymore, you can check out the righteous tribute Iron Fist, with Misfits and Sex Pistols tribute acts as openers. This all goes down at Katacombes, natch. 1635 St-Laurent, 9 p.m., $10

The art of taking good promo shots seems to have been lost, but not on Mauves and Rust Eden, who dress for success but with faces that seem to say they’re just looking for fun and adventure. What do they sound like? Who cares when you are looking like these stud muffins. L’Esco l’Esco l’Esco. 4461 St-Denis, 9 p.m., price unlisted

For a pretty punk rock night out (although the Motörhead night is pretty fuggin’ punk, actually), you can check out the driving punk of Ottawa’s Doxx at la Vitrola with Cell, the dirgey noise punk of Wreckage With Stick and the electronic fuckery of Rivaled Envy. 4602 St-Laurent, 9 p.m., $10/NOTAFLOF

Sunday: My big pick of the week goes to the first edition of the newly launched Pasta Party series at l’Esco as I love spaghetti but love Bloodshot Bill even more. When Bloodshot burst out at Jailhouse many moons ago, he was clearly ahead of the pack and couldn’t give a toss about the current state of the scene or changing trends. Now he is absolutely on fire and taking no prisoners with his psychobilly barnburners. Entrance includes a fine plate of pasta as Bloodshot spills beer in it. This all starts at 5 p.m., so don’t be tardy. 4461 St-Denis, 5-8 p.m., $12

Afterwards, you can go to the seventh edition of We Are the Drugs, who return after four years of playing possum. This will be a cavalcade of experimental music at la Vitrola, featuring performances by Pierre-Yves Martel, Belinda Campbell, Karl Fousek and Sebastian Trafalgar. 4602 St-Laurent, 8:30 p.m., $7

Tuesday: Why not cap off your end of the Hammer of the Mods week with the brilliant pop savvy of Destroyer with Mega Bog at Théâtre Fairmount? 5240 Parc, 8 p.m., $20

Current Obsession: Motörhead, Ace of Spades

jonathan.cummins@gmail.com