Video: Motörhead Forced to Cut Wacken Appearance Short Due to Lemmy’s Health Problems

Well, this ain’t gonna make you feel any better about Lemmy’s recent health issues.

Motörhead made what was supposed to be their triumphant return to the stage at Wacken  this past Friday — but were forced to cut their set short, playing only about thirty of the seventy-five minutes for which their set was scheduled. Reports Metal Insider:

“According to people in attendance, Lemmy did not look or sound well and struggled to gather strength to perform. Guitarist Phil Campbell even played a guitar solo earlier than usual to cover for the frontman, which upon its conclusion was met with ‘eerie silence.’ After they played their final song, co-founder Thomas Jensen came out and announced to the audience that the concert was over, supposedly admitting that even he didn’t know what to do or say about the situation.”

Although I haven’t been able to track down any video from the conclusion of the set, the below pro-shot footage of the first chunk of the performance does, indeed, show a Lemmy who neither looks nor sounds very good.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=bB6uxKRtt2Q

According to Classic Rock, Doro Pesch later attempted to relieve the crowd by telling them that Lemmy is “doing fine,” while Motörhead guitarist Phil Campbell has since stated that “Contrary to some reports, Lem is alive and kicking, so take no notice of these rumours from asshole tweeters.” But it’s hard to find either assertion reassuring in light of recent events.

More info as we get it.