Motorhead Bad Magic: Inside the Band’s Final Studio Album

Motorhead Bad Magic arrived on 28 August 2015 as the band’s twenty second and, as it turned out, final studio album of new material.

Lemmy Kilmister, Phil Campbell, and Mikkey Dee recorded it with producer Cameron Webb, their sixth album together since 2004.

Guitarist Brian May of Queen guested on the track The Devil, one of the more unexpected pairings in the band’s long history.

Motorhead Bad Magic became the band’s biggest commercial success in decades, hitting number 1 in three countries before Lemmy’s death four months later.

What Is the Motorhead Bad Magic Album About?

The Motorhead Bad Magic album is a direct, blues rooted record recorded with a more live, spontaneous approach than any prior Motorhead session.

Victory or Die, Thunder and Lightning, and Fire Storm Hotel open the record at full force.

Till the End finds Lemmy Kilmister reflecting openly on age and mortality, a theme critics singled out repeatedly given his declining health.

The result is Motorhead Bad Magic sounding like a band determined to go out on its own terms, at full volume.

Who Recorded Motorhead Bad Magic?

Lemmy Kilmister handled lead vocals and bass across the entire record.

Phil Campbell played all guitar parts and added piano to the closing cover of Sympathy for the Devil.

Mikkey Dee played drums throughout, continuing the same trio lineup active since the mid 1990s.

Cameron Webb produced, mixed, and engineered the sessions, his sixth consecutive album with the band since Inferno in 2004.

Where and When Was Motorhead Bad Magic Recorded?

Motorhead recorded Bad Magic during 2015 across NRG Studio, Maple Studios, and Grandmaster Studios in the Los Angeles area.

Drummer Mikkey Dee told Blabbermouth the band tracked much of the record live together in the studio, a more spontaneous method than earlier albums.

Lemmy Kilmister later clarified that only about five tracks were recorded that way in full.

UDR released Motorhead Bad Magic on 28 August 2015, the fifth album under the band’s UDR and Motorhead Music partnership.

Why Does Brian May Play Guitar on The Devil?

Brian May of Queen contributed a guest guitar solo to the track The Devil on Motorhead Bad Magic.

The pairing stands as one of the more unexpected guest credits anywhere in the band’s catalog.

Additional backing vocals on Shoot Out All of Your Lights came from Jimmi Mayweather and Nick Agee.

Phil Campbell’s son Todd Campbell also contributed engineering work on select tracks during the sessions.

What Songs Are on the Motorhead Bad Magic Tracklist?

Motorhead Bad Magic runs thirteen tracks across just under 43 minutes.

The album opens with Victory or Die, Thunder and Lightning, and Fire Storm Hotel, then moves through Shoot Out All of Your Lights, The Devil, and Electricity.

Evil Eye, Teach Them How to Bleed, Till the End, Tell Me Who to Kill, and Choking on Your Screams carry the record through its middle stretch.

When the Sky Comes Looking for You closes the original tracklist, followed by a cover of the Rolling Stones’ Sympathy for the Devil.

Why Did Motorhead Cover Sympathy for the Devil?

Motorhead recorded its cover of Sympathy for the Devil at the request of professional wrestler Triple H.

The request continued the band’s long standing connection to professional wrestling, first established through entrance themes recorded years earlier.

Phil Campbell added piano to the arrangement, giving the cover a different texture from the rest of the album.

The track closed Motorhead Bad Magic on an outward looking note, honoring another artist’s song rather than the band’s own catalog.

Did Motorhead Bad Magic Chart?

Motorhead Bad Magic reached number 1 in Austria, Finland, and Germany, the band’s strongest chart run in its history.

The album also topped the UK Rock Chart and UK Independent Albums Chart, while reaching number 10 on the main UK Albums Chart.

In the United States, the record debuted at number 35 on the Billboard 200 and number 2 on the Hard Rock Albums Chart, selling 10,325 copies in its first week.

Motorhead Bad Magic went on to sell 36,000 copies in the United States by June 2016.

What Did Critics Say About Motorhead Bad Magic?

Critics gave Motorhead Bad Magic some of the best reviews of the band’s entire career, reflected in a Metacritic score of 80 out of 100.

Blabbermouth’s Ray Van Horn Jr. rated it 8.5 out of 10, calling it a possible swan song while praising Lemmy Kilmister’s give a damn will to live.

The Guardian’s Dom Lawson awarded 4 out of 5 stars, describing the record as indecently thrilling and vital.

Metal Storm rated the album 9.2 out of 10, one of the highest scores the band ever received from any outlet.

Why Is Bad Magic Motorhead’s Final Studio Album?

Lemmy Kilmister died on 28 December 2015, just four months after Motorhead Bad Magic was released.

Surviving members Phil Campbell and Mikkey Dee confirmed to multiple outlets that the band was finished without him.

When the Sky Comes Looking for You became the only song from the album the band ever performed live.

Motorhead Bad Magic stands as the closing studio statement of a career that ran for 40 years.

What Changed in the 2023 Seriously Bad Magic Reissue?

Silver Lining Records released the expanded edition Seriously Bad Magic on 24 February 2023.

The reissue added the David Bowie cover Heroes, recorded during the same 2015 sessions but first released on Under Cover in 2017.

Two previously unreleased tracks, Bullet in Your Brain and Greedy Bastards, also appeared on the expanded edition for the first time.

The CD version added a bonus live album, Sayonara Folks, recorded at the 2015 Fuji Rock Festival in Japan.

People Also Ask

Is Motorhead’s Bad Magic a good album?

Motorhead’s Bad Magic is widely considered one of the band’s best reviewed albums, holding a Metacritic score of 80 out of 100 and a 9.2 out of 10 rating from Metal Storm.

The Guardian’s Dom Lawson called it indecently thrilling and vital, one of the strongest reviews of the band’s later career.

Who produced Motorhead’s Bad Magic album?

Cameron Webb produced, mixed, and engineered Motorhead’s Bad Magic album in 2015, his sixth production credit with the band since 2004.

Recording took place across NRG Studio, Maple Studios, and Grandmaster Studios in the Los Angeles area.

Did Brian May really play guitar on a Motorhead album?

Yes, Queen guitarist Brian May contributed a guest guitar solo to the track The Devil on Motorhead’s Bad Magic album.

The collaboration remains one of the most unexpected guest credits in the band’s entire catalog.

Was Bad Magic Motorhead’s last album?

Yes, Bad Magic was Motorhead’s last studio album of new material, released 28 August 2015 just four months before Lemmy Kilmister’s death on 28 December 2015.

Surviving members Phil Campbell and Mikkey Dee confirmed the band was over shortly after his passing.

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Motorhead Bad Magic gave the band its biggest commercial peak at the very end of its 40 year run.

Its guest appearance from Brian May and closing cover of Sympathy for the Devil make it a fitting final statement.

Read the full lineup history of the members of Motorhead to see how this album closes out the band’s studio career.

As of 2026, Motorhead Bad Magic stands as proof the band went out at the very peak of its powers, not in decline.

Last updated: July 25, 2026