[JonInMiddleGA]

Some people age better than others ... such is apparently the case with both Armored Saint and W.A.S.P.

Neither band showed significant decline as they pound their way through their 40th year in a business known for taking its toll.

Armored Saint frontman John Bush is really a treasure, a voice that epitomizes some of the best of U.S. power metal as it was in the early 80s. That the _newest_ member of their lineup joined the band in 1989 (the rest have been there from the beginning) contributes to the precision performance that's just relentless.

In contrast, Blackie Lawless is the senior member of the current W.A.S.P. lineup by thirteen years, the drummer around for a mere five years of their forty ... but damned if you'd know any of that when listening. It sounds ... like WASP ... and that's really all an audience united in their disdain for Tipper Gore wanted.

The best thing about the show (in Atlanta tonight) in some respects is this: 1,800 capacity venue sold out. When I think about how many club-sized shows I've watched in the past couple of decades where I could literally count the crowd reliably just by eyeballing the room, that's a pretty powerful testament to how well-regarded the two bands are after four decades at work.

As audiences go, the hair we have left is a common shade of silver, we don't fit into certain outfits as well as we used to, and we move slower (especially through the bathroom lines) than we used to ... but the bands haven't lost a step.