Blackie Lawless played bass in W.A.S.P.’s first two records in the 1980s due to a changing lineup before going back to guitar for 1986’s ‘Inside the Electric Circus.’ He recently revealed to Guitar World how Pink Floyd’s David Gilmour influenced his transition process at the time.
“I’ve heard other guitar players say they approach guitars like being a singer. My favorite guitar player is David Gilmour,” the guitarist shared. “We were at an EMI dinner one night, and he was there. I started talking to him and said, ‘By far, you’re my favorite guitar player. How do you come up with those melodies?’”
“He didn’t bat an eye and said, ‘I’m a singer. I think like a singer.’ I was standing there and thought, ‘Duh.’ In other words, if you’re looking for a melody, it’s about what enhances the song. I subscribe to that theory because I feel like it can’t not give you an advantage because you’re just thinking differently.”
Lawless also explained why he played bass in 1984’s ‘W.A.S.P.’ and 1985’s ‘The Last Comment’ by saying the band basically had three guitarists with him, Randy Piper, and Chris Holmes.
“We didn’t have a bass player, and with the egos of those two other guys, I knew they were never going to play bass. [laughs] So, I volunteered,” he said.
Now, the guitarist is preparing to revisit his music from that era for a 40-date tour celebrating W.A.S.P.’s self-titled debut album. “Looking back on it—and I’ve been listening to this record a lot since January for the tour—I have a lot of appreciation for how well both Randy and Chris did,” he told Guitar World.
W.A.S.P. will play their first album in full for the ‘Album One Alive!’ tour across North America this fall. The tour will kick off on October 26 in San Luis Obispo, CA.