All Hail the Scumdogs(Or my Review of the Gwar concert)

It's Tuesday and my finger nails still have red under them. If you are aware of what happens at a Gwar concert, than you are also likely aware that the remaining blood under my nails means I had a good time. Seeing as this week is Halloween, and in my opinion Metal and Halloween go hand in hand, all the posts this week are going to be combination's of that.

On Friday I was lucky and able to see the amazing Gwar live for probably the seventh time. As with all of the other shows, it was a great time full of gore, carnage, various boy and girl parts being used to spray the crowd with blood, and of course, metal.

The show began with the moderately interested American Sharks. I won't spend much time on these guys, but as far as a band opening for Gwar they did the trick I guess. One major issue I had quite honestly was the lead singer. The music was good enough, and I wasn't watching the clock like crazy, t frankly, he talks way way too much. Even worse is that he says nothing while talking. Thankfully it was over soon enough and the next band was due.

That band, Decapitated from Poland, were a one hundred and fifty improvement. I had been hearing the name for years, but finally I got to see them, and they didn't disappoint. They've been in the game awhile now, and the skill they have really does show. They rocked through a fifty minute set with minimal talking, and the crowd was into it the entire set. One of the things I liked most about them though, was their clear influence of Meshuggah. Quite a few of the songs had Meshuggah trademarks, but they managed to make it their own to an extent, which was really good. If you're a metal guy, and you haven't checked these guys out, I suggest you do. Really good technical metal, and a thoroughly enjoyable middle set before the headliners.

Finally, it was approaching time for Gwar. I had been very curious for weeks now what the show would be like. As you likely know, Dave Brockie the singer passed away earlier this year, and the band decided to continue on. The show starts with the manager, Sleazy P. Martini, explaining that singer Oderus, had gotten sucked in a time portal looking for drugs, and that they were going to find him. Meanwhile, the band had dispatched various singers to fill in for him. Most were cool but the main attraction was clearly new minted female singer Vulvatron. Yes, that's her name. And she shoots blood from her breasts'. Really guys, you can't make this up.

Now as entertaining as the show was, I actually did find myself a bit sad and retrospective throughout the show. As a band, it's very difficult to keep going after the death of your leader, but i'm still not convinced in the way it was handled. Many jokes were made about Oderus being lost in the portal while looking for crack(they even bring out a ball labeled crack at one point to summon him back). But I can't help but think the band members must be hurting. Maybe this was their way of getting through it, but it was a bit too much for me.

The music was alright as it always was, and of course the visuals were amazing, but I can't help but wonder why they were so adamant about making a big deal of out the character dying. The tribute though at the and with his sword was cool, and former singer Dave Brockie likely would have loved the way they handled it, but for me it was just sad. Beyond that though, the show was stellar, and after all these years, I really think that at this point Gwar is a thing and entity that will never die, which is fine.