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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Never Say Die, December 28, 2005
First thing's first, if you are unaware that this is a sequel to WASP's "Neon God Part 1: The Rise," I strongly suggest you pick that one up before picking this one up as you might be a little bit lost in terms of the story.
The Neon God series by WASP is about a boy named Jessie who is abused and orphaned by his mother. The boy eventually discovers a talent to read minds. And, as a result of that talent, he gathers an almost religious following who view him as a holy creature - a dark messiah. He is "The Neon God."
In this record, you find out the fate of Jessie and what his power will ultimately bring him to. Since part 1 was titled "The Rise" and part 2 is titled "The Demise," you can pretty much determine what each disc is about story wise.
There are differences between part 1 and part 2. While part 1 was very story driven and only a handful of songs stand out as exceptionally catchy or radio friendly, part 2 is entirely comprised of catchy metal songs that could be considered anthems at times. For example, track 1 off part 2 is titled "Never Say Die" and is very catchy and very easy to get caught by. And, Blackie Lawless delivers some really interesting and different screams than we're used to hearing from him. In fact, a few times towards the end of the song one might wonder if the high pitched sound is the sound of a guitar or Blackie screaming at the top of his lungs. It's really high energy rock 'n' roll. I love it!
The final track of the opus is called "The Last Redemption" and it is nearly 14 minutes in length! This song is a epic culminating the story of Jessie with flashbacks to songs off of part 1 thrown in to make the effect that much stronger. During this marathon, Jessie battles Judah in a verbal confrontation about the so called "God of Love." It's quite deep and powerful yet melodic and musically strong.
I fully enjoyed both albums. To be fair, I'm not sure playing them in a car with those who are not expecting this opus of a concept album might confuse the hell out of them. But, if you tell them the story to catch them up, I'm sure they will appreciate the musicianship applied to these songs and the wonderful lyrics that help tell this great story.
Is this a "power metal" set as many concept albums are? The answer, quite frankly, is no. While power metal concepts can be very cool, WASP accomplishes the story telling in a far more straight forward and take no prisoners style. Simply put, it's great music by WASP as heard on their earlier albums with more intelligence put forward by the band than sex references. I dig both styles and simply put, I dig WASP and these records. Pick 'em up!
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
"Come off your cross and resurrect your God", May 5, 2005
FYI: If this CD popped up first on your search from "WASP Neon God," do a search for "W.A.S.P. Neon God" and you'll find the less expensive edition.
If you are not aware of The Neon God Part 1-The Rise, briefly, it is a concept of Blackie Lawless about a boy named Jesse Slane who suffers a horrific childhood, losing his father at a young age to be "raised" by a drug-addicted mother who eventually drops him off at a Catholic orphanage where he is confined to Asylum #9 and tortured and sexually abused by Sister Sadie. Once leaving the Asylum, the troubled youth encounters a magician named Judah who takes Jesse under his wing and teaches him to gain psychological power over others. The student soon becomes the master and Jesse gains the allegiance of a degenerate group of societal castoffs who elevate him to the level of Messiah. Part 2-The Demise takes up the story from there, but there is not much story left to tell. Jesse gains a religious mass following (like a televangelist) but, after a shocking encounter at one of his crusades, begins to question his role of prophet. He then learns that Judah is not going to let him just walk away. The story in Part 1 takes up 10 pages of text, the story in Part 2 takes up just 3. It seems to me that Lawless either ran out of ideas or just wanted to focus more on the music with this album.
Musically and lyrically, Part 1 and 2 are very similar (think more brain-driven metal like Headless Children rather than carnal, groin-driven metal on the W.A.S.P. debut). In fact, I do not think this album needed to be in two parts as Part 2 uses a lot of riffs from Part 1 and seems more like an extension than a different chapter. Although Part 2 eliminates the fillers that spread throughout Part 1 (Part 2 is 10 minutes shorter), I don't like this album quite as well musically or lyrically, but they are very close. Part 2 is more repetitive and takes too much from Part 1, but there are some gems here.
Five of the first six tracks are 5-star material. "Never Say Die" absolutely kicks. Lawless powerful screaming vocals are amazing (as usual). The chorus is very repetitive but it kicks so much fanny that energy of the track over powers the repetitiveness. "The Resurrector" just flies and incorporates the incredible "I don't believe in your God of love" chorus found on Part 1. The organ opening of "The Demise" is very powerful. It really makes the song. "Clockwork Mary" during which Jesse confronts his mother has a dark beauty. I really like the melody in this track. Lawless puts a lot of emotion in the tortured verses. "Tear Down the Walls" does not stand out like the other tracks so far. Despite the flying drums, it just rocks for rock's sake with no clear direction. The use of organ in this track, unlike in "The Demise," is just noisy. "Come Back to Black" really rocks at the verses. It has an addictive beat. The flaw in this track though is the very repetitive chorus but, like "Never Say Die," its repetition can be forgiven because the track flat out kicks. "All My Life" is a slow, emotional number with somber keyboards at the end. "Destinies to Come" is just ho hum.
All the tracks range from 2:34 to 4:39 until the final epic 13:40 "The Last Redemption." Here many riffs and verses from tracks off Part 1 are repeated with different lyrics. Things go full circle when Jesse repeats "No don't believe in your God of love" [He used this line on Sister Sadie in Part 1 but, in this case, he means himself as the Neon God; the false prophet]. In "The Last Redemption," Jesse addresses Judah, his congregation, God, and the world. The confrontation between Jesse and Judah on this track is the only dialog part on both albums that actually works, with Lawless not just singing the whole thing straight, but changing the vocals to indicate two people. It sounds like an disagreement set to music. This track is a little overdone but, considering the theme of the album, it is appropriate to end in a bang, I guess.
I really like the musical direction Lawless takes with the two CDs in this Neon God concept. I gave neither CD 5-stars because, with Part 1, there are too many fillers and, with Part 2, too much of the album is devoted to one long track. If the best of both albums (well, what I consider to be the best) were put on one CD, it would be a 5-star masterpiece. If you like metal with substance and, especially, if you liked Headless Children, get both CDs. The music is what matters, so I will not knock the lack of originality of the concept. Without giving away the ending (if there was one), it is not earth shattering. The organized religion concept seems to be overused to the point of losing its effectiveness. I think Lawless' note at the end of the story about the purpose of the concept is a little presumptuous. Really, it's just a metal album. Oh well, rock on!
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A VERY IMPRESSIVE HELLRIDE OF METALLIC BLISS!, October 20, 2004
Say what you will about Blackie Lawless, but this man is one of the best Rock Artists to ever record music. Only Bruce Dickinson ranks higher on my list of Kick-Ass Metal Heads! "Demise" is the conclusion of a two CD story about the dangers of Religios fanaticism and the corruption of "absolute power" over others. You have to be a bit intelligent, to understand all of the lyrics, but the music will put other bands of the day to shame. NOBODY can ROCK harder than W.A.S.P.!!! So support this band by purchasing your own legitamite copy of "DEMISE" I'm sure BLACKIE will appreciate it!!! Rock For Life, or just drop dead today! ROCK LIVES IN ALL OF YOU!
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