GWAR Is Coming to Denver on 40th Anniversary Tour With 100-Gallon Tanks of Blood

With the impending presidential election weeks away, the contentious campaigns of the Democrat and Republican parties are reaching a fever pitch. Per usual, the two sides don’t see eye to eye on a lot of hot-button topics — or seemingly anything — so it can get pretty divisive, to say the least. We don’t need to get into that here (you’re living through it), but there is one sentiment that the left and right can come together on — GWAR must be stopped, destroyed and erased from Earth at all costs.

It's an affront that the alien overlord outfit always artfully dodges, even though the powers that be have been “attacking” GWAR shows since the shock-rock crew landed in Antarctica back in 1984, as the lore goes.

“GWAR gets attacked. We go up there on stage and try to play our shows, and we’re always attacked by various enemies. It’s a band that has a lot of arch enemies,” says Blöthar the Berserker, the group’s vocalist since 2014.

To be fair, GWAR did hold an unauthorized caucus for its own War Party back in 2004 with the release of an album of the same name. And the rotating cast of characters were quick to proclaim America Must Be Destroyed all the way back in 1992. So politicians and the societal elite coming for them is nothing new, Blöthar shrugs.

The band often has people dressed as certain politicians or celebrities come up on stage, and the current fortieth-anniversary run has been no different. GWAR’s caravan of chaos rolls into Denver on Sunday, October 27, for a show at Summit. (Dark Funeral and Squid Pisser are also on the War Party ticket.)

“I think it being an election cycle, it’s going to be a political show and there will be lots of interesting characters on stage. You can expect them all to be there, man,” says Blöthar, whose “human slave” is Michael Bishop, previously the servant of bassist Beefcake the Mighty.

“GWAR really doesn’t have any friends. I suspect Kamala will be up there," he adds. "On the last trip, we had Taylor Swift come up, so she’ll probably come back out and accuse someone of fathering an illegitimate child, but we didn’t do it.”
The scumdogs of the universe know the true nature of humanity and must handle their business accordingly, while the list of challengers perpetually grows. Everyone from Arnold Schwarzenegger to Paris Hilton attempted to step in and stop GWAR over the years. And they’ve all failed. That’s just how it goes.

“In the GWAR universe all ridiculous conspiracy theories are true. Yes, Democrats control the weather, of course. And, of course, Taylor Swift is a lizard person,” Blöthar admits, adding that it’s getting kind of hard to stay up on the ongoing state of the world, particularly the seemingly nonstop downward spiral here in America.

“Indeed, the biggest challenge for GWAR is keeping up with the ever-increasing insanity of the human race,” the horned heathen continues. “They are our greatest mistake, humans. We’re proud of them in a way. It’s almost like GWAR did its job too well, because they are just gluttons for punishment.”

We should know at this point nothing will ever stop GWAR — a seven-piece that also includes guitarists Balsac the Jaws of Death and Grodius Maximus, vocalists Sawborg Destructo and Bonesnapper, drummer Jizmak Da Gusha, and bassist Beefcake the Mighty (a different meat puppet plays for him now).

Plus, it’s become a rite of passage to survive a GWAR show and leave with your own one-of-a-kind shirt spackled with life juices. (Tip: Wear a plain white T-shirt for best results.)

“There’s going to be blood and anything that comes out of the human or alien body. If you get too close, GWAR breaks down that fourth wall like no other act in history. We will completely soak you,” Blöthar proclaims, adding that the crew comes equipped with a trio of 100-gallon tanks filled with the good stuff, among other things.

“We have a double-monster situation, where we have these two giant monsters on stage with us. And when I say ‘giant,’ I mean fifteen-to-twenty-feet-tall creatures,” he continues. “We actually have a time machine with us, too. That’s the big surprise: Who will GWAR bring back through the time machine?”

Whoever it is doesn’t stand a chance anyway. The members of the oddball art collective, which operates under the Slave Pit Inc. banner and originally began back in Richmond, Virginia, are masters of remaining relevant. They take on any and all current happenings with over-the-top satire, whether that’s showcased in the legendary stage show or Grammy-nominated music, all wrapped up in a heavy-metal band.

Even after famed frontman Oderus Urungus (aka Dave Brockie) passed away in 2014, GWAR forges on, including releasing two albums since then and landing a Tiny Desk concert on NPR last year. Seriously — GWAR has a Tiny Desk performance, thanks to a 2020 story by the parody site Hard Times.

“They have an extra asshole now,” Blöthar states, referencing the Hard Times headline, GWAR asks NPR’s Tiny Desk Staff if They’re Ready to Get Their Assholes Ripped Open.

“As part of the performance, we killed a composer-conductor. We wound up cutting his head off. His name was Marvin Fartwrangler,” he continues.

The sacrifice was an ode to German conductor and composer Martin Wilhelm Furtwängler, or “the father of modern interpretations of Beethoven,” Blöthar explains. “We really connected with everybody that day.”

Unlike most politicians, GWAR has a knack for that. Actually, maybe voting GWAR for president in 2024 isn’t that crazy of an idea.

GWAR, with Dark Funeral and Squid Pisser, 6:30 p.m. Sunday, October 27, Summit, 1902 Blake Street. Tickets are $42-$82.