After not one but two pressings on vinyl over the last two years, Madfish Music will release their collection of heavy metal band W.A.S.P.'s major label material on CD this month.

The 7 Savage 1984-1992 collects all six of the L.A. shock rockers' studio and live releases for Capitol Records, along with a newly-compiled assortment of 15 non-LP tracks (three more than the equivalent disc in the vinyl box). The slipcased set also features a CD-sized version of the 60-page hardcover book that came with the vinyl set, featuring exclusive photos and liner notes by Kerrang! writer Amit Sharma as well as commentary by the band's founding frontman Blackie Lawless.

The ostentatious quartet ascended to popularity off the strength of a no-holds-barred stage presence that occasionally pushed the boundaries of good taste. Early W.A.S.P. shows featured scantily-clad female models bound to makeshift torture racks, raw meat thrown into unsuspecting crowds, and Lawless' onstage attire featuring a codpiece that would shoot sparks from his groin. The band's debut single, "Animal (F**k Like a Beast)," was intended to open their debut album, but even that proved too hot for Capitol: it was left off the band's self-titled 1984 debut - which nonetheless featured a bawdy potential acronym for the band's name - "We Are Sexual Perverts" - etched into the vinyl's run-out groove - and received more release overseas than at home. (That didn't stop the Parents Music Resource Center from including it on their infamous "Filthy Fifteen," alongside tracks by Prince, Judas Priest, Madonna, Cyndi Lauper and Def Leppard.) In addition to the band's own originals, they were not averse to a cover or two: albums and bonus tracks include takes on Ray Charles ("I Don't Need No Doctor"), The Rolling Stones ("Paint It Black"), The Who ("The Real Me"), Led Zeppelin ("When the Levee Breaks"), Mountain ("Mississippi Queen") and Jethro Tull ("Locomotive Breath").

W.A.S.P.'s albums were moderately successful at home and abroad and featured some ever-changing line-ups, to boot. 1984's W.A.S.P. featured Lawless on vocals and bass, the twin guitar attack of Chris Holmes and Randy Piper and drummer Tony Richards. Steve Riley, a future member of another notable West Coast metal act, L.A. Guns, would replace Richards on 1985's The Last Command. On 1986's Inside the Electric Circus and subsequent live album Live...In the Raw (1987), Lawless would switch to rhythm guitar (taking over for Piper) and Johnny Rod would enter as the band's new bassist. 1989's The Headless Children found the group gathering larger notice in the U.K. (where single "Mean Man" just missed the Top 20), and featured yet another change with Quiet Riot's Frankie Banali sitting behind the drum kit. The band reached a turning point when Holmes, then married to Lita Ford, decided to leave the band; Lawless subsequently worked on a conceptual rock opera, The Crimson Idol, with Banali and journeyman session guitarist Bob Kulick; it was released as a W.A.S.P. album in 1992 and became a fan favorite.

Lawless has since revived W.A.S.P. with new members (Holmes joined for a brief period in the late '90s and early '00s) and continues to tour around the world, focusing more on straightforward rock power than shock value (owing in part to Lawless' faith as a born-again Christian). The 7 Savage is a snapshot of their earliest years as one of the most head-turning metal acts of their generation. The CD box set is available January 31 and can be pre-ordered below. (As an Amazon affiliate, we earn from qualifying purchases.)

The 7 Savage 1984-1992 (originally released as Madfish SMABX1249, 2023 - reissued Madfish SMABX1301, 2025) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada)

Disc 1: W.A.S.P. (released as Capitol ST-12343, 1984)

1. I Wanna Be Somebody
2. L.O.V.E. Machine
3. The Flame
4. B.A.D.
5. School Daze
6. Hellion
7. Sleeping (in the Fire)
8. On Your Knees
9. Tormentor
10. The Torture Never Stops

Disc 2: The Last Command (released as Capitol ST-12435, 1985)

1. Wild Child
2. Ballcrusher
3. Fistful of Diamonds
4. Jack Action
5. Widowmaker
6. Blind in Texas
7. Cries in the Night
8. The Last Command
9. Running Wild in the Streets
10. Sex Drive

Disc 3: Inside the Electric Circus (released as Capitol ST-12531, 1986)

1. The Big Welcome
2. Inside the Electric Circus
3. I Don't Need No Doctor
4. 9.5.-N.A.S.T.Y.
5. Restless Gypsy
6. Shoot from the Hip
7. I'm Alive
8. Easy Living
9. Sweet Cheetah
10. Mantronic
11. King of Sodom and Gomorrah
12. The Rock Rolls On

Disc 4: Live...In the Raw (released as Capitol CLT-48053, 1987)

1. Inside the Electric Circus
2. I Don't Need No Doctor
3. L.O.V.E. Machine
4. Wild Child
5. 9.5.-N.A.S.T.Y.
6. Sleeping (in the Fire)
7. The Manimal
8. I Wanna Be Somebody
9. Harder Faster
10. Blind in Texas
11. Scream Until You Like It (Theme from Ghoulies II)

Tracks 1-10 recorded live at California Theatre, San Diego and Long Beach Arena, Long Beach, CA - March 8 and 10, 1987. Track 11 is a studio recording.

Disc 5: The Headless Children (released as Capitol C1-48942, 1989)

1. The Heretic (The Lost Child)
2. The Real Me
3. The Headless Children
4. Thunderhead
5. Mean Man
6. The Neutron Bomber
7. Mephisto Waltz
8. Forever Free
9. Maneater
10. Rebel in the F.D.G.

Disc 6: The Crimson Idol (released as Capitol CDP 07777 99443 2 3, 1992)

1. The Titanic Overture
2. The Invisible Boy
3. Arena of Pleasure
4. Chainsaw Charlie (Murders in the New Morgue)
5. The Gypsy Meets the Boy
6. Doctor Rockter
7. I Am One
8. The Idol
9. Hold On to My Heart
10. The Great Misconceptions of Me

Disc 7: Bonus Tracks and B-Sides

1. Animal (F**k Like a Beast)
2. Show No Mercy
3. Paint It Black
4. Savage
5. Mississippi Queen
6. Flesh and Fire
7. D.B. Blues
8. Locomotive Breath
9. For Whom the Bell Tolls
10. Lake of Fools
11. War Cry
12. When the Levee Breaks
13. Phantoms in the Mirror
14. The Eulogy
15. The Story of Jonathan (Prologue to The Crimson Idol)

Tracks 1-2 released as Music for Nations U.K. single KUT 109, 1984
Track 3 released on "School Daze" U.K. single - Capitol CL 344, 1984
Track 4 released on "Blind in Texas" U.K. single - Capitol CL 374, 1985
Track 5 released on "Wild Child" U.K. single - Capitol CL 388, 1986
Track 6 released on "9.5.-N.A.S.T.Y." U.K. single - Capitol CL 432, 1986
Track 7 released on "Live Animal (F**k Like a Beast)" U.K. CD single - Music for Nations CD 12KUT 109, 1988
Tracks 8-9 released on "Mean Man" U.K. 12" - Capitol 12CL 521, 1989
Tracks 10-11 released on "The Real Me" U.K. 12" - Capitol 12CDL 534, 1989
Track 12 released on "Hold On to My Heart" U.K. CD single - Parlophone 72438 80225 2 1, 1992
Track 13 and Track 15 (part 1) released on "Chainsaw Charlie" U.K. CD single - Parlophone CDR 6308, 1992
Track 14 and Track 15 (part 2) released on "The Idol" U.K. CD single - Parlophone CDR 6314, 1992