Women and Children Last
| Women and Children Last | ||||
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| Studio album by Murderdolls | ||||
| Released | August 31, 2010 | |||
| Recorded | March–July 2010 | |||
| Genre | Heavy metal, horror punk | |||
| Length | 47:35 56:13 (Special Edition) |
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| Label | Roadrunner | |||
| Producer | Chris "Zeuss" Harris | |||
| Murderdolls chronology | ||||
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| Alternative cover | ||||
Special Edition
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| Singles from Women and Children Last... | ||||
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| Professional ratings | |
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| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |    |
| AltSounds | 74% |
| Blabbermouth.net |   |
| Kerrang! | |
| KNAC | (Negative) |
| PopMatters | |
| Rock Sound | |
| SoundSphere | |
| Ultimate Guitar Archive | |
Women and Children Last is the second and final studio album by American horror punk supergroup Murderdolls released through Roadrunner Records on August 31, 2010. With the exception of Murderdolls touring guitarist Roman Surman, who contributed lead guitars to the album, and Mötley Crüe guitarist Mick Mars, who makes guest appearances on the tracks "Drug Me to Hell" and "Blood-Stained Valentine", the album was recorded by Wednesday 13 and Joey Jordison. The album was produced by Chris "Zeuss" Harris. In an interview for Metal Hammer, Jordison explained why the old lineup would not be returning:
On June 17, 2010, on the Murderdolls Facebook page, the lead single from the album, titled "My Dark Place Alone", was available for full preview on Bloody-Disgusting.com. On June 22, the single was made available for free download, for 48 hours only, from the Roadrunner website. Mock film trailers were released for four of the album's nonsingle tracks: "Drug Me to Hell", "Summertime Suicide", "Death Valley Superstars" (never released because it was deemed "too violent"), and "Chapel of Blood".
Along with the standard edition of the album, a special edition of Women and Children Last was also released on August 31, 2010. It features an additional three bonus tracks as well as a DVD of their first live performance in 7 years.
This edition available only via website preorder. It features a 'last aid kit' which houses the CD/DVD combo version of the album (with autographed booklet), a t-shirt, patch, sticker, pill case and a digital download of the album. Additional bonus items are to be included but have not been announced yet. The fate of this item was uncertain as it was removed from the Roadrunner Records stock list as well as the pre-order list on Omega Order on July 5. As of July 16, the item is officially available again.
Women and Children Last has received mostly positive reviews from music critics. A review was also given by James Zahn of Kick-Axe, giving the album 4 axes out of 5, he praised the album's production, songwriting and recording calling it "a step up from when we last heard from the band". He also stated that Women and Children Last is a big leap forward and described the band as "If Mötley Crüe were bitten by zombies and resurrected with instruments in-hand, they'd probably sound a lot like Murderdolls."
Luciam of EspyRock praised Joey Jordison as quoted "Predominantly a drummer, it's kind of strange to know that Joey is the one behind the masterful guitar hooks and riffs on the album... these are defined so well in the track 'Drug Me to Hell' and generally just throughout the album." He also praised Wednesday 13, comparing his voice to Rob Zombie and said "his [Wednesday 13] voice really lends itself to the gore factor on this album." Mark Garnett of SoundSphere magazine also went along the same line, stating that Wednesday 13's voice is the best right now as it has been in years. He also called Jordison's drumming and guitar riffs 'phenomenal', praising his guitar works on "Summertime Suicide" and "Nowhere", calling them "heavy power-laden beasts yet catchy". Michael Melchor of 411mania.com gave the album 7 out of 10 stars, concluding the album as "good" on the 411Mania Legend, and summarized his review by stating "Some of the rollicking fun and celebratory nature of giving the finger to political correctness may be missing here, but in its place is a certified direction. Great care was taken in the writing and recording of Women and Children Last to deliberately mark a point of maturation. There are times when the record takes itself a little more seriously than perhaps it should given the genre, but overall the murkier, more pessimistic feel works more often than not."
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