WASP; House of Blues; Las Vegas, NV; 07/15/04
Reviewed by Richard Fenkel
Blackie Lawless and company brought their brand of rock to the Las Vegas House of Blues on Thursday, July 15, 2004. Shock rock and/or hard rock with a fast melodic twist is the style that is known as W.A.S.P.
WASP fans enjoy both sides of this metal group: The simple hard rock'n'roll part has a catalog of tracks that metal fans have enjoyed for years. The fake blood and scary props are the other side of this dynamic band. Regardless of their legendary stage shows, Lawless creates high octane rock'n'roll.
A lot has changed over the years for WASP, not the least of which is lineup changes. But, needless to say, Blackie and crew still perform with high energy. Their mission this evening was simply to entertain.
WASP provided Sin City fans with a trip through their past and an insight into their future. The stage was simple. There was one elaborate prop but no blood this time out. There was a very interesting motorcycle style prop that was used to rock back and forth and sing from. It contained a skull, leg pegs, and a cool handle bar. It looked like it weighed about 300 lbs.
This evil looking prop boosted the legendary frontman high above the Vegas crowd. At one point during the set, Lawless painted his face with white glow in the dark makeup and stood on this skull prop, rocking back and forth. It was a very interesting moment.
Throughout the show, Blackie delivered his brand of heavy metal horror. Shock rock fans enjoyed every minute. In fact, to the best of my memory, W.A.S.P has only performed once before in Las Vegas. This was back in 2001. Therefore, it was no surprise that fans sung along with Blackie, enjoying every moment, playing air guitar and shooting the horned hand was commonplace.
Bottom line: fans were rocking out. Vocally, Blackie sounded awesome and exhibited great chemistry on stage.
This Vegas show was is in support of W.A.S.P's latest release, "The Neon God." Tracks such as "Why Am I Here," " Sister Sadie," and "Asylum #9" are part of this concept album, the second part of which is due out soon.
This show featured a lineup of some talented musicians. Bassist Mike Duda, lead guitarist Darrell Roberts, and drummer Stet Howland rounded out this metal group. These guys had lots of energy on stage and played to the crowd. This lineup delivered such WASP classics as "Fuck Like a Beast," "I Wanna Be Somebody" and "Blind in Texas" to name a few.
This show was the opening night of the "Neon God Tour." Las Vegas witnessed one of the best HOB concerts this year.
WASP rocks!
Copyright © 2004 by R. Scott Bolton. All rights reserved.
Revised: 17 Jul 2007 01:16:08 -0500.
