W.A.S.P. founder Blackie Lawless joins the Loaded Radio Podcast this week for a wide-ranging conversation with Scott Penfold. On the episode, Lawless discusses the 1984 To Headless tour — the fall 2026 North American run with KK’s Priest, celebrating W.A.S.P.’s first four albums, kicking off September 10 and running through October 31.
He also gives an update on the next W.A.S.P. studio album, which would be the band’s first since 2015’s Golgotha, and on the biography he’s been writing for years. And he addresses how he views former guitarists Chris Holmes and Randy Piper today. W.A.S.P.’s current lineup is Lawless on vocals and guitar, Doug Blair on guitar, Mike Duda on bass and Aquiles Priester on drums.
LISTEN TO THE FULL EPISODE NOW:
Subscribe to the Loaded Radio Podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your shows — and download the free Loaded Radio App on Apple iOS and Google Play to take every episode with you.
Forty-two years on, Blackie Lawless is still the least apologetic man in heavy metal.
He built W.A.S.P. out of the Hollywood club circuit in the early ’80s, got hauled in front of a US Senate committee for his trouble, and has run the band as its sole constant member ever since — fifteen studio albums, four decades, and a stage show that made theatrical rock what it is. He’s also never been especially interested in telling people what they want to hear.
Which is what makes him a great interview, and what makes this one worth your forty-five minutes.
Here’s what’s on the table.
LIVE & LOUD: Stream the World’s Hardest Radio Station 24/7
The 1984 To Headless Tour
This is the big one, and Blackie’s framing of it is unusually final.
1984 To Headless runs September 10 through October 31 across the US and Canada, with K.K. Downing’s KK’s Priest — featuring Tim “Ripper” Owens on vocals — as very special guests. Ten European dates are also on the books.
The concept: selected material from W.A.S.P.’s first four records. The 1984 self-titled debut, 1985’s The Last Command, 1987’s Inside The Electric Circus and 1989’s The Headless Children. Blackie has said publicly that playing those four albums in one combined package is something the band has never attempted before, and that the entire stage production is built so the album covers themselves come alive on stage.
The detail worth clocking: the official announcement described it as bringing those albums alive for the first and only time. Not a rotating anniversary run. A one-off.
He’s also been candid about how long this took. Speaking to Eddie Trunk on Trunk Nation earlier this year, Blackie said the idea dated back to around 2018, and that the groundwork got rudely interrupted by COVID — at which point he wondered who had talked him into it and swore he’d never do anything like it again.
And there’s a philosophy underneath it that comes up a lot with him now. He’s talked about the risk of an artist getting too self-indulgent, and about remembering that people have worked all day before they hand over their money and their evening. Give them what they came for.
The Next W.A.S.P. Album
The last W.A.S.P. studio record was Golgotha, in 2015. That’s a long time.
It hasn’t been for lack of intent. Back in November 2023 we covered him saying the band was pretty far into the writing process — before a herniated disc, a fractured vertebra and two surgeries put everything on the back burner. He’s confirmed since then that new music is definitely in the works.
The honest read: this record has been circling for years and Blackie doesn’t do artificial deadlines. He gets there when he gets there.
The Book
Blackie has been working on his biography for the better part of a decade, and by his own account the reason it’s taken so long is research — roughly the first five years went into digging rather than writing.
More recently he’s said he’s past that stage and able to sprint, with the daily writing going quickly now, and he’s hopeful of finishing it before the end of 2026.
For a guy whose life includes the New York Dolls, the Hollywood strip, the PMRC hearings and forty years of running one of metal’s most combustible bands, that’s a book with material in it.
Chris Holmes And Randy Piper
And here’s the part everyone’s going to click for.
Chris Holmes played guitar on W.A.S.P.’s first four albums — the exact four this tour celebrates — before leaving in 1990, returning in 1996 and departing again in 2001. Randy Piper co-founded the band with Blackie and played on the first two records before exiting in 1986.
