Allergic to Whores

Not to be confused with fellow alternative rockers Allergic, the Middleburg Heights, OH-based Allergic to W***es are an intense, forceful outfit with hardcore, punk, and metal influences. The Midwesterners' name has created some controversy in Ohio rock circles; some of their detractors have assumed that they are promoting misogyny and sexism by calling themselves Allergic to W***es. But in 2001, Allergic to W***es addressed that issue on their website — and they asserted that their critics were really the sexist, misogynist ones. The alterna-rockers asked their critics: "Why is the word 'w***e' pointed solely at women in your eyes?" and went on to say that they viewed w***e as "an equal opportunity word" that could be applied to men as easily as it could be applied to women. Allergic to W***es added that the word "w***e" didn't necessarily have a sexual connotation; it could be defined as, in their words, "anyone who sacrifices their integrity for personal gain" and could describe "big businesses that trade their integrity for money and power." So in a nutshell, they insisted that "ATW is not a sexist band" and that detractors were taking their use of the word "w***e" out of context. Allergic to W***es' lineup includes Ray Terry on guitar and vocals, Mike Meier (not to be confused with actor/comedian and Saturday Night Live graduate Mike Myers) on drums and vocals, and Lewis Mansfield on bass. The trio's first full-length album, Shadows in the Killingfield, was released on the small, independent Sound Pollution label in 2001. It was followed by 2002's The Lipstick Murders, also on Sound Pollution.