Golgotha

By now, most are familiar with W.A.S.P., both for their razor sharp riffs and mean attitude, and their history with controversy. In 2015, they put out their fifteenth studio album titled Golgotha, and like many newer albums by bands from the glam train, it gets heavily overlooked. While W.A.S.P.’s sound has evolved immensely throughout the years, this one combines the musical foundation that made up records like Still Not Black Enough, with a friendlier approach to match Blackie Lawless’s views, which are pretty well reflected here.

On the surface, the chops are all over the place, with the epic and fast-paced guitar riffing backed by drumming that rolls all over the kit, creating a heap of energy. You can hear the more uplifting tones in tracks like “Last Runaway,” as the keys are banged out on major scales and the vocals have a reassuring nature to them. Lawless still cranks out his signature high, raspy notes, but naturally, it just comes off as less fierce. This doesn’t hurt the quality though, because the complexity, the strong rhythms, and ultimately the punch are still there. Just listen to the album opener “Scream,” as it wastes no time with this.

Moreover, there’s also a decent amount of emotion to be conveyed through this disc. Previously, the band gave a hellish twist to a lot of the negative issues in the world, where now it’s brought in on a platter with a side of hope. The title track, named after the hill where Jesus Christ was crucified, has an emotional buildup of self-doubt, only to break into harder instrumentation and deliver a powerful chorus. Others like “Miss You” focus more on pure sadness, and it’s probably safe to call this a ballad.

The songs that stand out are mostly the ones mentioned, that have a distinct factor, and as good as the rest of the music is, it can run together if you’re not fully focused. Besides that, this is a solid release that shouldn’t be ignored or hated just because there’s a different attitude; if bands did the same thing over and over, it would be boring

Originally written for Indy Metal Vault

Starting with the basics, W.A.S.P. is a tremendous band. Few seem to know quality albums were still being pumped and dumped by Blackie Lawless and his fornication squad years after W.A.S.P. hit the axiomatic g-spot with “The Headless Children” and “The Crimson Idol.” “Dominator” and Babylon,” for instance, are freakishly satisfying given the taxes time and internal instability cost, yet their qualities remain armored and firm. “Golgotha,” however, marks the point where modern-era W.A.S.P. becomes too anesthetized to do more than twitch. The urgency and fire that were still burning hot years after they should’ve been extinguished by the usual factors have begun to fade, be it from nature or circumstance, and there are many reasons for this failing to bring the whisper back to a scream. When all is said and done, “Golgotha”—excuse the pun—is self-crucifixion.

Blackie still sounds fine, although the voice that was once a flamethrower now knows its limits, and maybe that’s a good thing. “Golgotha” isn’t restricted by age, but style. It is a pacified version of this band without the bite; this is something evident in the songwriting. The tracks are lighthearted and feathery for a heavy metal group: the crisp in the guitar tone is gone, the texture is driven by a passive rock ideology, and there really isn’t any adventure left in the W.A.S.P. machine. Most of the album’s tunes strike like pillows more than mallets, leaving the atmosphere and drive sedated. W.A.S.P. is no longer in the business of writing steely-eyed dropkicks like “Chainsaw Charlie (Murders in the New Morgue),” and that’s fine. The deficit in quality, however, is not.

W.A.S.P. is at the point where the music has a hard time avoiding retracing itself, and at times justifying its existence. “Scream” might as well be a sequel to “Crazy” given its structure, and the plodding “Miss You” ballad finds its melodies and themes loaned from the much-better “Heaven’s Hung in Black.” Then again, the W.A.S.P. style wasn’t breaking new ground on “Dominator” or “Babylon,” but it had a now-defunct sense of passion, although the songs that do make an impact are explosive and bring back some vitality. “Slaves of the New World Order” detonates with the tempo and urgency of modern W.A.S.P. finding a spark to light that wonderfully familiar fuse. “Shotgun” is another excellent one—a brazen rocker finding a nice crevice between The Who and heavy metal that allows it to gestate comfortably for six minutes. While not horrible, the rest is just inoffensive and passive.

Raking “Golgotha” over the coals for its Christian lyrics may seem like taking cash from the collection plate, but they are pretty terrible. Hearing Blackie croon to Jesus throughout the title track bends any semblance of inspiration or humble faith that may have existed into something that’s just tiringly overzealous. I’m passionate about identifying continuity errors in porn movie storylines, but that doesn’t mean I’m flaunting it around publicly. The slim pickings of “Dominator” and “Babylon” from which “Golgotha” was made are too soft and lukewarm to continue the late-in-the-game success. There are noteworthy moments worth hunting down for a taste of that newfound W.A.S.P. quality, though the number of mediocre tunes usurp the throne. “Golgotha” is the body of “Dominator” and “Babylon” without the bones.

This review was written for: www.Thrashpit.com