This concert was originally supposed to be headlined by Motörhead. It was postponed after the Bataclan attacks, then postponed again after Lemmy fell ill. Unfortunately, Lemmy didn't make it, on account of being “Stone Dead Forever.” His old friends Saxon and Girlschool nevertheless honour the commitment, with Last in Line joining them for an evening that inevitably carries the absent headliner's shadow.
Girlschool certainly belong here historically. Their friendship with Motörhead goes back decades, as does their reputation as something of a female counterpart to Lemmy's band, and they attack the set with obvious enthusiasm. They look like they're having a blast, which goes some way toward compensating for the fact that the performance itself is decidedly pedestrian.
Even the strongest material, including “Hit and Run” and their cover of The Gun's “Race with the Devil,” struggles to generate much excitement. The playing is workmanlike, the songs fairly rudimentary and the stage presence surprisingly muted. The audience is generous, partly out of affection and partly because the band's connection to Lemmy gives their appearance tonight a significance beyond the music itself.
It's never actively unpleasant, and the good spirits onstage are difficult to dislike. But sandwiched between acts operating at a considerably higher level, Girlschool simply sound outclassed.
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