The first thing that strikes you in listening to W.A.S.P.’s 14th studio album is how strong Blackie Lawless’ voice is after 27 years. The only remaining original member, Blackie still incites on Babylon with thought-provoking lyrical content and he’s got himself a cadre of young gunslingers who give the band the kick in the ass that it needed. Babylon sounds fresh, energetic, and, at the same time, “classic.”
Lyrically, Blackie’s obsession-of-the-moment is Biblical: The Book Of Revelations, to be exact, and how it relates to his sense of self. The sixth chapter of Revelations, for instance, about the four horsemen of the apocalypse, serves as the basis of “Babylon’s Burning.” Infused with that imagery, it serves as the debut video.
With the instantly-likeable single “Crazy,” two wisely-chosen kick-ass covers in Deep Purple’s “Burn” and Chuck Berry’s “Promised Land,” and the solid musicianship—tight!—of newbies Doug Blair (guitar), Mike Duda (bass) and Mike Dupke (drums), Babylon is the best damn thing Blackie’s done since 1992’s The Crimson Idol and that’s saying something!
In A Word: Revitalized
