W.A.S.P. had earned themselves a late afternoon spot on the True Metal Stage, playing from 18:15 to 19:15 in front of a (once more, it’s Wacken after all) huge crowd.

It would seem that the band wasn’t going to hold anything back, at least when it came to the setlist, and I was surprised to hear such a classic track as L.O.V.E. Machine really early on in the set. I would have figured that for an encore or somewhere around there, at least.
Another surprise came as they, in spite of their short playing time, even made room for a power ballad in the form of The Idol, where I would have thought they would go for speedy, raw rock n’ roll all the way. It proved a very welcome change of pace however, and one of the better parts of the show.
The end of the show was no surprise to anyone however, as Blackie Lawless and his present crew ripped out their flagship of a song, I Wanna Be Somebody. In this song Blackie also used a long time on getting the audience to chant along to the chorus, utilizing the old side-against-side trick to spark some further flames.

Still, even with this positive episode well played out, I still sit back with the feeling that this is one show which is rapidly becoming outdated. Admittedly, I have never been the world’s biggest W.A.S.P. fan, but honestly, Blackie does no longer need an eyeliner to have deep, black bags under his eyes, and he may have grown a pair of man-boobs over the years, I don’t know, but tying your t-shirt up under the chest doesn’t even look smart on the teenage girls who are the actual target group for such attire.
So when all is said and done, it was just one more show for the road.

Setlist (incomplete):

L.O.V.E. Machine
Wild Child
The Idol
I Wanna Be Somebody