L.E.G. MACHINE … Blackie Lawless of W.A.S.P. will Perform Seated on Final Dates of European Tour after his Legs were Giving Out at Recent Shows

Blackie Lawless of W.A.S.P. performs seated at a recent show in Europe

“My legs were giving out on me and it got dangerous. I will not be able to stand to do the remaining 5 shows, so the compromise I reached with the Doctors was if I would stay seated, in a chair to do these last 5 then they will give me clearance to finish the tour and do those remaining 5 shows.” — Blackie Lawless

Metal Sludge — W.A.S.P. singer, founder and chief song-writer Blackie Lawless has been performing seated on the band’s recent shows in Europe.

It seems Lawless had been struggling with a herniated disc in his back.

The situation has worsened over the tour, and even though the singer was receiving treatment, it got to a point where his Doctors advised him to cut the tour short and head home to the U.S. and begin rehab.

Lawless wrote in detail on the official W.A.S.P. website back on May 10th explaining what happened and what the fans can expect going forward.

The lengthy message from Lawless reads as follows: “As many of you already know I had a serious setback at the hands of a very unqualified Doctor here in Europe about 2 weeks into the tour. I’ve been receiving treatment at a hospital in Berlin and that team of Doctors has been nothing short of fantastic. But, at the same time they strongly advised me to stop the tour and go back to L.A. and begin my rehab. But it’s hard for them to understand, this is the only 40th Anniversary I’m ever going to get, not to mention the fans that have stood by us this entire time have waited over 3 years, and because of the pandemic suffered 3 different sets of tour postponements.

“At the start the Doctors [in Berlin] told me without rest and rehab I would definitely get worse. As hard as I’ve pushed through these shows, they were right. The show last night in Zurich was cut short by 2 songs, and I do apologize for that but the pain reached a point where I could no longer perform and it lasted throughout the entire show. My legs were giving out on me and it got dangerous. I will not be able to stand to do the remaining 5 shows, so the compromise I reached with the Doctors was if I would stay seated, in a chair to do these last 5 then they will give me clearance to finish the tour and do those remaining 5 shows.”

Lawless continued with his statement: “I’ve never done this before, but please understand, my intention is to finish this tour, come hell or high water, and give this incredibly dedicated fan base, that has been with us from the beginning, the show they have all heard about. Plus we’re going to build the chair into ‘Elvis‘. Hey, he’s been with us the whole time and he will finish this tour right beside me because he’s basically one of the Band.

But, as frustrating as this all has been I can’t wait to get into rehab, and then destroy America…. Again, on the 2nd, and final leg of the “40th Anniversary World Tour”!! We are Coming Back….and we’re Coming to Hurt Somebody!!

B. L.“

Lawless will be the next in a line of rock singers who have been forced to sit or be seated during their performance in recent years.

Most famously, was Axl Rose of Guns N’ Roses, who performed multiple dates seated while he fronted AC/DC after injuring his leg at the big comeback show for Gn’R at the world famous Troubadour in Hollywood.

Rose himself, borrowed a special chair, designed for Dave Grohl of Foo Fighters after he broke his leg while performing in Sweden.

Others who have taken a seat are Phil Collins (Genesis), Steve Grimmett (Grim Reaper) and Paul Di’Anno (ex-Iron Maiden).

Of course Tracii Guns of L.A. Guns famously sat on a toilet during the band’s 2022 summer tour in Texas after the guitarist complained it was too hot to play outside in the Lone Star State heat.

W.A.S.P. will finish their European run in Romania and Bulgaria this week.

Look for the band on their U.S. tour this fall, all current dates noted below.

THE 40TH NEVER STOPS WORLD TOUR 2023 DATES:

Fri Aug 04 – San Luis Obispo, CA – Fremont Theatre *
Sat Aug 05 – Wheatland, CA – Hard Rock Live Sacramento
Mon Aug 07 – Portland, OR – Roseland Theater
Tue Aug 08 – Vancouver, BC – Vogue Theatre *
Thu Aug 10 – Seattle, WA – Moore Theatre
Fri Aug 11 – Spokane, WA – The Podium
Sat Aug 12 – Garden City, ID – Revolution Concert House and Event Center
Sun Aug 13 – Salt Lake City, UT – The Depot
Tue Aug 15 – Omaha, NE – Steelhouse Omaha
Wed Aug 16 – Minneapolis, MN – The Fillmore Minneapolis presented by Affinity Plus
Thurs Aug 17 – Moline, IL – The Rust Belt *
Fri Aug 18 – Eau Claire, WI – RCU Theater *
Sat Aug 19 – Clive, IA – Horizon Events Center *
Sun Aug 20 – Gary, IN – Hard Rock Live Northern Indiana
Tue Aug 22 – Grand Rapids, MI – GLC Live @ 20 Monroe
Wed Aug 23 – Indianapolis, IN – Egyptian Room @ Old National Centre
Thu Aug 24 – Wheeling, WV – Capitol Theatre *
Fri Aug 25 – Stroudsburg, PA – Sherman Theater *
Sat Aug 26 – New York, NY – Hammerstein Ballroom
Sun Aug 27 – Hampton, NH – Hampton Beach Casino Ballroom
Tue Aug 29 – Wallingford, CT – The Dome At Oakdale Theatre
Wed Aug 30 – Philadelphia, PA – The Fillmore Philadelphia
Thu Aug 31 – Warren, OH – Packard Music Hall *
Fri Sep 01 – Toronto, ON – Danforth Music Hall
Sun Sep 03 – Montreal, QC – Mtelus
Tue Sep 05 – Cincinnati, OH – The Andrew J Brady Music Center
Thu Sep 07 – Memphis, TN – The Soundstage at Graceland
Fri Sep 08 – Little Rock, AR – The Hall
Sat Sep 09 – Dallas, TX – South Side Ballroom
Sun Sep 10 – Oklahoma City, OK – The Criterion
Wed Sep 13 – Tucson, AZ – Rialto Theatre *
Thu Sep 14 – San Diego, CA – House of Blues
Sat Sep 16 – Los Angeles, CA – Hollywood Palladium