Blackie Lawless recently had a chat with Ultimate Classic Rock and once again touched upon the topic of the band being accused of using backing tracks during live performances. Responding to some fans’ speculation that none of W.A.S.P.’s concerts are actually live, he said:
“If they’re crazy enough to believe that, that’s their problem. But if they truly think so, they shouldn’t come to the show.
God blessed me with this horn in my throat. Just like everyone else who has it, we love to show it off, and I’m no exception.
Sorry if this sounds arrogant, but there are moments when I’m on stage, and I hear the sounds coming out of me when I hold a note or something like that. In those moments, I think to myself, ‘Wow, that’s really cool.’ I think most people don’t get to experience something like that in their lives. So I’m very grateful for it. As I said, when you’ve got something that very few people can do, you like to show it off. [Laughs].
Let me add one more thing. I grew up listening to ‘Live At Leeds’ [by THE WHO]. Back then, I didn’t realize it, but there’s overdubbing in it. But it’s pretty raw. It sounds like it was done by a three-piece band. For the most part, it’s pretty realistic. But they don’t do it that way anymore. They created a reflection of 1970. They gave you a snapshot of that time. That’s how bands used to do it. But when technology changed and we had the ability to make the sound bigger and better, who wouldn’t use it? You can make your own version of ‘Live At Leeds.’ We did. Did it turn out great? It turned out decent for the purposes it was intended. But if I go to a concert — and this is my personal opinion — I want the band to sound like they do on the album. I don’t care what QUEEN or other bands say: ‘We perform everything live.’ No, there aren’t 20 vocalists behind the stage. [Laughs]. They all get help. The point is to put on a good show for the audience. And who cares how it’s done?
There’s an argument that some female singers these days don’t sing a single note, and that’s probably not true. If I’m going to a Yngwie concert, I want to see him play. But I wouldn’t mind if some rock band musicians weren’t playing. Because I’m not there to see the playing. I’m there to hear the songs. But if someone has an instrument they’re really good at and can do things few others can, I want to see and hear them do it. So, in my view, I’m giving them that, but I’m also showing them the best of both worlds.”
He also answered a question about how the work on new material is progressing:
“We’ve been working on it a lot. We went on tour last year. As you know, I had back issues. So, between surgeries, I had a lot of time to think about it. I listened to a lot of what we already did, and I’m not thrilled with what we’ve got. I think there are moments where it turned out really good, but it doesn’t match what I was aiming for. It feels like I tried to steer the material in the wrong direction. And it turned around and bit me. So I’ll have to go back to the drawing board. But I’m not going to flush it all down the drain. There are some things that are definitely good, but the material lacks cohesiveness.”
