Mot√∂rhead Tells Fans Not To Pay $600 For Box Set

By February 21, 2012

Aging rock acts are usually the ones most eager to cash in on nostalgia by going out on reunion tours and releasing deluxe box sets that might require a home equity loan to afford. But leave it to Motörhead, the band that made the umlaut cool, to tell its fans to turn their backs on a pricey package of its old music.

In a post on the band’s website, they are telling fans to avoid plunking down $600 for the new Complete Early Years Box Set.

“Unfortunately greed once again rears its yapping head,” says head Mot√∂rhead Lemmy Kilmister. “I would advise against it even for the most rabid completists!”

The band says that because of rights issues, it has no control over how its early songs are packaged and released and they’d rather have fans paying for newer, affordable stuff than the pricey set of antique audio.

But does their new CD come with a cool chrome skull box?

[Via CNN]

Thanks to Eli for the tip!

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Comments

  1. Thaddeus says:
    February 21, 2012 at 4:52 pm

    So what they are saying is….. Please, don’t touch?

    Ah-ahhhhhhhhhh I’ll let myself out……

  2. CrankyOwl says:
    February 21, 2012 at 4:53 pm

    Speaking of Motorhead, I saw a beer ad starring Lemmy, that was made for British tv, and his humongous facial mole was gone. I didn’t even recognize him. Did he really have it removed or did they just digitally remove it for the commercial?

    • Cacao says:
      February 21, 2012 at 5:24 pm

      I wish more celebs would remove their facial moles. I mean, really. They spends thousands on their image (hair, clothes) and can’t book an appointment with their dermatologist? Sooo unsightly.

    • aristan says:
      February 22, 2012 at 12:10 am

      He did have them removed, stating that “They get bigger as you get older”. He was apparently tired of shaving around them.

      I knew Ewan McGregor had all his moles removed because the one under his eye was cancerous. The rest were removed as a precaution.

  3. Firevine says:
    February 21, 2012 at 4:56 pm

    Well I guess this won’t be the ace of spades the record company was hoping for.

  4. KidRey says:
    February 21, 2012 at 5:01 pm

    ‘wait until we get a bigger chunk of the royalties before you spend that much money’

  5. raydee wandered off on a tangent and got lost says:
    February 21, 2012 at 5:05 pm

    I believe I recall another aging musician giving the same advice to his fans regarding a collection of his older stuff.

    It always gives me mixed feelings when I hear about artists protesting things like this–it’s shameful how little control they retain over their creations.

    I recently heard of an author who signed on with a publishing company in the mid 90′s and has been writing a popular series ever since, up until they decided to fire her from her own series and continue with a ghostwriter using her name. (L.J. Smith of The Vampire Diaries if anyone wants to look into it further.)

    • TheBusDriver says:
      February 21, 2012 at 5:24 pm

      You do indeed:
      Elvis told fans to hold off:
      http://consumerist.com/2011/11/elvis-costello-tells-fans-not-to-buy-his-pricey-new-release.html

    • drjayphd says:
      February 21, 2012 at 10:42 pm

      Let’s also not forget the saga of Trent Reznor and his ex-manager John Malm Jr. One of the first things Reznor did once he sobered up about 10 years ago was sue the piss out of Malm for allegedly taking advantage of his addictions and signing him to a profoundly insane contract. (A few highlights that I can remember: Malm gets 20% of gross royalties, not the usual net royalties, he gets the same cut of whatever Reznor earned even if Malm wasn’t his manager, Malm got half the Nine Inch Nails trademark… and I think Malm was legally entitled to a pony.)

      Reznor alleged that the contract was immorally and legally unfair, and the jury sided with him, awarding him the trademarks, presumably a way out of the contract, and (after adjusting for inflation) $5 million. The music industry’s really built on people screwing people, though, to an extent that would make even Brazzers blanch.

      (Cue the comment trolls who’ll say Malm was right because Reznor was an addict and that touching even one drop of a controlled substance is grounds to lose all your legal rights. Come on, we know you’re out there.)

      • incident_man says:
        February 22, 2012 at 1:01 am

        Record industry executives are a bunch of parasites anyway. They’re the reason why I haven’t bought a CD in almost 10 years.

      • BurtReynolds says:
        February 22, 2012 at 7:38 am

        Also for years Trent had no control over Pretty Hate Machine, and it was distributed and sold with him getting nothing in return, in the US anyway. I think if you found an import of it, it was kicking some profits to the artist.

      • Kuri says:
        February 22, 2012 at 1:28 pm

        Not to mention with that move Reznor proved that no artist really needs agents or labels or all that BS anymore, and if current legislation is any indication, that scares the piss out of the industry.

    • SavijMuhdrox says:
      February 24, 2012 at 4:30 pm

      Google Cracker and the reasons behind their greatest hits redux album for a story along the same vein.

      basically Virgin Records decided to release a greatest hits album without their permission and they pre-emptively recorded their songs and made their OWN greatest hits album. There’s even a wonderful little ditty called “Ain’t Gonna Suck Itself” that kinda gives the finger to the record company in retaliation.

      thats the gist of it. the real story is better…

  6. Cat says:
    February 21, 2012 at 5:07 pm

    I saw Mot√∂rhead open a show for Alice Copper once…

    Mot√∂rhead. Worst. Band. Ever. I wouldn’t give you six cents for their box set.

    (Alice was awesome, btw)

    • RecordStoreToughGuy_RidesTheWarpOfSpaceIntoTheWombOfNight says:
      February 21, 2012 at 6:14 pm

      Lemmy himself said that he wanted Motörhead to be the band that if they moved in next door to you, your grass would die.

    • Kuri says:
      February 22, 2012 at 1:22 pm

      Eh, I enjoy their music.

  7. Applekid ┬──┬ ノ( ゜-゜ノ) says:
    February 21, 2012 at 5:12 pm

    Ha ha! I felt like a genius not having to look up what an umlaut is. B)

  8. Thaddeus says:
    February 21, 2012 at 5:21 pm

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eOpx61okWTk

  9. Barry Bunch O'Krunch says:
    February 21, 2012 at 7:10 pm

    Hey! HEY!

    …Blue √ñyster Cult made umlauts cool first!

  10. big_d says:
    February 21, 2012 at 8:14 pm

    Lemmy is god.

  11. bkginsu says:
    February 21, 2012 at 8:35 pm

    …that is kind of a cool lookin’ box, though

  12. psykomyko says:
    February 21, 2012 at 11:56 pm

    Elvis Costello said the same thing about his record company’s latest cash-grab, too.

  13. penuspenuspenus says:
    February 22, 2012 at 9:17 am

    Considering the current popularity with vinyl in the metal community, this release is absolutely pointless. Most metal distros are selling CDs for $6 or less. Who in their right mind would buy this?

  14. YouDidWhatNow? says:
    February 22, 2012 at 10:49 am

    Once again, metal saves the day. Gawd knows if it was a country band, they’d just be sitting in their broke-down truck, watching someone else run off with their wife, crying into their beer.

    • kcvaliant says:
      February 22, 2012 at 11:43 am

      I find that funny because most associate the two groups as one. Well, that and the bigger majority of metalheads being skullet stylers in their rusted out civics delivering pizzas..

    • kcvaliant says:
      February 22, 2012 at 11:44 am

      I find that funny because most associate the two groups as one. Well, that and the bigger majority of metalheads being skullet stylers in their rusted out civics delivering pizzas..