W.A.S.P.
Dominator

THE REVIEW

You wanted it, you got it.

Yes, let's admit it without any hesitation, the recording career of WASP after "The Crimson Idol" has been rather inconsistent, and if listening to less successful episodes of the Los Angeles combo like the controversial "Kill, Fuck, Die," "Still Not Black Enough," or even the fairly decent double concept album "The Neon God," your most recurrent question has always been "I want my dear old WASP back, the dirty, honest, and damn heavy ones," well, I can easily assert that with their new album titled "Dominator," your prayers have, for once, been answered.

A recording effort, indeed, announced multiple times, as well as postponed several times in recent months, becoming for some a new "Chinese Democracy" case, finally sees the light at the end of an exhausting tour that even touched Italy, the album of artistic rebirth of the combo led by the versatile Blackie Lawless, marking a return to origins, to that heavy rock sound as we mentioned earlier, frontal and, why not, catchy, which somehow distinguished the band’s early recording steps, making this work embody all the salient features of a modern classic of our immense discography. Indeed, with thongs and chainsaws and the ironic and irreverent texts of the past definitively set aside, they dive once again into an analysis, I dare say almost extremist and sharp, of American culture, focusing their particular interest on the purely warmongering aspect of the administration of their belligerent president, well highlighted, besides by the album title, also by the artwork cover, which is very illustrative, bringing to light critiques and judgments that sometimes, to be honest, may seem arguable but are always provocative.

But these are W.A.S.P., the true and inimitable W.A.S.P., and their leader, with a few extra pounds, but with an experience and cunning in songwriting that I believe has few equals, shows on several occasions that he has regained his primal artistic verve, delighting us once again with a handful of melodic compositions, yet violent at the same time, just like in the glorious tradition of W.A.S.P. A real concentrate of genuine hard rock branded by the unmistakable nasal voice of the deus ex machina of the U.S. combo, well supported by the sharp guitar of the rediscovered guitar player Doug Blair, as well as by the rhythmic solidity of the two Mikes, Duda on bass and Dupke on drums.

An intense album filled with poignant moments that always keep the listener’s attention high, whether they are caressed into the whirlwind of infinite sensations/emotions generated by splendid compositions like the opening "Mercy", a song whose main riff and refrain very closely resemble the legendary "Wild Child", just listen to it, and you'll see what I mean, or the provocative "The Burnin Man", a genuine metal shot destined to become a possible live hit soon, or cradled on the dreamy melodies of the passionate "Heaven's Hung in Black", that is seven minutes of pure auditory ecstasy, divided between soft guitar arpeggios and delicate keyboard layers, and what about the guitar slashes surrounding the alluring "Teacher" or the heavy 'n' roll of "Deal with the Devil" that always recalls the fantastic "Blind in Texas"?

Yes, sir, these are the real W.A.S.P., our W.A.S.P. the ones we have learned to love with passion and eagerness, those who marked the youth and carefree times of those no longer young, and who have returned to reaffirm their leadership once again in the field of pure heavy metal, after all what more could you ask for?