Customer Reviews

Inside in the Electric Circus (Dig)

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

A lot of people thought W.A.S.P. was going soft with this album, but they were mistaken. One listen to 'Shoot from the Hip' was all you had to hear that Blackie was still on a rockin' rollin' rampage of sex, violence, and debauchery.

At the time this album was released, the PMRC was in it's full fury. Tipper Gore had targeted W.A.S.P. as one of the worst bands ever. Blackie had to bow a little and remove the periods in between the letters of "WASP" and this is the only album where this happens. With the next album "Live... in the Raw" the dots were back as drops of blood and have been there ever since. Also on this album Johny Rod from King Kobra came in to assume bass duty as Blackie went to the guitar for the first time on a W.A.S.P. album. Randy Piper, an original member, was now gone.

The opening is a bit corny, but you gotta realize that Blackie is the ringleader and afterall, someone needs to welcome you inside the madness, so it might as well be him.

The opening track is the title track and it's awesome. One of the best opening guitar riffs W.A.S.P. ever did. The song is full of energy, rampant, and exciting. The next tune, the cover of "I don't need no doctor" is simply awesome. '95 Nasty' should have been a hit, but it's still played live to this day.

Not everyone liked 'Mantronic', but I liked it. A bionic man with balls of steel is always a great idea for a tune. "King of Sodom and Gommarah", "Sweet Cheetah", and the closer "The Rock Rolls on" are also standouts.

This is a great album.

I don't get the people who're bitching tht Blackie, Chris and the boys sold out with this. When you're not a musician, you just do not understand the concept of 'maturity' and every musician at one point or another wants to be known as mature in their offering.

The opening track is cool with the calliope and blackie's voice enticing you to come inside the Electric Circus to see the animals is too cool. Then track two, a cover of the Humble Pie song, "I Don't Need No Doctor" is a rippin' tune with great guitar work. In fact this rendition inspired me to try and learn it and I eventually discovered who were Humbel Pie.

The next two songs that send me are 'Mantronic' - where Mr. Lawless sings "I got balls made of steel that you wouldn't believe!" and then the Biblical 'King of Sodom' - "I want the flesh, gotta have it, I love it to death!". Both of those songs are the type that urged me to practice guitar. My first rock song I learned was another Blackie Lawless tune called "Wild Child" and it too rocks out!

If you like hard driving, heavy metal with a bit of a theatrical flair in teh vein of Alice Cooper and a forerunner of Marilyn Manson, then Black Lawless, Chris Holmes & Randy Piper will be a band you want to listen to. The musicianship is there just shut your hole, open your ears and crank the volume way up!

This album is another classic Wasp album. If you liked the previous 2 you will like this too. The way they are playing is the same -0> heavy metal (old school 80s) it reminds me a little Judas priest bad more heavy and not too high sound on vocals. Personally i believe that Wasp are one of the very best metal groups of that time.

I'm a fan but I wouldn't make this the first purchase if you want to get some WASP. Not horrible but unless you're a hardcore metal fan trying to expand your collection I would skip.

W.A.S.P has to be one of the top 5 bands of all time, hands down.... This band is fun, exciting, and great story tellers. Electric circus is one of the top 3 of their entire catalog. I can listen to hit over and over and not get tired of it.

I heard a great WASP story back in the 80s: WASP had rented out a soundstage for 3 weeks; Fortress Studios in Hollywood, they had their whole backline set up, the full stage set. Everything was set up perfectly; guitars on stands, mics, drums, lights, I mean mirror ball, the whole 9. WASP came and went at all hours of the day and night, always had sunglasses on..day and night. Lots of women, tons of vodka, drugs, they even had a jacuzzi set up. Did not touch their instruments once. Not to tune, not just to pick up and fool around for a second and put it down....nothing. So here we are with this long winded pile of pie holes, really this album is a pile of crap. It's good crap mind you, but crap nonetheless. Blackie actually spending some time getting some good sounds, his voice sounds better than ever, but also sounding tired and frustrated. Somehow grafting the same exact guitar solo onto every song. Desparately writing for the radio ("Restless Gypsy"-Kenny Loggins' "Danger Zone"). "King Of Sodom" rules, as does "Easy Livin'", but "Mantronic" reveals an artist at the end of his rope, he can't fool himself. Gotta love the cover.

W.A.S.P. made a huge splash on the 80's metal scene with "Animal (F*** Like a Beast)". It was such a huge splash that it drew the attention of congress and Tipper Gore specifically who wanted to censor music with her PMRC group. But W.A.S.P. was more than that one tune, and if you give "Inside the Electric Circus" a spin you will find a very underrated metal band at the top of their game.

The titular opening tune is a fantastic slice of hair metal. You have the screaming guitars, Blackie's vocals at times screech right along with the guitar, but also have a great gutteral growl that fits the song pefectly. The cover of "I Don't Need no Doctor" is fun, but I really dig the cover of Uriah Heep's "Easy Livin'" found later in the disk. "95 Nasty" is another stand out track, as is "Shoot from the Hip", just in case you thought W.A.S.P. toned down their raunch-rock for the PMRC, give that tune a listed.

I think "Inside the Electric Circus" is also W.A.S.P.'s most accessible album to new listeners. They have really found their groove with this album. If you are interested in the band, but don't own any of their disks, then this is the one to start with.