1984-1985 W.A.S.P. first tour
When W.A.S.P. first appeared on the scene they had a huge impact and became famous worldwide for their energy and shocking image. It was clear they were hungry to be noticed but what in my opinion set them apart is that the music really matched the image and was just as memorable and energetic as the show. I honestly think their first album is yet to be beat in that genre of metal and it has been noted as an influence by a lot of current bands. Notably Children Of Bodom, who used to cover Hellion as the encore song on their early shows.
A typical setlist for this tour was made up of almost all the songs from the debut album with very little variation from show to show...
- On Your Knees
- The Flame
- Hellion
- L.O.V.E. Machine
- Sleeping (In The Fire)
- Tormentor
- School Daze
- The Torture Never Stops
- I Wanna Be Somebody
- Animal (Fuck Like A Beast)
Chrises stagewear featured red and yellow flame designs over black leather. He also started using his trademark knee pads. The Yellow Star and Bloodspatter Star were the main guitars for the early shows but when Chris received his RR Customs from Jackson they immediately started to get most of the attention. The setlist sometimes included a guitar solo spot for Chris or Randy. Blackie did his infamous tormentor rack scene and drank fake blood out of a skull. Throwing raw meat to the audience was also one of his famous gimmicks.
1985-1986 W.A.S.P. Last Command tour
Only a year after they made a huge impact with an outrageous evil image, W.A.S.P chose to become a bit more commercial for the second album. While the material was still good, the intensity wasn't there anymore. Blackie went with a "Cherokee Indian from hell" style outfit and the Blind In Texas video took the band backwards in time to the wild wild west. That move somehow made them look far less dangerous, and in fact, a bit comical.
The stage props were still cool though especially the huge speared heads of the band members. Chris made very little changes to his costume. The flames were gone and replaced with some red belts. Both Rhoads guitar were still used a lot as well as the Harley Star.
The setlist was really short and again not varied much with the exception of Ballcrusher being sometimes played during the later dates. Personally I think Widow Maker was the highlight song and the only one that proved some of the intensity from the first tour was still there...
- On Your Knees
- Fistful Of Diamonds
- Sex Drive
- Widow Maker
- Wild Child
- L.O.V.E. Machine
- I Wanna Be Somebody
- Blind In Texas
1986-1987 W.A.S.P. Electric Circus tour
Mid 80s metal shows were all about colors and lights. Animal prints were also considered to be cool back then. You can see from Chris' outfits how over time black slowly became the only accepted color for metalheads and soon every band started to look alike. That's a shame.
When Randy Piper left W.A.S.P. the band lost a great tasteful guitarist and it really hurt them. Chris still played some amazing solos but there was no contrast and Blackie didn't really even care to try and play the riffs properly live. But Johnny Rod brought a lot of energy and the shows from this tour seem really great. The lights were big and bright and the outfits boldly colored. Chris had a red animal print costume as well as one similar but in white. On later half of the tour he went for a more regular metalhead look with leather pants and jean jacket full of patches. RR0849 was used a lot, together with the Harley and Budweiser Stars.
The setlist was usually considerably longer than on the Last Command tour and included a balanced share of tracks from the 3 albums the band had at the time. They also started to vary song choices and order more. Occasionally they had solo spots for guitar and drums.
- Inside The Electric Circus
- I Don't Need No Doctor
- L.O.V.E. Machine
- Wild Child
- 9.5.-N.A.S.T.Y.
- Widow Maker
- Sleeping (In The Fire)
- Sex Drive
- I Wanna Be Somebody
- Animal (Fuck Like A Beast)
- Shoot From The Hip
- Blind In Texas
August 22 1987 Donington Monsters Of Rock Festival
This infamous gig saw Blackie trying to go back to the psycho drama of the first tour with the rack making a comeback. Unfortunately a huge outdoor festival simply just wasn't the right place. The band got hit by a bottle of piss and proceeded to thrash the stage. RR0849 was used for the whole set and thus also got to be a part of the gear massacre that took place. Amazingly it survived without any serious damage although there's video footage showing how Chris throws it hard on the floor and the guitar slides forward towards the crowd. Such a big event naturally attacts a lot of cameras so it's no wonder I've been able to find lots of pics from the show. Some of the best shots are shown below.
- On Your Knees
- L.O.V.E. Machine
- Wild Child
- Animal (Fuck Like A Beast)
- I Wanna Be Somebody
- Harder Faster
- Blind In Texas
1989 W.A.S.P. Headless Children tour
In 1989 W.A.S.P. came back strong. The Headless Children album featured a high standard musicianship with way more advanced arrangements than in the past, and a hard hitting metal attitude. Everything was more serious but in a good way. It showed that a band can transform to anything at any time if they do it with conviction. Sadly this great phase was short lived. Playing live, the band were in their prime with Chris playing his most focused performances ever. There were a lot of guitar solos and they were all interesting. RR0849 was the main weapon of choice and was sometimes used for the entire set. The Bloodspatter, Yellow and Budweiser Stars made random appearances and the Headless Explorer was also seen on the later dates.
The stage looked really cool with the drums on a big riser that Chris often jumped on. The setlist focused heavily on the new album but included the most important hits from the past. Sadly Maneater was never played as it would have kicked some major ass live. Mean Man was a personal favorite of mine and Chris really got to show his skills on it. 9.5.-N.A.S.T.Y. was often included in the set during the first half of the tour.
- The Heretic (The Lost Child) - The Real Me - L.O.V.E. Machine - Wild Child - The Headless Children - Neutron Bomber - Forever Free - Thunderhead - I Don't Need No Doctor - I Wanna Be Somebody - Animal (Fuck Like A Beast) - Mean Man - Blind In Texas
September 6 1991 Psycho Squad at The Stone, San Francisco
This is the only live picture I have of the original Psycho Squad. Chris formed the band after leaving W.A.S.P. in 1990. They recorded a demo tape 'Born, Work, Die!' which had four songs on it. Another two songs were recorded but not released. Interestingly two track titles were later used on W.A.S.P. albums with an altered version of the title track and a Let It Roar. The production of the demo is really raw but there are some cool riffs on it and wild solo guitar work from Chris.
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