VERSUS: W.A.S.P. vs. Metal Health

Welcome to Versus. The series where we look at two albums in metal history, compare them, and see which one was the better record.

In this edition of Versus, we are diving into the 80's again with a matchup of classic heavy metal acts. One band would become famous from the band's debut album, along with riding the controversy they faced with the Parents Music Resource Center (P.M.R.C.) for one of their songs and artwork. The other, would break huge ground in heavy metal history and would create one of the most recognizable songs of the decade. Grab some Aqua Net and your Buzzsaw codpiece in this matchup I'm calling "The Raw Against The Polished".

In this corner, we have W.A.S.P. with the band's 1984 self-titled debut album. The band would draw the ire of the P.M.R.C. with the band's song "Animal (Fuck Like A Beast)" and it's infamous cover. Though the song did not appear on the album, the band's debut would be considered a underrated heavy metal classic of the 1980's. Pushing more aggression and sleaze in some of the lyrical themes, W.A.S.P. would make an impact and a name for themselves in the burgeoning 80's hair metal/hard rock scene. Let's look back at the band's debut record and see what they bring to the table in this matchup.

The album opens with the album's lead single "I Wanna Be Somebody". With opening snare drum strikes of Randy Piper, the main riff and high vocals of Blackie Lawless start the song off. The chugging and ringing guitars of Chris Holmes & Tony Richards instantly make you headbang along during the chorus. The song is catchy, channeling that anthemic feel in the vocals and commanding presence of the riff. Amplified into the bridge, the song builds the intensity of the guitar solo. Ramped up with building drums and Lawless' forceful shouting vocals as the song comes to a close with a final chorus. Next is "L.O.V.E. Machine", with its building and ringing guitars in the opening moments. Lawless' bass leads prominently with the underlying drumming of Piper, while the guitars ring and hang in the ether of the mix. I love the drum/guitar strike combos during the singing of the initials in the chorus. Definitely has that radio-single feel. It has a nice groove with the drums, heading into the chorus at points. Lawless' vocals are clean and drenched in reverb, and has great harmonies. Another wailing guitar solo shows that even with not a lot of flare in soloing, like fretboard hopping, tapping or bends, but fits the theme and motif. "The Flame" opens with classic hair metal style guitar run. With a upbeat, partying feel to the song, which was the prime of the 80's of excess, sleaze, and good times. Holmes & Richards deliver a one-two punch in the solos near the closing of the song, transitioning into building drums and vocal harmonies.

"B.A.D." has a bluesy, gritty guitar riff that kind of reminds me of the opening to Beavis & Butthead. The driving drums of Piper is front and center in the mix, and the charging piece of the track. Lawless belts to the rafters throughout, especially during the chorus, as he shouts the song's title and his awesome scream coming out of it. The galloping guitars during the chorus and pounding drum strikes, is also fist-pump inducing with a call-and-response feel to the delivery. After the opening Pledge of Allegiance, "School Daze" starts off with a break the door down opening riff and drums. Piper is again front and center in the mix, leading in his powerful, reverb-heavy drum strikes. Another catchy chorus and another earworm riff by Holmes & Richards. I get Alice Cooper vibes on the song with the lyrics, vocal delivery and guitar hook. "Hellion" has a punk-esque drum opening with ringing guitars. As the song builds anticipation with rising vocals. I was tapping my foot along to the drums as Lawless hits his high vocals on the chorus. I adore the guitar solo near the two and a half minute mark, which segues into another pretty fast and complex guitar solo.  

"Sleeping (in The Fire)" opens with a somber acoustic guitar. A more midtempo piece, which I like the slower, atmospheric vibe. Lawless does belt his vocals in the second verse, but I like his voice in the calmer moments. Showcasing he can hit both ranges. We get a return to the aggressive sound with "On Your Knees". With a grimy, dominant edge in the lyrics, the song has that entrancing vocal delivery by Lawless. More noticeable on the chorus with his backing vocals, and the inflections in his vocals. Piper & the rest of the band keep the pulse of the song, adding to the forceful delivery of the vocals. Amidst the ominous sound effects in the opening, "Tormentor" delivers a strong, fun, and headbang along riff. Piper and Lawless share the verses section. With Piper's thundering drums and Lawless' vocals empowering thanks to the drums. The song has such intensity, as it heads into the chorus. Catchy sing-along chorus, and a driving drum groove, this is my favorite track off the album. The album closes with "The Torture Never Stops". I LOVE the opening guitar/drum combo, right off the bat. High-octane riff throughout and Lawless gives it his all on the song. Even showing off some impressive bass runs throughout. Holmes & Richards deliver another great riff combination and solo exchange, into nice dueling harmonies at some points. Closing out the album in a strong and heavy ending to a truly underrated 80's metal album.

Their opponents, are Quiet Riot with their third album, 1983's Metal Health. This was the first heavy metal album to reach number one on the Billboard 200 and some would say, launched the popularity of heavy metal in the 80's. Selling over ten million copies worldwide, it would be a groundbreaking record that launched countless record labels to find a band that could match the success of this record. How did this record compared to the aggressive tone of W.A.S.P.?

The album opens with the album's title track. With the ringing guitar strikes of Carlos Cavazo and the cymbal hits of drummer Frankie Banali, the album begins with an anthemic opening build. Rudy Sarzo's lead bass playing segues into the gritty vocals of Kevin DuBrow as the song hits its stride. With that iconic anthemic chorus and gurgling bass, the song has just an instant sing-along attitude to it. DuBrow belts out a strong, distorted vocal grit with every line, rivaling Lawless in this matchup of who adds more swagger and attitude to their vocals. Cavazo delivers a great guitar solo, with Cavazo providing a good counter-melody and Banali keeping the drive of the song alive. Sarzo gets a nice bass lead before the song leans into a call-and-response feeling chorus near the close. GREAT opening track.  

