Description

2012 press on clear vinyl with printed innersleeve

With 1988’s The Headless Children, W.A.S.P. attempted to be taken as serious artists (for the most part). And while singer/guitarist/leader Blackie Lawless expressed excitement about the band’s current lineup, which included longtime guitarist Chris Holmes, bassist Johnny Rod, Quiet Riot drummer Frankie Banali, and Uriah Heep keyboardist Ken Hensley — the complete group never toured. With the band concentrating more on the music than the gimmicks (the group was pictured sans ghoulish makeup and costumes), The Headless Children remains W.A.S.P.’s most accomplished work. The album’s best-known tracks remain their cover of the Who’s Quadrophenia anthem “The Real Me” and the rocking “Mean Man” (an autobiographical tale about guitarist Holmes), while a pair of epics — “The Heretic” and the title track — and perhaps W.A.S.P.’s best ballad, “Forever Free,” were also standouts. While longtime fans may prefer the gross-out heavy metal of their early albums (W.A.S.P. and The Last Command), The Headless Children is their best constructed album.

It was all about shock for W.A.S.P. , be it flaming codpieces, tying a semi-naked woman to a torture rack mid-set, tossing raw meat into the audience or Blackie Lawless own stupefying arrogance. One thing is for certain, in the annals of metal there are very few bands like W.A.S.P. (Metal Hammer )

Track listing:
1. The Heretic (The Lost Child)
2. The Real Me
3. The Headless Children
4. Thunderhead
5. Mean Man
6. The Neutron Bomber
7. Mephisto Waltz
8. Forever Free
9. Maneater
10. Rebel In The F.D.G.