Reviews list for W.A.S.P. - W.A.S.P. (1984)

I apologise in advance dear Reader, if you feel that this review is excessively autobiographical, but it is kinda relevant to my long-term relationship with glam metal generally and W.A.S.P. specifically, so here we go anyway:

I really didn't get much out of glam metal at all in the 1980s, it's celebration of "life on the Strip" just held no meaning for my life in a dirty, industrial town in northern England. The likes of Motorhead, Iron Maiden and Saxon had far more resonance with my life trying to get by, having left home in 1981 whilst still a teenager and desperately trying to pay my rent or mortgage on a young factory worker's wage. But whilst the likes of Poison and Motley Crue meant absolutely fuck all to me and just pissed me off with their poser attitudes and aesthetics, there were a couple I had a bit more time for. The first was Twisted Sister's Dee Snider. I felt TS were actually a pisstake of the whole glam scene because, not wishing to be too cruel, they were uglier-looking m-fs and the makeup and shit just seemed like a parody to me. The second was Blackie Lawless who I had heard of when he briefly joined The New York Dolls. My first wife's little sister was a big glam metal fan and talked me into taking her to see W.A.S.P., probably around '85, and you know what, they were fuckin' good and, against my expectations, I really enjoyed the show and came away with a lot of respect for how expertly Blackie worked the crowd and how effortlessly charismatic a character he was.

I later picked up The Last Command after hearing a track on the obscure late-night metal video show I used to watch on TV on Friday Nights after coming in from the boozer, the name of which I can't recall. The main draw for me was Blackie's voice which, whilst having quite a high register, also has a ragged edge that gives it a savage roughness and makes it sound way more evil than the Vince Neils or Bret Michaels of the world. And that was my sum total of involvement with W.A.S.P. pretty much up until my time here with the Metal Academy, since when they keep popping into my view from time to time in the forums or on playlists. To be honest I can take 'em or leave 'em, but it is probably a sign of a bit of a shift in my taste lately that listening to this debut album for the first time in quite a while, it is obvious to me that I am enjoying it far more than my original 2.5 star rating would suggest I did back whenever.

One thing is certain from the outset and that is that W.A.S.P.'s debut has far more metal credentials than most of the other glam metal acts of the Eighties who, in the most part, were glorified rock acts for my money. This is certainly bona fide heavy metal we are listening to here, not some lipstick-smeared version of hard rock. Even the band's glam aesthetic seemed more Alice Cooper inspired shock horror than the poor, sleazy drag acts than many of the other glam metallers aspired to. The riffs drive the tracks and whilst there is little you haven't heard before here riff-wise, they are memorable and catchy and filled with an energy and drive that becomes infectious as they thunder from hook to hook. Over all this Blackie snarls and bellows his heart out with tales of schlock and whores (sorry I couldn't resist the pun) that would act as rage bait for Tipper Gore and the tight-assed PMRC, which will always get a thumbs-up from me. The guitar soloing is decent although, again, the solos aren't really unlike many you have heard before, but are well executed and transform a track like the balladic "Sleeping (In the Fire)" from being a bit of a downer into a far more positive experience, whilst adding the icing on the cake to a top-knotch track like "Tormentor". The pacing of the album is just about spot-on too, varying from the breakneck charge of tracks like "Hellion" or "The Torture Never Stops" (my favourite here) to the more considered mid-pacing of "Tormentor" and the aforementioned ballad-like reflection of "Sleeping (In the Fire)". It isn't all good news, however, as indicated by my mid-level rating, with side one petering out badly from a strong start with the brace of "B.A.D." and " School Daze" sounding like the more usual iteration of glam metal that I dislike so much. The cringe-inducing lyrics to "On Your Knees" also ruin a perfectly good riff-led track and are a turd in the swimming pool of the otherwise much stonger second side.

On reflection I have got to say that I am rather pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed listening to this again and I feel I have a bit more of an understanding and respect for what Blackie and co. were doing here (probably alongside the letting go of some of my long-held musical prejudices). I am gonna call this one a win.

YES! I fuckin' love W.A.S.P. This album, the Last Command, The Crimson Idol, and Headless Children. All fucking great! Blackie Lawless for President!

For the unaquainted, WASP is everything great about Sunset Strip sleeze. Imagine the absolute best of Motley Crue. Now imagine that it's heavier, meaner, and sleazier. That's what WASP is. They are the fuckin' gear. They will even sometimes throw in some southern rock for you. WASP is a party in your speakers, go to the party, drink some Jack, Snort some coke, bang some hookers in the back of a limo. That's what WASP sounds like, and if you just listen to them you can have all that fun without the hangovers, rehab, or STDS! That's a fuckin' win isnt it!? 