Next up is the band's most well-known song "Cum On Feel The Noize". A Slade cover, that iconic kick/snare combo and a DuBrow vocal intro, instantly made the song their own. The recognizable riff, catchy chorus, sing-along live energy, it's just a classic 80's song and understandable why it became such a hit and helped propel the album to number one. On "Don't Wanna Let You Go", the song opens with a almost yacht-rock style guitar, with Sarzo's bass really leading the track as it's high in the mix, with the drums close behind. The addition of synths, with little ringing sections, is a nice touch and adds something different. A nice cool-down track, so to speak, from the two strong opening tracks. "Slick Black Cadillac" is a return to the high-energy riff and up-tempo drumming. The layered vocals on the song's title sounds so well produced, and very heavenly. Almost has a car-commercial feel to its catchiness or music you'd hear in an 80's movie trailer. DuBrow & Cavazo as the vocal/guitar combo just gel well together.

"Love's A Bitch" opens with a quiet acoustic guitar, with DuBrow's vocals ringing in the background. DuBrow's vocals are low in the mix, compared to the bass and guitar, to let the music be the main feature. Before the song picks up, and the band and vocals become equal. Sarzo & Cavazo take turns letting each other peak through during the verses. With little bass pops and ringing, amplified guitar notes ringing in the space of the mix. Especially during the guitar solo by Cavazo does Sarzo have little moments to shine throughout that section. "Breathless" has that Steve Harris of Iron Maiden galloping bass feel. The dueling guitar harmonies along with it is a great choice, and adds to the build and high-energy. With its romantic and emotional lyrics, its an interesting music choice, creating a hybrid of a power ballad and an aggressive headbanging track with the bass. "Run For Cover" leads with drums and bass, with the guitars a little further back in the mix. I love DuBrow's vocals on the chorus. And the overall foot-tapping feel of Banali's drumming instantly had me air-drumming along. After the short instrumental track "Battle Axe", where Cavazo shreds like a madman for almost two minutes, is the song "Let's Go Crazy". Dripping in that cliché 80's guitar tone and reverb-heavy drums. The song just instantly has that party-vibe that hair metal was known for. DuBrow has that Bon Scott of AC/DC machismo in his delivery and lyrics. The fun-times vibe kicks in even further at the halfway mark. With the deep voice delivery of the song's title, and the music picking up with the guitars wailing, and the sped up nature of the closing moments. Album closer "Thunderbird" opens with piano and DuBrow with some low-mixed bass by Sarzo. Drums and electric guitars join the party as the song turns into a lighter-waving closing track. With energy and a performance similar to Queen in the instrumentation, vocals on the chorus and the production scale. It is a grand crescendo to one of the iconic albums in heavy metal history.

Listening to both of these albums, who stands as the winner of this matchup of two famous 80's bands? In my opinion, I think W.A.S.P.'s debut album as the winner of this matchup. I understand the importance of what Quiet Riot's Metal Health did for heavy metal to break into the mainstream, but I think W.A.S.P. had the better album. A lot of W.A.S.P.'s album was different enough and was heavy, while Quiet Riot's was a little more predictable or formulaic in its output. Don't get me wrong, the album did have some strong tracks on it like "Metal Health", "Run For Cover" and "Breathless". At the end of the day, it boils down to when a record is done, which one would you hit replay on, and for me W.A.S.P. delivered that feeling with their debut album, hence why they are the winner of this matchup.

W.A.S.P. would have a popular run in the 1980's. Following their debut, they would have a successful string of albums starting with their follow-up album with 1985's The Last Command. Following the departure of guitarist Chris Holmes, the band would break up with Lawless starting a solo career. That material would turn into the 1992 W.A.S.P. album The Crimson Idol. Holmes would rejoin the band in 1996 and would make his studio return to the band on the 1997 album Kill Fuck Die. Holmes would leave the band again in 2001 following the release of the Unholy Terror album and would not return to the band since. In a 2023 interview with The Metal Voice, the band is currently in the process of writing the next W.A.S.P. album, but no release date has been announced at time of writing.  

Following the success of Metal Health, the band would follow up that album one year later with Condition Critical. Though it received positive reviews from fans, the album didn't have the same success sales wise compared to their breakthrough album Metal Health. Following criticism from the press, DuBrow faced backlash from the fans regarding his thoughts on the criticism towards the band's material post-Metal Health. With many comments from fanbase and the press tagging DuBrow as being "egotistical" and "full of himself". With DuBrow comparing the band's success to The Beatles. DuBrow would be fired from the band in 1987 due to his antics and a push from the band's management and label. He would be replaced by Rough Cutt vocalist Paul Shortino. The band would go into a legal battle over the right's to the band's name, which DuBrow would win. The band would continue to make music until DuBrow passed away in 2007 due to a drug overdose. The band would also lose drummer Frankie Banali in 2020 due to pancreatic cancer. Jizzy Pearl is the current vocalist for the band, but no new music has been announced or on the horizon since the release of the band's last album, 2019's Hollywood Cowboys, at time of writing.

Do you agree with my decision? Who do you think should have won? Cast your vote on the poll below, leave your comments on our social media, and your suggestions who you think should step in the ring next. I’m Justin, your friendly neighborhood metalhead, for This Day in Metal and this has been Versus.

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