R.I.P Oderus Urungus aka Dave Brockie

Lead singer and founder of the infamous band Gwar has passed away Gwar Frontman Dave Brockie A.K.A. Oderus Urungus Dead At 50 - Blabbermouth.net

I'm glad I got to see this band several times.

Just heard this too. Sad. I got to see them last month here in Australia. Very entertaining live. R.I.P Oderus.


Ben

Aw, man! That sucks! And so young...

It really is sad. I wish more bands had the creativity of Dave and the members of Gwar. I'd like to dress as Oderus Urungus for comicon, but would get tossed out with the private parts swinging!

Watching him cross a busy Atlanta street in full gear during Dragon*Con was a hoot. I can only imagine what the drivers were thinking...

They definitely carved there own path. Love em or hate em you can't deny the originality.

This is one of the rare times I'll say something like this:-this blows big time :angry why not Biber or some other useless singer?

I dunno what GWAR will do now but who knows? maybe we'll get a new Scumdog leader....there SHOULD be a hell of a send off for him!

Without Dave, there is no GWAR.

I have tickets to see GWAR tomorrow night (Sunday, December 7th) for the first time without Dave Brockie. It won't be the same without Brockie, but he always said he wanted the band to go on forever and I think it's awesome that they're giving it a try. From what I've heard, they're doing pretty well.

I had the distinct honor of talking to Mr Brockie on two occasions. The first time was in 1996 when they played a crappy little bar in Morgantown West Virginia called the Nyabinghi Dancehall. The place was a total dive. There were holes in the walls with wiring hanging out, places where they had torn out walls and left three inch high differences in the floor level that you couldn't see in a crowd and burn marks on the ceiling where the place had caught fire a few times. They also got all the best musicians. There were pictures on the walls from all the famous acts that had played there over the years. The place used to be called The Underground Railroad before becoming the Nyabinghi Dancehall and in the years since I graduated it has been brought up to code and imaginatively named 123 Pleasants Street which is, you guessed it, the address of the place. For all I know it's been changed again since then.

Anyway, my anthropology teacher at the time had gone to college with the guys from GWAR and name dropping him gave me the opportunity to briefly meet the band. Just a quick "Hey, how ya doin'?" but since it was my first real concert it was the most amazing thing ever. I was only familiar with GWAR from their appearances on Beavis & Butthead so I had no idea what I was in for when the show actually started. In short, it was transcendent.

So fast-forward to 2009, I get a chance to talk to Mr Brockie again and I say "You probably don't remember me, but we've met before in 1996 at a crappy little bar in Morgantown, West Virginia called..." and he interrupts me with "The Nyabinghi Dancehall! Oh man, that place was a logistical nightmare to play!' We then spent a few minutes going on about the place. Both times I met him he was a really awesome guy who really seemed to care about his fans. He was the heart of the band and it will never be the same without him, but I'm going in with an open mind and I'm sure I'll be entertained.

GWAR will go on.

R.I.P. Mr. Brockie. I will admit, I'm not fully familiar with GWAR's music. I only know GWAR from three different things: 1. a hallucination sequence in the film Empire Records. 2. Getting the pieces of two tickets is the reason behind the events in the Beavis and Butthead video game for the SNES and Sega Genesis. 3. They guest-starred in an episode of Viva La Bam!

GWAR's music has gone through a few changes in style, but for the most part they're a metal band. So if you like metal, with a comedic bent to it, then I can't recommend them highly enough. Even if you're not into their music their stage show has to be seen to be believed. Beheadings, gallons of mock bodily fluids, celebrity executions, they've got it all.

If you want an idea of Dave's wit, and what we lost, check these out -

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=oderus+urungus+red+eye

There is one missing, as it was pulled because he was less than kind to Fox Darling Sarah Palin.

As for GWAR's Music...COvering Kansas and Billy Ocean...Enjoy.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=baExq6xNhQ8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bMkA76KpWO8

I am back from the GWAR show.

The verdict?

I am too damn old to fight a mosh pit.

Beyond that, it was a great show. Like I said, it will never be the same without Dave Brockie, but it was still a great time. At the end they had a moment of silence for Oderus and I won't lie, I teared up a little.

LONG LIVE ODERUS URUNGUS!

Glad it was still fun. Last time I saw the guys live was February of this year with Dave. My friend got a shirt signed by the band. The thing I remember most about the show was the bucket loads of fake blood covering the crowd. Awesome stuff. R.I.P Brockie.


Ben