Motorhead star to present Lemmy’s ashes at Bloodstock: ‘He wanted to form an unforgettable rock’n’roll band. I think he achieved his wish’
The spirit of rock icon Lemmy Kilmister, frontman of Motorhead, lives on at the Bloodstock Festival this weekend, where fans will be able to pay tribute in front of his ashes, and remember the star at an exhibition of memorabilia and previously unseen photographs.
“Lemmy would want to be remembered as a man of integrity, and a true rock’n’roller,” says Motorhead star Phil Campbell, of the band’s legendary frontman. “He was a one off.”
This weekend, fans can remember Lemmy this way as the late music star becomes permanently memorialised at Bloodstock – a UK metal festival which will now home some of his ashes in a specially commissioned bust.
Since then, his spirit has lived on for his friends in bullets containing sprinklings of his ashes – with Metallica’s James Hetfield enshrining his in an Ace Of Spades inking on his right middle finger.
Now, fans get to pay their respects Lemmy style too, as the bust is unveiled along with an exhibition of memorabilia, previously unseen photographs and a recreation of the singer’s dressing room at the Bloodstock Festival in Derbyshire.
Campbell, who will speak at the event on Friday to pay tribute, told Sky News it is “a great way” to remember his friend and “true pioneer”, one of the most iconic rock stars of all time.
“People will be able to go and, share their thoughts with Lem or whatever they want to do,” he said. “Or scream and shout at him or whatever, for playing too loud. I often did.”
Bloodstock is one of only a few places around the world to house the ashes of the Motorhead star, along with his much-loved Rainbow Bar & Grill, in West Hollywood.
After the festival, they will be taken to music venue Rock City, in Nottingham, via Harley Davidson escort, but will return each year to “keep flying the flag for the great guy that he was”.
Formed in the 1970s by Lemmy, whose real name was Ian Kilmister, Motorhead went on to release more than 20 albums, with hits including Overkill, Iron Fist and Ace Of Spades.
Lemmy was always known as one of rock’s hardest-partying stars. “I still always remember a great quote,” the band’s manager Todd Singerman told Sky News following his death. “Lemmy from Motorhead makes Keith Richards from the Stones look like a Golden Girl.”
Campbell, who joined the band to play guitar in the mid-’80s, describes it as “one hell of a ride”. Lemmy always “lived life his own way”, he said, but “cared a lot” about the fans and the music he made.
“When he formed Motorhead, he told me, he basically just wanted to form an unforgettable rock’n’roll band,” Campbell said. “So I think he achieved his wish there, definitely.
“I miss Lem every day… there’s never a day goes by when I don’t think about him. He’s just one of those unbelievable characters, really. He was intelligent, kind, had lots of empathy for people. Very humorous. There’s not many people like that about anymore. So it’s great for him to be remembered and he definitely will be remembered all over the world.”
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