GWAR to Metal Gatekeepers: “F**k You”
No matter how much metal cred an individual amasses, they will simply never be as metal—or as cool—as GWAR. That’s partially because GWAR rule and partially because GWAR are alien creatures living on Earth to spread the word of riffs and pus.
They recently spoke with The Pit, where the interviewer asked front-creature Blothar the Berserker and his extraterrestrial goons how they feel about gatekeepers in the metal scene, to which all three replied: “Fuck you!”
Lead guitarist Pustulus Maximus agrees, but then specifies a specific instance in which it’s okay to gatekeep, actually:
“That’s the worst. My philosophy is ‘It’s okay to like stuff.’ If you wanna like good ol’ Dirkschneider over there and Mercyful Fate and Billie Eilish in the same day, that’s fine. It doesn’t matter. But you can’t like N’Sync and metal though, or Backstreet Boys.”
Blothar follows up by pointing out that heavy metal has often been excluded from mainstream popularity or respect, so he believes that the infighting isn’t productive.
“Anybody can like anything. I just think it’s absolutely absurd. You know, metal has been excluded. People that like metal and that are drawn to it are outsiders. Why do they wanna put up the same walls for other people? It doesn’t make any sense to me.”
The topic of gatekeeping in metal is nothing new. Satyricon frontman Satyr reminded us of his position in the second wave of black metal and our own Hesher Keenan told gatekeepers to fuck off last month. You don’t have to take it from us or from Satyr, but you should probably listen to our alien overlords while they’re still benevolent.
GWAR on Tour:
9/21 – Columbia, MO @ Blue Note
9/23 – Louisville, KY @ Louder Than Life
9/25 – Lincoln, NE @ Bourbon Theatre
9/26 – Denver, CO @ Oriental Theater
9/27 – Casper, WY @ Gaslight Social Outdoors
9/28 – Billings, MT @ Pub Station Outdoors
9/30 – Portland, OR @ Roseland Theater
10/1 – Seattle, WA @ Showbox SoDo
10/3 – Vancouver, BC @ The Vogue#
10/4 – Spokane, WA @ Knitting Factory
10/6 – Boise, ID @ Revolution Concert House
10/7 – Sacramento, CA @ Aftershock*
10/8 – Ventura, CA @ Ventura Theater
10/9 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Belasco
10/10 – Las Vegas, NV @ Brooklyn Bowl
10/11 – Salt Lake City, UT @ The Depot
10/12 – Flagstaff, AZ @ Pepsi Amphitheater
10/14 – Dallas, TX @ Amplify
10/15 – Houston, TX @ Warehouse Live
10/16 – Austin, TX @ Empire Live
10/18 – Pensacola, FL @ Vinyl
10/19 – Orlando, FL @ The Beachum
10/20 – Atlanta, GA @ The Masquerade
10/22 – Niagara Falls, NY @ Rapids Theater
10/23 – Detroit, MI @ The Crofoot
10/26 – Milwaukee, WI @ The Rave
10/28 – Worcester, MA @ The Palladium
10/29 – Philadelphia, PA @ Franklin Music Hall
10/30 – Richmond, VA @ The National
10/31 – New York, NY @ Irving Plaza
11/2 – Toronto, ON @ The Phoenix
11/3 – Baltimore, MD @ Soundstage
