W.A.S.P. is a band I have only had a passing affiliation with over the years. I never listened to them much in their heyday. I am not sure why this was, they certainly have a sound and swagger that is right up my alley. I did have a copy of The Headless Children that I was quite fond of, but that is as far as it went. Years later, 2005 as a matter of fact, I saw them headline a bill of metal acts that included Stephen Pearcy (of Ratt), LA Guns, and Metal Church. That was an insane show that saw frontman Blackie Lawless still performing like he did back in the day. A couple of years later they released the excellent Dominator album, proving that W.A.S.P. is still a relevant force. Now Blackie and company have a new album, Babylon, which delivers another dose of metal and hard rock.
As I began listening to Babylon, I was hoping to recapture some of that Dominator power. Sadly, those feelings were not there. The deeper into the album I got, I kept waiting for that one song that would push Babylon over the edge into that fist in the air, sneer on the face feeling I got from Dominator and when I go back to some of those Headless Children cuts. It never came. I did feel like they were going to do it with "Babylon's Burning" and "Thunder Red," but did not quite make it.
Now, don't get me wrong. Babylon is a solid album that you should be happy to get your hands on. It is solid effort from start to finish, with nary a stinker in the bunch. I guess its biggest problem is consistency. The production is solid, everything is crisp, clear, and begs to be cranked up. Plus, there is still no band that sounds like them. Despite the revolving door of supporting cast that Blackie has surrounded himself with, the band's sound has always stayed strong. Not only that, but while Blackie Lawless does not quite have the range that he had back in the 80's and 90's, he still has that instantly recognizable style. No one can sing like he can. Just listen to that classic waver. Fantastic.
The album kicks off with "Crazy," a good opener that is sure to bring "Wildchild" to mind. That is followed up by "Live to Die Another Day." This song has a good galloping drama to it, broken up by a nice solo in the middle. This leads directly into "Babylon's Burning," one of the better tunes on the album.
Article comments
1 - Lisa
W.A.S.P BABYLON REACHED NUMBER 12 IN THE UK,, THEY STILL SEEM TO NOT GET THE MUCH DESERVED RESPECT ,, HERE IN THE STATES,,IM A NEW FAN,, AND I AGREE TO SOME POINT ABOUT IT NOT MATCHING IN SOME WAYS WITH DOMINATOR,, I FEEL,, THIS CD IS A BREATH OF FRESH AIR COMPARE TO THE COOKIE CUT OUT CRAP" THAT IS OUT THERE NOW. REMEMBER BLACKIE LAWLESS HAS BEEN AROUND TWENTY FIVE PLUS YEARS,, HE HAS MORE THEN PAID HIS DUES,,I LOOK FORWARD TO CATCHING MY FIRST SHOW IN 2010.
2 - BILL
W.A.S.P BABYLON is a GREAT rock & roll cd it has alot of cool rip rowing song like BURING & LIE TO DIE . I am a big WASP fan & long live BLACKIE one of the BEST singer of all time.