W.A.S.P. leader, Blackie Lawless, has issued the following statement:
"I feel the time has come to address what has become an ongoing situation here in Europe for the "40th Anniversary World Tour". It has become obvious to many of you that either watching the shows live or on YouTube that there is something physically wrong with me. There is. I've done my best to hide it, but there are times during many of the shows the pain is overwhelming, and it then becomes impossible to disguise. I come from a sports background that while growing up we lived with mantra's like, "no pain, no gain", or "don't explain and don't complain". Right or wrong the last one here is what I try to live by. As boys we're told if you get hurt to "spit on it, and rub some dirt on it”, and just keep going. Most of the time we can. But, there are times, regardless of our desires, we simply cannot. I'm in the middle of one of those right now and I'm going to be as transparent as I can be to let you inside, and to let you know why you are seeing me at less than 100% in these shows. In addition to the physical pain there is also the personal pain and aggravation of knowing I'm giving you the fans less than 100% of all I'm capable of giving. For a performer like me this is extremely hard to do and also to admit to myself.
For about the last 3 weeks I've been doing these European shows with a herniated disc in my lower back. For those out there thinking this is somehow age related, I assure it is not. It's been an ongoing situation stemming from when I broke my leg 10 years ago. I won't go into detail but I had a Doctor here in Europe do what should have been a simple procedure on me and he screwed me up really, really badly. Besides you all see me crawling up and down on Elvis all night and that something few people can do at any age. An MRI done at a hospital in Berlin 2 weeks ago confirmed this disc problem. Not being a doctor I'll try to explain the best I can. When a disc becomes herniated it pushes out a jelly like substance against its outer ring. Then the wear and tear against that outer ring develops severe nerve pain as it begins to put pressure on the Spinal Cord. This creates mechanical compression of the nerves and releases chemical irritants that then lead to severe nerve inflammation. The MRI clearly has shown that the little holes that the nerve roots that attach to my Spinal Cord are extremely inflamed. Effectively the root nerves at the Spinal Cord are being choked and that leads to even greater inflammation that then moves from the Spinal Cord and can eventually go all the way down the leg and reach into the foot, causing numbness, weakness, and honestly... pain you cannot imagine. These doctors have all told me that nerve pain is the most severe of all pain. I am now a believer.
Rest is one of the most common prescription's for injuries like this. But, this tour has suffered postponement after postponement. Never again will I have a "40th Anniversary Tour". I told the Doctors, the Band and the Crew, if I can stand, then I'm going out there! Additionally I knew the fans, would never be able to understand why I just walked away in the middle of a tour like this. So now the time has come to tell you what these Doctors, my Band and my Crew have done to get me ready EVERY NIGHT to finish this tour. There have been several nights on this tour after the shows I could not walk again until the next day.
After the MRI was completed it was determined I would need a series of Spinal Injections called "Epidurals". These are complicated injections that require the patient be in either a hospital or surgical center to receive them. The reason for that is if any of the injections go directly next to the Spinal Cord the patient can be paralyzed. It's an extremely tricky procedure. I promise you every time you're lying on that table you look around the room and see all that surgical equipment those thoughts run through your head. There's no way to avoid it. I received 2 Epidurals on the first day and then traveled to Tampere, Finland to do the next show. I felt better than I'd felt in weeks and did the whole show, running around and climbing on Elvis and basically everything I do during the show… and it felt WONDERFUL!
But, about an hour after the show I could not walk. So the next day we speak to the Doctors in Berlin and apparently I had undone most of the progress the first 2 Epidurals had done. I was told to take it easy during the show and I thought I did… but apparently not enough. I was then given an oral steroid that was strong enough to get me through the show in Helsinki. But 5AM the next morning I was back on a plane to Berlin, got 3 Epidurals at 11AM and was back on a plane headed for Sweden at 3 PM.
These Epidurals are painful in themselves because when the medicine is injected it puts pressure in and around the Spinal Cord. When we were there on Saturday the pain was horrific and the nurse looked at the table I was on and it was covered in my sweat. The injections take about 20 minutes and it hurts badly the entire time. This nurse there saw my whole body was shaking and while the Doctor was doing the injections she reached over and started gently rubbing and caressing my left calf. I could not see her face but she could see the pain I was in and little she could do for me to stop it. I’m a big man, but I swear that I wanted to cry because here was a woman who had sworn an oath to help people anyway she can. It hurt so damn bad but just her touch was telling me she knew what was happening to me and that she was there for me. It was like an eternity of absolute hell and tenderness all at the same time. I will never forget her and that moment for the rest of my life.
For the Band and Crew, you all don't see what great lengths these guys have gone through to get me and this show ready every single night. I see them all giving 110% trying to pick up the slack and there are times during the show I'll look around at all of them and I'll lower my head knowing what they are going through and pushing themselves to "make it happen"!
