Motörhead’s Kiss of Death debuts on one U.K. chart and returns at a new all-time high on another ranking in the country following a twentieth anniversary reissue. LOS ANGELES, CA – FEBRUARY 08: (L-R) Musicians Phil Campbell, Lemmy and Mikkey Dee of Motorhead attend The 57th Annual GRAMMY Awards at the STAPLES Center on February 8, 2015 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Jason Merritt/Getty Images)
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Motörhead’s Kiss of Death will turn 20 years old later this summer, but a quick look at the charts in the United Kingdom – at least one the busiest sales tally – makes it seem as if the title is new. This frame, the set, the hard rock outfit’s eighteenth, debuts on one ranking, returns to another two and even manages to rise to a new peak on a list where it first appeared back in 2006.
The latest burst of activity is tied to a twentieth anniversary edition of Kiss of Death, which arrived earlier this month. The reissue gives Motörhead another bestseller in the U.K. and brings one of the band’s later studio efforts back to a lofty position on the genre chart it nearly ruled when it was first released.
Motörhead’s Album Debuts on the Sales Chart
Kiss of Death opens at No. 27 on the Official Albums Sales chart. The 100-space ranking lists the bestselling full-lengths and EPs in the U.K. and is compiled using purchases of CDs, vinyl, cassettes and digital downloads.
The project becomes Motörhead’s first title to debut on the Official Albums Sales chart in 2026. The outfit last scored a new winner almost exactly a year ago, in July 2025. Last summer, The Manticore Tapes reached No. 7.
Kiss of Death immediately becomes the group’s twenty-first project to reach the ranking, the most competitive when looking solely at purchases in the European nation.
Kiss of Death Reaches a New All-Time Chart Peak
At the same time it launches on the general sales tally, Kiss of Death returns to the Official Physical Albums chart at No. 25. That list is similar to the Official Albums Sales ranking, though it focuses only on purchases of projects on physical mediums such as vinyl, CD and cassette, and digital downloads are excluded from its methodology.
No. 25 marks a new high point for Kiss of Death on the physical-only roster. The album has now spent just two weeks on the tally, with those stays separated by almost exactly two decades. The set debuted at No. 44 in September 2006, when it was brand new, and then disappeared. Its anniversary edition does more than bring the collection back — it pushes the release nearly 20 spaces higher than it managed during its original run.
Motörhead Returns to the Rock Ranking’s Top 10
Kiss of Death also finds its way back to the Official Rock & Metal Albums chart, where it lands at No. 7 this time around. The genre-specific rundown tracks the biggest rock and metal albums in the U.K. based on sales across digital bundles, CDs, vinyl and other formats during each seven-day tracking period.
Motörhead’s set has now accumulated a total of six weeks somewhere on the Official Rock & Metal Albums chart. The collection debuted at No. 3 in September 2006, in the same frame when it reached the physical tally, and spent four consecutive periods on the list during its initial run. Kiss of Death returned briefly in May 2023, and it has not been seen on the ranking since then.
LONDON – 1st JULY: Photo of MOTORHEAD posed in London in July 1984. Left to Right: Mick “Wurzel” Burston, Lemmy Kilmister, Phil Campbell, Pete Gill. (Photo by Fin Costello/Redferns)
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This week’s No. 7 placement is its loftiest in almost 20 years. The album has not appeared any higher since its No. 3 debut.
A Twentieth Anniversary Edition Drives the Band’s Comeback
Motörhead released the expanded twentieth anniversary edition of Kiss of Death on July 3. The project became available as a half-speed-mastered double LP and an expanded two-CD set. Both versions pair the original album with a previously unreleased recording of the band’s 2007 performance at the Lowlands Festival in the Netherlands, while the CD edition includes three additional bonus tracks. The two offerings are lumped together for charting purposes.