W.A.S.P.
USA, 1982–now
Los Angeles metal band led by Blackie Lawless, formed in 1982. Their stage act used heavy theatrical props and shock imagery in the manner of Alice Cooper and Kiss.
MusicRoots documents 5 artists who influenced W.A.S.P. and 0 artists W.A.S.P. influenced in turn. Every connection cites a published source.
Who influenced W.A.S.P.?
- Alice Cooper — Blackie Lawless's blood-and-horror stagecraft descends straight from Alice Cooper — the shock-rock theatre W.A.S.P. pushed to a gorier extreme.
- Kiss — Lawless closely imitated Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley on stage — Kiss's costumed spectacle was a direct model for W.A.S.P.
- New York Dolls — Lawless briefly played guitar in the New York Dolls in 1975 after Johnny Thunders left — the glam-punk provocation feeding W.A.S.P.'s shock aesthetic.
- AC/DC — AC/DC's high-voltage hard rock was among the sonic foundations Lawless named under W.A.S.P.'s theatrics.
- Black Sabbath — Black Sabbath's heavy riffing was part of the metal bedrock beneath W.A.S.P.'s horror show.