EVIL HAS NO BOUNDARIES

Blackie Lawless finds a release for his frustrations following the attack on the World Trade Center with W.A.S.P.’s new album “Dying for the World”.

Ever since the debut in 1984 W.A.S.P. has held great importance for heavy metal, and the band has made metal history with albums such as “Inside the Electric Circus”, “The Headless Children” and “The Crimson Idol”. The members went separate ways in 1993, but Blackie Lawless then decided to reform the band in 1995. Sadly, the ensuing albums, “Still Not Black Enough” and “K.F.D.”, did not match the heyday efforts, but with “Helldorado” Blackie et al. rediscovered their rock’n’roll roots, and with the release of “Unholy Terror” the band appeared to have been fully rejuvenated. W.A.S.P. are now ready with the new album “Dying for the World”, which does not only surpass “Unholy Terror” musically; it also offers some of the most gloomy and personal lyrics Blackie has ever written. In this connection Blackie calls up from Los Angeles for a one-to-one conversation with Evilution concerning his most personal album to date.

“Every time I’ve written a varied album that exceeds the limits laid down for what W.A.S.P. represents, I have done it with the knowledge that it can go wrong. Let me explain what I mean by that. When I look back on my career, the best albums I’ve made are the ones where I didn’t care about what the record companies, the press or the fans wanted, but where I followed my own personal direction. When a band writes their first album, there is no pressure from the record company because they don’t expect anything, and likewise the fan base doesn’t have a foundation from which they can dictate how the music should be. That results in an honest album without restrictions, and that was how our debut album was as well. We’re swimming with the tide up until “The Headless Children” from 1989, which is written during a period when I no longer really know myself. I discover that the worst thing that can happen is that you’re walking down the path of life, when you suddenly meet myself and you don’t know what to say! It sounds absurd but that’s how I feel at point of time, haha. Everybody changes with time and I discover that I’m no longer the same person who released “Inside the Electric Circus” three years earlier. I need to find myself again and I write an album where I don’t care about the expectations that the record company, the press or our fans have towards it, and the result of that is “The Headless Children”. I receive a lot of criticism from the company because they don’t feel that the album represents what W.A.S.P. stands for, but I explain to them that the album represents what I stand for, and that it’s important I get to make that statement. The same happens with “The Crimson Idol” from 1992 when I once again write with no reflections as to what people expect, and this time I’m told that I should make an album similar to “The Headless Children” because it became a success to their big surprise, haha! I don’t feel like doing that, and instead I write what I feel most strongly about at that time. The result is “The Crimson Idol” and our fans fully understand that I need to write that album. With the new record “Dying for the World” it happens again. I contact the company and tell them that I really need to write this album without restrictions, and luckily they fully understand that.”

FUCK POLITICAL CORRECTNESS...

#There is no doubt that Blackie has a message with “Dying for the World” since the lyrics on the new album are very much based on personal thoughts and conduct.

“With the song “Trail of Tears” we introduce something that I had long wanted to do, but it’s not until this point that I feel the right time has come. I descend from the North American Indians and I have long felt a need to praise my roots with a song that uses the same rhythm structures and narrates the tragic story of the Indians. The lyrics deal with the genocide of the Indian tribes.. The American government tried to eradicate them; not just drive them into exile but simply wipe them from the surface of the earth, and the world today is still marked by the slaughters back then. There are only few real Indians left, and those that remain will always be suspicious towards the American government – and that’s very tragic. A lot of people would probably say that such lyrics and such a message do not belong in the heavy metal genre, but I have come to a point where I don’t care what people think. I do what I want to, and then people will have to take the album for what it is or just not take it at all. History has shown that the albums where I didn’t really care about the opinions of other people have turned out to be the best and obviously most honest ones. But as we have already talked about, you risk a lot by writing an honest album rather than giving people what they expect, and you have to be prepared to fail. John Lennon said: ‘Rock’n’roll, when it’s good is the truth’. In my opinion, that is very true and I strive to live by that in writing what I want to and not what you would expect of W.A.S.P.”

#Another subject that Blackie deals with on “Dying for the World” is the terrorist attack on The World Trade Center on September 11^th, 2001.

