By b“Tampa” Earl Burton, Journalist, and Chyrisse Tabone, Photographer – Rock At Night Tampa
Live Review: W.A.S.P. and KK’s Priest – Ruth Eckerd Hall, Clearwater, Florida – September 22, 2026
One reality of the concert world is that the toughest thing for an artist/band to do is a midweek show. People can get psyched up for a Friday, Saturday, or even a Sunday night therapeutic blast of rock and roll…it is those midweek efforts, such as the performance by Blackie Lawless’ W.A.S.P. and KK Downing’s KK’s Priest at Ruth Eckerd Hall in Clearwater on Tuesday night, that sometimes require a bit of motivation for both the audience and the performers. That was not a problem for the Floridians who flooded the Hall, and both bands brought their brands of thunder for a highly entertaining night of metal madness.
Seriously…Ruth Eckerd Hall?
Yes, the theater at Ruth Eckerd Hall was the unlikely site for the performance by W.A.S.P. and KK’s Priest on Tuesday night. It is a venue that more often hosts tranquil acts; I have seen Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit and Chicago perform on this stage, and the surroundings didn’t seem out of place. For a hard rock/metal show like Tuesday’s guests in Clearwater, you might have expected a more “hardcore” outlet…one that is not currently available.
It is part of the problem with the Tampa Bay area right now. There isn’t a mid-level venue for such bands to perform in, especially after the closing of Crowbar, the reluctance of The Ritz to schedule hard rock shows (think the last one I saw there was Nonpoint and Sumo Cyco, and it was done by 10 PM), and the current renovations going on at the Seminole Hard Rock Tampa’s Event Center. You need venues for these types of shows, and they cannot be too large or too small because it affects profits both ways.
Neither one of the performers – or the crowd, for that matter – seemed to be worried about that on Tuesday night. The crowd was large and ready for a rock show, and both W.A.S.P. and KK’s Priest were ready to deliver. It was set up to be a memorable night for everyone involved.
KK’s Priest: Powerful, Aggressive
Opening the night was KK’s Priest, the band KK Downing of Judas Priest formed after differences of opinion with his former band. KK’s Priest has carved out an excellent niche in the current hard rock/metal world, with one foot firmly planted in 21st-century rock and roll while the other stays in the highly enjoyable historic past. From the time KK’s Priest hit the stage on Tuesday night for the latest date on their The Sinners Ride Again Tour, they powered through a sixty-minute set and didn’t let off the gas.
Of course, Downing was the star of the show, but he’s also a smart man in that he enlisted Tim “Ripper” Owens (who famously took over, after performing in a Judas Priest tribute band, for Rob Halford in Judas Priest for a period) to handle the vocals for KK’s Priest. Together, they gave KK’s Priest’s music credibility while also adding gravitas to the Judas Priest classics.
The band ripped (no pun intended) into a trio of Judas Priest classics (“You’ve Got Another Thing Comin’,” “Breaking the Law,” and “Living After Midnight”), bringing the Ruth Eckerd Hall audience to their feet (a place they would remain for the entirety of the evening). After that, the band delved into some of the KK’s Priest notables, including “Strike of the Viper” and a stirring “Hellfire Thunderbolt.” KK’s Priest concluded their all-too-brief set by digging into other classic Judas Priest albums such as Stained Class, Defenders of the Faith, and Sad Wings of Destiny (“Victim of Changes”). Overall, Downing and Owens delivered a powerful performance, supported by excellent work from Downing’s equal on guitar, A. J. Mills, bassist Tony Newton, and Sean Elg on drums.
W.A.S.P. Stings Ruth Eckerd Hall Crowd with Thunderous Set
Not to be outdone, W.A.S.P. and Lawless were ready for their close-up after a rapid set changeover. Backed by his current lineup of Doug Blair on lead guitar, Mike Duda on bass, and Aquiles Priester on the drums, Lawless, who was making a homecoming of sorts (he was born in Tampa seventy years ago), pitched a curveball to the Ruth Eckerd Hall audience – a cover of Uriah Heep’s “Easy Livin’.” Some might have been confused by that opening, but it worked well for W.A.S.P. and set up what would be a memorable journey through the band’s history.
The 1984 to Headless Tour looks back at the band’s forty-plus-year career, and Lawless put together a setlist that carried fans through the best they had to offer. Tunes like “Mr. Cool,” “B.A.D.,” and the title track of the 1989 album The Headless Children provided aural and visual stimulation (“The Headless Children” took on the subject of the Holocaust excellently)…and that was just the FIRST half of the show!
In the second half, after Blackie and Co. teased that the show was done, the band seemed to hit their groove. A series of classic W.A.S.P. tracks, including “I Wanna Be Somebody,” “L.O.V.E. Machine, and “I Don’t Need No Doctor,” led to an outstanding acoustic performance of “Golgotha” that resonated through the Hall. Blackie, however, knew what the people were there for, and he gave it to them in lengthy and powerful renditions of both “Wild Child” and my personal favorite W.A.S.P. song, “Blind in Texas.” By the time Blackie Lawless stood on his mic stand and saluted the crowd after an hour-plus performance, the appetites of the metal hounds in the crowd had been fed.
The W.A.S.P./KK’s Priest show was one of those nights that, in this writer’s opinion, could have been held in a MUCH bigger venue. And, for a mid-week show, it had all the energy of a Saturday night rock rager from the Eighties. Ruth Eckerd Hall, an unlikely venue for such a performance, came through in spades for the rockers on stage and in the seats. Suffice it to say that, if you can check out this tour as it crosses the U.S. and Canada, you should run, not walk, to the venue…no matter WHERE it is!
PHOTO GALLERY
- Punk Royalty on the Beach: Rise Against, Alkaline Trio and Teen Mortgage Rock the BayCare Sound in Clearwater - September 27, 2026
- Blackie Lawless’ W.A.S.P., KK’s Priest Bring Metal Madness to the Staid Ruth Eckerd Hall in Clearwater - September 24, 2026
- Battle Jackets and Bludgeoning Riffs: Two Days of Mayhem at Tampa Death Fest 2026 - September 7, 2026
