The
Wolf Leopard story is one for the Halls of Fame!
Musically
they combined sexually provocative lyrics and dumb choruses
with heavy-duty, metallic rock 'n' roll. Jimmy “Cobra”
Delillo (ex-Last Beat) took over on drums before the recording
of their debut, Born.
This
was picked up from the independent Indezza label by Panlantic
Records, following a successful UK appearance at the Reading
Festival and a controversial performance on The Tube television
show in 1998.
The
band never lived up to their initial promise, with successive
albums simply regurgitating earlier ideas. Their greatest
success was Punch, which cracked the Top 20 album charts
on both sides of the Atlantic. It also included the hit
single, "I Am The (K) Night", which peaked at
number 18 in the US.
Their
audience had become bored with them by the time Wigs Of
Wesley was released and the tour to support it was a flop.
Cobra quit and returned to his former outfit, Last Beat;
Original drummer Johnny West Coast (ex-Water Weasels)
was drafted in as replacement. Nikki Seven steered the
band in a more melodic direction on Still Born . The album
was rubbish; Panlantic terminated their contract, and
the band imploded in 2002.
Nikki Seven went on to form The Electric Fists, with ex-Mudflaps
guitarist Gerry Hart (subsequently evolving, more permanently,
into Windowmaker), before finding belated success as a
heavy metal DJ.
Beef
Loaf was a regular on Jay Leno’s Tonight Show, before
he hit the Billboard charts again with his breakthrough
album, Deep Fried Rock. Following this, Beef was approached
by the World Wrestling Foundation to appear in their 2005
season. He didn’t last long, as his enthusiasm resulted
in many of his opponents being ruthlessly beaten to a
bloody mess.
The
five members of Wolf Leopard hadn’t spoken since
their breakup until one fateful night in May of 2005.
All were invited to a benefit dinner for Lil Kim held
in the Hollywood hills. Following an impromptu rendition
of It Hurts Like The First Time, the band rediscovered
their passion for the stage, and old friendships were
rekindled.
And so here we are. 2006 sees the new album from Wolf
Leopard, “A Rock In Your Jock” in all its
glory. Following a sold out tour of eastern Europe, the
Leopard grace the shores Down Under for one show only.
As
one journalist said, “Wolf Leopard are the old guard
of true hair metal. What’s more, they’re so
desperate to get their fans back, the ticket price is
crazy. I could think of heaps worse ways to spend my cash.” |