“I grew up in New York so it’s a very sensitive subject to me, and the only way I could come to terms with my thoughts and frustrations was by writing some lyrics about it. I visited Ground Zero in October and I have never experienced anything like it. When I was a child and lived in New York, I could see the Statue of Liberty and The World Trade Center from my window, and the objects that you can see from your home become a part of your everyday life. Furthermore, I have a family who have participated in building The World Trade Center, and so the buildings represent personal value and pride to me. The attack did not affect me so much as an American citizen; it was more on a personal level since WTC has always meant so much in my life. It was as if something was ripped out of my life. I visited Ground Zero and it felt like I attended some gigantic funeral. It did not at all seem like I was in New York. The city is usually very noisy and full of energy, but that place was completely silent. If I closed my eyes I couldn’t feel the presence of anybody else around me; it was that silent. The first thing I noticed was the smell. It smelled very acidic because of all the burned power installations – and it was everywhere. When I had left the place a couple of hours later and went down to get something to eat, I could taste that same acidic smell! In the song “Hallowed Ground” I sing ‘I have tasted hallowed ground’ and it’s based on that experience. That really scared me!”

…THAT WENT DOWN WITH THE TRADE CENTER!

Blackie Lawless



“A couple of weeks later, my sorrow became anger and I started to reflect on why it had really happened, and it made me think of The Gulf War. Back then there were big problems between the Western world and the Muslim world, and President Bush should not have withdrawn but solved the problem once and for all. I mean, you have a group of people hiding behind the Koran with the aim of exercising terror against those communities that do not agree with their image of society, and it even takes place between countries in The Middle East. The problem has not been taken care of, and it eventually resulted in the attack on WTC. When The Gulf War was at its pinnacle, I received fan mail from stationed soldiers who told me that they had fastened huge speakers on to their tanks. When they drove into combat, they played various metal tracks which the Iraqis could hear several miles away, and they could also hear that it was coming closer. These soldiers told me that it had a massive psychological effect; not only to the morals of the American soldiers, but it also had an effect on the Iraqis because they knew that death was approaching! The point with this story is that I will now make the strongest statement in my entire career: “Dying for the World” is an album written with the purpose of being put to use when we go to war against the terrorists. I hope that the American and the European soldiers will play “Dying for the World” when their tanks are driving into combat because I have written this album as a soundtrack to death! I know that it’s a strong statement, and I have considered for a long time whether or not I really wanted to say this with the new album. It is not part of my nature to say something like that, but the more I pushed it away from myself, the more convinced I became that I had to say this in order to move on. When people read the lyrics they will understand what I mean. There is a line where I sing: ‘Fuck political correctness / That went down with the Trade Center’. When I wrote those lyrics I realised that I had to tell people what I feel if I wanted to move on in my life. There are probably a lot of people who feel that I can’t take leave to say what I feel, but my music reflects where I am in my life right now; and right now I’m bitter, shocked and angry because of the attack on WTC.”

LIFE GOES ON

#Blackie is clearly angry as a consequence of the attack on WTC, which is reflected on “Dying for the World”.. He has found a release for his anger by writing the hardest and most gloomy lyrics in his career, but it has helped him to move on, and he is now working on the next album.

“We have already started to write the next record, and we’re going to record it in 5.1 surround to create a soundscape that W.A.S.P. fans have never experienced before. It’s going to be a concept record like “The Crimson Idol”, and musically we’re bringing the psychedelic 60s into heavy metal. Eventually, there will probably be some LSD included when you buy the record, haha. Our goal is that when people hear the album they will be surrounded by the music, and without sounding monumental I would argue that many will find the overall impression so overwhelming and beautiful that they will shed a tear when they hear the music. The idea already came when we recorded “Dying for the World”, and while we recorded the album we concurrently started to write the new tracks because we couldn’t wait! I feel newborn and I have so many things that I want to convey that I can’t find the time to do it all. Have you ever seen a dog chasing its own tail? That’s how I feel right now. I have so many ideas but I don’t have the time to realise them all. Therefore, we have decided that we’re only going to tour for seven weeks with “Dying for the World”; after that it’s back to the studio to record the new album so it can be released in 2003. Even though the “Dying for the World” tour will only come to last for seven weeks, we will strive to play in most big cities over the world, so W.A.S.P. fans will get the opportunity to experience the new album live. However, we have chosen not to include festivals this year since we would not have had the time to write the new album otherwise, but I can guarantee that people will get to see us live.”

#Can I make you reveal the concept for the next record?

“No, you can’t. First of all, the lyrics are not entirely written even though the story is fixed, and secondly people should have something to look forward to. But our fans can definitely start to anticipate the next album. Artistically speaking, I feel like I’m on the zenith of my career, and that is obvious on “Dying for the World” even though it will not shine through completely until the next album.”

With these words Blackie says goodbye for the while. Be sure to check out “Dying for the World” unless you want to cheat yourself of W.A.S.P.’s strongest effort since the reunion.

-->> Conducted and written by Bo.