W.A.S.P. – Astoria 2004

In keeping with their two-part approach to Blackie Lawless’ new concept piece The Neon God, W.A.S.P. toured Europe twice in 2004. The first time, back in the Spring, was a rather lacklustre affair with an uninspiring ‘greatest hits’ set surrounding a couple of new songs. This time, especially given the proximity to the last show in the same venue, it was hoped the set would vary a little more.

The support band, a rather impressive Hurricane Party, hit the stage before most people had found a place to view the nights entertainment from, stuck as they were behind droves of W.A.S.P. fans queuing at the t-shirt stand with the collective decision making capability of a frightened two-year-old. Probably because on the first tour they didn’t bother to bring any merchandise at all.

Hurricane Party were rather good fun. A lot heavier live than on record, and they put on a good show. The lead singer very obviously believes he is Steven Tyler. He looks a bit like him, although younger and less weathered, but displays (probably intentionally) all the same mannerisms at the mic. One of the guitar players is the spitting image of Dave Sabo from Skid Row too. But they put on a good old-fashioned rock ‘n’ roll show. Material from their new EP was notably softer but stood up well amongst the rockier tracks which are presumably their most popular, having been around for a little while now. Good stuff.

As with the last show, it was a very long while before W.A.S.P. came on; about 45 minutes. With the usual early curfew on Astoria gigs quick turnovers between acts are normally common place, half an hour maximum. But the show itself was one of their best. Blackie promised in an official post on the band’s website that the set list this time around would include a bunch of classic W.A.S.P. tracks that haven’t been played for a long time live, as well as the usual mainstays and some new songs. He must have realised how predictable the set was in May.

From the off there were changes. The usual On Your Knees/Inside The Electric Circus/Hellion/Chainsaw Charlie… medley was altered slightly. Helldorado kicked things off, which is a much better opener than On Your Knees, then into Inside The Electric Circus as before. The end the medley was a full rendition, complete with both the blazing solos, of Hate To Love Me from 2001′s Unholy Terror. A real treat, as W.A.S.P. didn’t tour either that album, or the one after it in this country.

A brief collection of mainstay tracks follows, with L.O.V.E. Machine, Animal (Fuck Like A Beast) and Wild Child. At this point a mention needs to go to lead guitarist Darrell Roberts. Last time out, Darrell seemed very subdued. He didn’t really move around much and didn’t throw a great deal of shapes or seem to put much energy into his playing. With Mike Duda (bassist) running around constantly and never slowing down, this really stood out. This time however, right from the get-go, Darrell was obviously a lot more enthusiastic. And his solos really revitalised these otherwise over-played tracks. W.A.S.P. have a huge collection of quality songs, there is no need to play the same ones over and over again, especially during such a short set, and last time it was boring. This time, Darrell single handedly tore them apart and gave the fans something new.

Next up is the first new track, from new album The Neon God Part 2: The Demise. Now, this is a good album, as is part one, but on both records there are one or two tracks that stand out. This was clearly obvious to Blackie as well, as last time they played two of what most would say are the three great songs from part one, and this time they played the two stand-out songs from part two and the third one from part one. Come Back To Black received a huge cheer from the crowd, who have obviously all bought the new records. The thing that stands out most with the new material is the use of backing vocals. For the first time probably in the band’s career they now have a line-up where all three other members of the band (Blackie being the only founding member left) have a singing voice that matches the band’s sound perfectly. And the new songs take full advantage of this, with even the drummer Stet Howland having a headset to sing backing vocals. Mike Duda even takes the odd lead vocal line; such is the perfect match of all four voices on stage.

Following the excellent Come Back To Black the intro tape to the title track from W.A.S.P.’s stunning fourth studio album The Headless Children starts. One of W.A.S.P.’s most popular songs, but very rarely played. Again, it felt new and fresh thanks to Darrell’s take on the solo. Superb.

Immediately following that is Darrell’s crowning glory. Blackie announces the song The Idol, the key track from their 1992 concept piece, and widely-believed best album, The Crimson Idol. This song originally contained a pretty lengthy and very emotive solo by Bob Kulick. This was Darrell’s chance to let loose. So much so, in fact, that Blackie and Mike left the stage during the solo, as Darrell tore into a stunning solo spot.

After that the crowd are ecstatic as the rest of the band return for the excellent Never Say Die from the new album and, replacing My Tortured Eyes from 1997′s KFD from last time, the other great song from the same album Kill Your Pretty Face. Closing the main set, as always, The Real Me and I Wanna Be Somebody, during which Blackie reminds everyone that this year and this month is the 20th anniversary of the release of W.A.S.P.s eponymous debut.

Returning for the encore we get the surprise inclusion of Raging Storm from part one of The Neon God. An excellent song with a classic sing-a-long chorus. Then the evergreen show closer Blind In Texas and we’re done. An excellent 90-minute set, brought alive by the fabulous Roberts, but it felt short. Saxon were here a few weeks ago with an even tighter curfew than tonight and they managed a two-hour set by starting a bit earlier and not keeping everyone waiting. Older men than Blackie (the oldest in the band) pull off two-hour sets night after night (Ronnie James Dio) and it’s not like W.A.S.P.’s back catalogue couldn’t support a set of that length, with two new albums to showcase and two more that didn’t see any European touring, as well as the mainstay classics and some lesser played classics, they should have plenty to play a full length set. Short sets are unfortunately normality for W.A.S.P., though.

It was a thoroughly more pleasing show than last time, given the superior support band, the presence of new tour merchandise and the inclusion of lesser played songs instead of a few of the predictable ones. And most importantly the performance of one Darrell Roberts.

“ flawless ”

Setlist: On Your Knees > Inside The Electric Circus > Hellion > Chainsaw Charlie / L.O.V.E. Machine / Animal (Fuck Like A Beast) / Wild Child / What I’ll Never Find / Sister Sadie (And The Black Habits) / Guitar Solo / My Tortured Eyes / The Real Me / I Wanna Be Somebody // The Idol > The Gypsy Meets The Boy > Sleeping (In The Fire) / Blind In Texas

Photo(s): Johan Eriksson | www.rockersdigest.com

Written by Andy Lye
More: Gigs, Heavy Metal, W.A.S.P.