I felt like this may be one of those albums where I really get a "You had to be there" vibe. I think my teenage self would have loved to hear this, however I wasn't born until 5 years after this album released. It just has that teen angst vibe to it to me. The lyrics are a bit on the immature side, (Fuck Like A Beast anyone?) but they're not overly cheesy and can totally see someone who grew up with this album have that bit of nostalgia for it. I definitely do from some of my more emo music of the 2000s that's more cringe than this. The guitars are heavy for the glam metal of it's era and never feels out of place. Maybe akin to a heavier Kiss. I don't really have much to say otherwise, each song really felt simple with no overly memorable riffs or melodies but I can't say I had a bad time with this one. Though I wasn't a fan of their cover of Paint It Black, didn't suit them.

The frenzy surrounding W.A.S.P. and much of the early part of their career often disguised the fact that aside from them displaying what some felt to be shocking sexual audacity and beastly intent, they actually released one of the best debut albums of the time.  After the furore over Animal (Fuck Like A Beast) the band didn't bat an eyelid and got on with pushing their debut down the throats of whoever would listen.  Taking the traditional rock elements and adding more than a fair few coats of shock over the top still should not be the only reason Lawless and co are recognised for their achievements in metal.  The self-titled debut is strong, full of hooks and catchy lines that stayed in your head long after the curtain fell on any associated theatre.

The album might be seen as a romp in more ways than one but at the end of the day this was the album the band wanted to put out and it sounds like it too.  There genuinely were no fucks to be given on this record and the band made this record for nobody else other than themselves, the fact that not only did it wind the PMRC up to epic proportions but also went on to sell gold in the US and Canada only added to the irony of Tipper Gore and co's derision.

Anthems just kept coming from all sides on the album.  Whether it was I Wanna Be Somebody, L.O.V.E. Machine, Hellion or The Torture Never Stops the album was destined to stay in the hearts and heads of all who heard it.  The ability to write obtuse and shocking lyrics was tempered also by the fact that the same band could deliver softer tracks like Sleeping (In The Fire) and still retain that garrish edge whilst doing so.  W.A.S.P. weren't as primitive as people would have fans believe.

Yes, there's some filler on here (hence the 3.5 stars) but this was the debut and if ever there is a time to forgive a bit of filler it is on a bands first outing into full length release territory.  Rock out with your cock out folks!

W.A.S.P. garnered a lot of attention and publicity for themselves in their early days with their sexually charged and often violent lyrics and imagery. Of course, there were plenty of bands at the time (especially metal bands) pushing these sort of topics even further, but many of them remained firmly in the underground scene, and didn't gain the same hostile spotlight from concerned parents and the like, while W.A.S.P. seemed to actively court such attentions. They often seemed like KISS' nastier sibling, locked away for years and now out, loose and on the prowl.

Musically, this is certainly a comparison that holds up in their debut, self-titled full-length. There's an ever-present emphasis on driven, hard rocking melodies, songs dominated by catchy and repeated choruses. It's an album that constantly conjures images of packed arenas chanting along, and maybe even some scantily-clad chorus girls kicking along in a line (see "The Flame" for a perfect example).

It's an album of unashamed old-school rock 'n' roll sleaze, and with enough sincerity among the cheese to carry it off more often than not. "L.O.V.E. Machine", "School Daze", "Hellion", "On Your Knees", these songs are just as you'd expect given the titles. There's always the sensation of cutting loose and going along with it all.

Certainly, W.A.S.P. do this well, but are a bit too focused on it here. Your mileage may vary based on personal tastes, but I do find this album a little too fond of repeating the chorus lines ad nauseum. There's fun in chanting along with such lines of course, but however catchy these lines might be, it still runs the risk of becoming tiresome the longer it goes on, and plenty of these songs are guilty of outstaying their welcome in this regard. More than once I end up willing the song to get a move on and stop sounding like a record stuck in place. Though worth mentioning, "The Torture Never Stops" gives a glimpse of something a bit more aggressive, even thrashy for its day, and it's a shame it only comes right at the end of the album.

All told, this album does have a good time, sing-along quality to it with a nice degree of crunch among the melody, but the song-writing would become much more refined on future works like The Headless Children and The Crimson Idol.

Choice cuts: The Torture Never Stops, I Wanna Be Somebody