The relationships have been publicly difficult for a long time. Holmes has made specific allegations about publishing and money going back years, repeating them as recently as May 2026, and has said flatly he wouldn’t return unless those issues were resolved. Blackie has rejected Holmes’s account and, when we covered his comments in 2024, was blunt about why a reunion doesn’t interest him: he rates Duda, Blair and Priester as world-class players and sees going backwards as a step down. He’s made the same point about the debut album anniversary — that he cannot in good conscience put a lesser show in front of the people paying for it.
Nobody outside those two men knows what’s actually in the contracts, and we’re not going to pretend otherwise. What we can tell you is that Blackie doesn’t dodge the subject on this episode.
Given that 1984 To Headless is built entirely on the era Holmes and Piper played on, asking him where he stands with them now isn’t a gotcha. It’s the obvious question. He answers it.
And More
There’s plenty else across the episode — the current lineup, four decades of running this band on his own terms, and the perspective of a man who has been doing this since before most of the audience was born.
If you want the wider background, our W.A.S.P. band facts, members and history piece covers the full arc, and there’s a genuinely great story behind where the name Blackie Lawless came from if you’ve never heard it.
Hit play up top.
TL;DR
- Guest: Blackie Lawless, founder, frontman and sole constant member of W.A.S.P.
- Tour: 1984 To Headless, September 10 to October 31, US and Canada, with KK’s Priest as very special guests, plus ten European dates
- Tour concept: selected material from the first four albums — W.A.S.P. (1984), The Last Command (1985), Inside The Electric Circus (1987) and The Headless Children (1989), with a stage show built to bring the album covers to life
- One-off: the official announcement billed it as the first and only time the band will do this
- New album: in the works; would be W.A.S.P.’s first since 2015’s Golgotha
- Book: his biography, in progress for years, with Blackie hoping to finish it before the end of 2026
- Chris Holmes and Randy Piper: Blackie addresses how he sees both former guitarists today
- Current lineup: Blackie Lawless (vocals/guitar), Doug Blair (guitar), Mike Duda (bass), Aquiles Priester (drums)
FAQ
What is the 1984 To Headless tour?
W.A.S.P.’s 2026 tour celebrating their first four albums — the 1984 self-titled debut, The Last Command, Inside The Electric Circus and The Headless Children. It runs September 10 through October 31 across the US and Canada, with KK’s Priest as very special guests, plus ten European dates.
Who is opening for W.A.S.P. on the 2026 tour?
KK’s Priest, led by former Judas Priest co-founder K.K. Downing with Tim “Ripper” Owens on vocals.
Is W.A.S.P. making a new album?
Yes. Blackie Lawless has confirmed new music is in the works. It would be the band’s first studio album since 2015’s Golgotha.
Is Blackie Lawless writing a book?
Yes. He’s been working on his biography for years, with roughly the first five years spent on research. He has said he hopes to complete it before the end of 2026.
Who is in W.A.S.P. now?
Blackie Lawless on vocals and guitar, Doug Blair on guitar, Mike Duda on bass and Aquiles Priester on drums. Lawless is the band’s only constant member since its formation.
Will Chris Holmes rejoin W.A.S.P.?
Neither man has given any indication that’s happening. Holmes has publicly said he wouldn’t return without resolution of a long-running publishing dispute, and Lawless has said he has no interest in a reunion, citing his confidence in the current lineup.
What albums did Chris Holmes play on?
Holmes played on W.A.S.P.’s first four studio albums and their first live album during his 1983–1990 run, then returned from 1996 to 2001. He has not played with the band since.
Four decades, fifteen albums, and a man who still refuses to give the diplomatic answer. Are you catching 1984 To Headless this fall — and what do you want to see brought to life on that stage? Let us know in the comments.
Follow Loaded Radio for daily rock and metal news
The post W.A.S.P.’s Blackie Lawless Tells The Loaded Radio Podcast Where He Really Stands With Classic Members, The Status Of The Next Album And More appeared first on Loaded Radio.
