Richmond, VA · shock metal

GWAR

2 upcoming festivals

Intergalactic latex monsters spraying fake blood on the front rows since 1984 — thrash chops under the costumes. Wear a poncho.

GWAR began in Richmond, Virginia in the mid-1980s, growing out of a collective of art students and musicians who built the band around an elaborate mythology: interplanetary barbarians exiled to Earth, performing in foam latex costumes and full character. The stage show involves oversized props, on-stage executions of political and celebrity figures, and fluids sprayed liberally over the audience.

Musically the band works in thrash and hardcore-inflected heavy metal, with the theatrical framing supported by genuinely tight playing. Founding vocalist Dave Brockie, who performed as Oderus Urungus, died in 2014; the band has continued with other members taking lead roles. GWAR's costumes and props are constructed by its own in-house art studio, Slave Pit.

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