By Marc Savlov

DECEMBER 8, 1997: 

Lords of Acid

There is a secret 10th circle of hell where slinky female demons in neon latex catsuits jab at endless lines of overpriced, weasely lawyers with blue steel tridents and barbed cat o' nine tails. Some of the lawyers dig it, but most suffer these torments of the damned with gritted teeth stoicism and sweaty brows. Overhead, the smoldering PA pipes in a gritty, sex-heavy mix of the Lords of Acid. Ever the scoundrels, the denizens are in a constant state of arousal, but they can't get off. It's hell, I tell ya. Pure hell.

Led by über-erotic dominatrix-cum-vocalist Nikkie Van Lierop, Belgium's techno-sexports the Lords of Acid are finally finding some stateside recognition -- and airplay -- amongst the rising tide of fetish-oriented electronica. With the release of their third album Our Little Secret on indie Antler/Subway Records (fresh off a stint with Rick Rubin's American), they're more than ready. The only question is "Is America ready for them?"

"In Milwaukee we weren't allowed to get any dancers on the stage," answers Van Lierop in a slinky Belgian accent. "Usually what we'll do is cover some dancers up with liquid latex and sort of have them dance around on one of the instrumental tracks, but over there we couldn't even get them on the stage fully clothed.

"It was just not allowed -- there were security guards all over the place messing up my show. The police said that if I did my little masturbation scene they'd arrest me. But I went and did it anyway and got away with it."

Granted, between the Lords' hyper, snakey beats, and Van Lierop's kitten-with-a-whip vocals, and the band's notoriously sadistic live show, it's no wonder some people find the band too much, though Van Lierop is quick to point out that the censors are a distinctly American phenomenon:

"The way I see it, Americans are so sexually repressed that they are the most perverted people in the world, actually. That's why there's so many sheriffs around and everybody's so afraid of nudity. I don't get it.

"In the end, though, it's all entertainment. It's like this: If we have fun onstage, it usually reflects upon the crowd and then everybody leaves feeling satisfied and they're... glad they came."

Get it? -- Marc Savlov

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