We are absolutely committed to finishing this European Tour. I'm scheduled for 3 more Epidurals in Berlin in 2 weeks.
But there have also been logistical nightmares along the way that are direct results of the pandemic that still plague us and every other Band trying to tour in Europe. Those will be addressed in the coming days.
So now if I haven't seemed to be quite myself on stage hopefully you'll better understand. I've been given every assurance by our Doctors here in Europe and in L. A. that I will be fine for the upcoming U.S. Tour. I'm a warrior and I pride myself as such. - B. L."
W.A.S.P. recently announced The 40th Never Stops World Tour 2023. Produced by Live Nation, the 33-city run kicks off on Friday, August 4th in San Luis Abispo, CA, making stops across North America in Vancouver, BC, Omaha, NE, New York, NY, Memphis, TN and more before wrapping up on Saturday, September 16 at the Hollywood Palladium in Los Angeles, CA. Special guest Armored Saint will join the band across all dates of the tour.
The 2023 North American tour comes following the band's first US tour in 10 years wrapping up in 2022, ending with 18 sold-out shows. The tour was selected by Metal Edge as one of the 10 Best Hard Rock and Metal Tours of 2022 and one of the 22 Memorable Rock Tours of 2022 by Ultimate Classic Rock. BraveWords writers listed the tour as the Top Concert of 2022 and selected by the Detroit radio station WRIF as one of the Top Concerts of 2022.
W.A.S.P. is currently playing off their massive European leg of the 2022 40th Anniversary World Tour, with upcoming shows taking place in Spain, Belgium, The Netherlands, Denmark, Sweden, Germany and more before wrapping on May 18 in Sofia, Bulgaria at Universidada Sports Hall.
Tickets at WASPnation.com. Blackie Lawless VIP meet and greet tickets will also be available at WASPnation.com.
Tour dates:
August
4 - San Luis Obispo, CA - Fremont Theatre *
5 - Wheatland, CA - Hard Rock Live Sacramento
7 - Portland, OR - Roseland Theater
8 - Vancouver, BC - Vogue Theatre *
10 - Seattle, WA - Moore Theatre
11 - Spokane, WA - The Podium
12 - Garden City, ID - Revolution Concert House and Event Center
13 - Salt Lake City, UT - The Depot
15 - Omaha, NE - Steelhouse Omaha
16 - Minneapolis, MN - The Fillmore Minneapolis presented by Affinity Plus
17 - Moline, IL - The Rust Belt *
18 - Eau Claire, WI - RCU Theater *
19 - Clive, IA - Horizon Events Center *
20 - Gary, IN - Hard Rock Live Northern Indiana
22 - Grand Rapids, MI - GLC Live @ 20 Monroe
23 - Indianapolis, IN - Egyptian Room @ Old National Centre
24 - Wheeling, WV - Capitol Theatre *
25 - Stroudsburg, PA - Sherman Theater *
26 - New York, NY - Hammerstein Ballroom
27 - Hampton, NH - Hampton Beach Casino Ballroom
29 - Wallingford, CT - The Dome At Oakdale Theatre
30 - Philadelphia, PA - The Fillmore Philadelphia
31 - Warren, OH - Packard Music Hall *
September
1 - Toronto, ON - Danforth Music Hall
3 - Montreal, QC - Mtelus
5 - Cincinnati, OH - The Andrew J Brady Music Center
7 - Memphis, TN - The Soundstage at Graceland
8 - Little Rock, AR - The Hall
9 - Dallas, TX - South Side Ballroom
10 - Oklahoma City, OK - The Criterion
13 - Tucson, AZ - Rialto Theatre *
14 - San Diego, CA - House of Blues
16 - Los Angeles, CA - Hollywood Palladium
* not a Live Nation Date
Few bands in the history of rock n' roll have ever incited the love, the hate, the raw emotional effect this band has had on the world. From the very beginning, in the small venues of Los Angeles California, and later to the numerous countries worldwide that banned these Winged Assassins from performing live, the band’s unique style of shock and rock caused religious organizations, Local City Councils, Parliaments, and the Washington D.C. Senate to hold hearings in an effort to bar this group from selling records and trashing stages everywhere they played.
The band’s founding member, frontman Blackie Lawless, has led the group as its lead vocalist and primary songwriter since its beginning. His unique brand of visual, social and political comment took the group to worldwide heights and sold millions of records alongside a legacy of sold out shows across the globe for 4 decades.
Joined by bassist Mike Duda and guitarist Doug Blair, whose tenures in the band span 26 and 18 years respectively, along with drummer extraordinaire Aquiles Priester, will take the Band and the Fans back to where it all started. Complete with the stage show extravaganza that many fans never saw live.
Witness live the Winged Assassins spectacle of "Shock And Roll" as they take you back… back to the beginning!
(Photo - Jay Gilbert)
