Golgotha is the fifteenth studio record by American Heavy
Metal band W.A.S.P and was released on October 2nd, 2015. Now to be
clear I am a huge WASP fan (see my review of Chris Holmes new album) and
Blackie is one of those front-men that I admire a lot for their writing and
stage presence. Now all drama aside, before buying this album the newest WASP
record I owned was Helldorado (Which is a guilty pleasure of mine) so I am very
out of date with how the last few records have progressed but I do know how
Blackie has become more religiously conscious and I am always afraid that it
can sometimes overshadow the music. However, with no experience except maybe a
few past songs, will I enjoy this record as much as say Inside the Electric
Circus? Lets find out!
Track Rundown
1.Scream- This song starts out with a very melodic riff and
then Blackie comes in and I really have to say his voice has lost nothing in
the last 30 years. I really think his voice is the highlight on the whole album
actually and I like Doug’s little guitar fills all over this song too. The
chorus is very reminiscent of “Crazy” from the previous album but I think this
track is better represented and has more power to it. The solo is pretty good
and full of life as well but it is kind of missing a heaviness that used to be
my favorite point of WASP and while I still like a lot of the riffs it feels a
bit buried in the mix and has some issues like I had with Book Of Souls. But
overall, I think this is a great opening song its super powerful and shows that
there is still something left in this band
2.Last Runaway- This song would definitely be a radio song
it is just that melodic. It isn’t necessarily heavy in the guitar or even
vocals but more in the drums I mean the kick drum really pops with the very
clicky bass provided by Mike Duda who is a killer bass player. It still has a
very killer chorus kind of like Wild Child but not as heavy. Still a great song
and shows me personally a very melodic side I don’t think I have ever felt like
I have heard from the band.
3.Shotgun- I really like the finger picking in the beginning
it reminds me a lot of 95 Nasty which is one of my favorite WASP songs of all
time and I think this is my favorite tune on the album. It has that total rock
n roll feel that albums like Inside The Electric Circus focused so hard on. I
love Blackies voice on this track too It is just still so damn catchy. The best
song yet by far.
4.Miss You- This is a 100% unapologetic ballad, no way
around it. It is in a way very cardboard and predictable yet still pretty
powerful. It is an odd kind of stop in the album because it is the least
powerful song here but it isn’t horrible it just doesn’t fit with a lot of the
songs on this album.
5.Fallen Under- As it starts very slow and atmospheric, I
really do like the synths that accommodate the backround and it feels very full
as it builds with Blackie preaching to “save me” and it is pretty strong and I love
the mid-paced chorus it is just so damn powerful. The whole song has a very building
feel to it and always pays off to a total fist pumping chorus. The solo at the
end is pretty decent as well.
6.Slaves Of The New World Order- This song is very melodic
as it begins once again and then it goes into full heavy metal glory and it
honestly could be one of the most well written songs that have from this band
since Crimson Idol. It has very good musicianship and Blackies lyrics are very
very well written as well. It is a song that begs for a live crowd as well.
This song also has my favorite solo as well.
The only thing is I would’ve that this would have been the ideal song to
end the album on but hey it’s on here so I can be damn happy about that.
7.Eyes Of My Maker- This song has a structure similar to
Fallen Under as it is very mid paced and it has a pretty good chorus but is
probably my least favorite song because it sounds a bit too much like one of my
favorites on the album and follows one of I think the best written WASP songs
to date. Blackie still has some excellent lyrics here however.
8.Hero Of The World- This song starts with song very
beautiful acoustics with the echoing drums in the back and really builds to the
actual meat in the song but revisits the acoustics once again and then into a
pretty decent solo. It’s a pretty good song it has some good atmosphere.
9.Golgotha- And finally we have the title track, and I must
say it is pretty epic to say the least. I love the build with Blackie really
belting it out. Some people think that Blackie Lawless singing how he needs
Jesus isn’t metal but It works great and makes for a very catchy song I think
would be a great song for a live audience. Even though is very mid paced for a
closer, I feel it gets the atmosphere and catch so good that is worth the trip.
A great closer to a pretty good album.
Overall, I give this album a solid 8 out of 10. Even though
some of my favorite members and biggest influences are no longer with the band,
Blackie manages to write some great very powerful songs that show how WASP are
no LA glam band but are and always have been a straight Heavy Metal band. Even
though the production had sort of the same problem as Iron Maidens Book Of
Souls and the solos didn’t shock me as much, the songs still drag me in because
they are fresh to me and not super drawn out which is why this is a pretty good
listen for any WASP fan. Long live W.A.S.P \m/
