Gwar

Gwar, often styled as GWAR, is an American heavy metal band formed in Richmond, Virginia, United States, in 1984, composed of and operated by a frequently rotating line-up of musicians, artists and filmmakers collectively known as Slave Pit Inc.

Easily identified by their distinctively grotesque costumes, Gwar's core thematic and visual concept revolves around an elaborate science fiction-themed mythology which portrays the band members as barbaric interplanetary warriors, a narrative which serves as the basis for all of the band's albums, videos, live shows and other media. Rife with over-the-top violent, sexual, and scatological humour typically incorporating social and political satire, Gwar have attracted both acclaim and controversy for their music and stage shows, the latter of which notoriously showcase enactments of graphic violence that result in the audience being sprayed with copious amounts of fake blood. Such stagecraft regularly leads Gwar to be labeled a "shock rock" band by the media.

The Blood

The Blood are a London-based punk rock band, formed in 1982. Led by Cardinal Jesus Hate and JJ Bedsore (AKA Colin Smith and Jamie Cantwell), the band formed in the early 1980s under the name "Coming Blood". Their music is a blend of hardcore punk, Oi!, heavy metal, football chants and shock rock.

Many of their songs criticize religion or discuss political or philosophical topics. Their first single, "Megalomania", ridiculed the Pope. Doctor Wild Thing played drums on 'Megalomania'. Their second single release "Stark Raving Normal" (a double A side with Mesrine) criticized one-dimensional patriotism, apathy and mediocrity. The Cardinal calls himself a punk secular humanist. Their first album, False Gestures for a Devious Public featuring Evo (ex Angelic Upstarts,Warfare & Major Accident)on drums (1983), hit the UK top 30 and was voted one of the year’s best releases by Sounds magazine. They used to be managed by Garry Bushell, and their song "Such Fun" was on the Oi! compilation album Oi! Oi! That's Yer Lot!. 'False Gestures For A Devious Public' 1983 also included the song 'Mesrine' which was an anthem about the French iconoclastic gangster Jacques Mesrine. 'Mesrine' by The Blood was released in 1983 which preceded the release of the film of the same name that was made in 1984. J.J. Bedsore died in 2004 of multiple organ failure due to years of chronic alcoholism.

Warped Tour

The Warped Tour is a traveling rock festival that has toured the United States (sometimes including one or more stops in Canada) annually each summer since 1995. It is the largest traveling music festival in the United States, and the longest-running touring music festival in North America. The first Warped Tour took place in 1995, and the skateboard shoe manufacturer Vans became the main sponsor of the tour starting with the second tour in 1996, when it became known as the Vans Warped Tour. Although Vans has continued to be the main sponsor and lend its name to the festival, other sponsors have also participated, with stages or other aspects of the festival sometimes being named after them.

Warped Tour was conceived in 1995 as an eclectic alternative rock festival, but in 1996 began focusing on punk rock music. Although it has continued to be known primarily as a punk rock festival, it has included acts of diverse genres over the years, including hip hop artists starting in 1999.

This Place

This Place is a global art project that explores the complexity of Israel and the West Bank through the eyes of twelve internationally acclaimed photographers. The participating artists are Frederic Brenner, Wendy Ewald, Martin Kollar, Josef Koudelka, Jungjin Lee, Gilles Peress, Fazal Sheikh, Stephen Shore, Rosalind Solomon, Thomas Struth, Jeff Wall, and Nick Waplington. Each photographer created highly individualized works in response to his or her own experience in the area; the result is over 500 images which will be exhibited internationally and published in a series of monographs.

History

Initiated by Frederic Brenner, the project follows in the tradition of historic endeavors such as the Missions Héliographiques in nineteenth-century France and the Farm Security Administration in the United States, which gathered artists who use photography to ask essential questions about culture, society and the inner lives of individuals. Each artist spent approximately six months in residence, traveling throughout Israel and the West Bank, following his or her own line of investigation. Brenner offered the photographers initial exploratory visits, so they could decide if, and how, that wanted to be involved with the project. According to TIME: "This Place is not an act of photojournalism, nor does it contain — or send – a clear, unified message."

Scumdogs of the Universe

Scumdogs of the Universe is the second album by satirical shock rock band Gwar. The album is their first album on Metal Blade Records and was released in 1990. It is to this date the band's best-selling album.

Overview

As the title implies, it is a concept album about the Scumdogs' (Gwar) reign of terror on planet Earth (the song "Death Pod" explains exactly how they came to Earth to begin with). The production is very refined compared to the independent, rushed first attempt (with each successive album sounding more and more refined). Gwar began to experiment with samples to some degree (e.g. in the song, "Maggots"). The songs are more socially relevant in this album as well. Examples include "Slaughterama" (which involves Gwar killing hippies and nazi-skinheads in a game show-style fashion) and the opening track, "The Salaminizer", in which the first verse was inspired by/based on "Gangsta, Gangsta", a song by the breakthrough rap group N.W.A. Other references include history (Vlad the Impaler) and Lovecraft mythology (Horror of Yig). Most of the album is centered around twisted jokes about insane medical practices and sexual perversion. This album is viewed by many of Gwar's fans (as well as Gwar themselves) as their ultimate masterpiece. Thus the band will play more songs from Scumdogs than any other album ("Sick of You" is the most frequently played song in concert, generally the grand finale).