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GWAR Frontman DAVE BROCKIE A.K.A. ODERUS URUNGUS Dead At 50

Manos Spanos
**UPDATE**: GWAR's manager, Jack Flanagan, has released the following statement: "It is with a saddened heart that I confirm my dear friend Dave Brockie, artist, musician, and lead singer of GWAR, passed away at approximately 6:50 p.m. EST Sunday, March 23, 2014. His body was found Sunday by his bandmate at his home in Richmond, Virginia. Richmond authorities have confirmed his death and next of kin has been notified. A full autopsy will be performed. He was 50 years old, born August 30, 1963. "My main focus right now is to look after my bandmates and his family. "More information regarding his death shall be released as the details are confirmed." The original article follows below. Dave Brockie, better known as Oderus Urungus, the founder and lead singer of renowned Richmond, Virginia metal band GWAR, has died. Roommates reportedly found Brockie's body at his home Sunday evening (March 23). "I wish it was a joke," former GWAR bassist Chris Bopst, a music writer for Style Weekly, told the site. "Everyone is in shock." Brockie was 50 years old. Richmond Police also confirmed Brockie's death. "At approximately 6:53 p.m. on Sunday, Richmond Police were called to a residence in the 4800 block of West Seminary Avenue for a report of a deceased individual," a Richmond Police spokeswoman said in a statement. "When officers arrived, they found David M. Brockie, 50, deceased inside the home. Detectives do not suspect foul play at this time and the Medical Examiner's Office will determine cause of death." "Dave was one of the funniest, smartest, most creative and energetic persons I've known," former GWAR bassist Mike Bishop told Style Weekly. "He was brash sometimes, always crass, irreverent, he was hilarious in every way. But he was also deeply intelligent and interested in life, history, politics and art. His penchant for scatological humors belied a lucid wit. He was a criminally underrated lyricist and hard rock vocalist, one of the best, ever! A great frontman, a great painter, writer, he was also a hell of a bass guitarist. I loved him. He was capable of great empathy and had a real sense of justice." Vocalist Randy Blythe of fellow Richmond, Virginia metallers LAMB OF GOD, who toured with GWAR in 2009, wrote on Instagram: "I got a very sad call tonight from my buddy Chris Bopst, who was one of the original members of GWAR. My friend Dave Brockie, a.k.a. Oderus Urungus, the singer of GWAR, has left the building and taken off back to his home planet. He was 50 years old. "I do not know details of why he died yet, just that he passed away at home and his roommates found him. "When someone dies, a lot of the time people will say, 'Oh, he was a unique person, really one of a kind, a true original.' Most of these people no idea of what they are talking about; they obviously had never met Dave. "Dave TRULY WAS ONE OF A KIND. I can't think of ANYONE even remotely like him. That's VERY HARD TO SAY. "My band learned how to become a real touring band from GWAR. They gave us out first shot at this thing. "I learned many things from Dave, many of which I am eternally grateful for, and some of which I am deeply ashamed of. "I took this picture at his birthday party a few months ago — Dave kissing his Oderus birthday cake. "Right now, if I were to truly honor Dave in the way HE would do it if it were ME that had died, I would make a completely tasteless joke about his death. But I do not have the stomach for that — Dave would, but not me. He never put much stock in 'limits.' "Richmond has lost one of its most creative people. "This is a crying shame to me. "Thank you, Brockie, for all the crazy shit you did. Thank God you existed, so you could do it and I didn't have to. It was an honor to know you, to be your Shaky Slave, to serve in the Blood Vomits along side you (let's ride!), and to be soaked by your sweet cuttlefish. "RIP Dave Brockie. Oderus, enjoy your trip back home." Bassist Chris Kael of FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH said: "Just read about the passing of Dave Brockie — Oderus Urungus from GWAR. We had the privilege of playing with GWAR just one month ago at Soundwave festival in Australia. Dave was always right there on the side of the stage that FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH were playing on — watching every band, laughing and enjoying life. As he entertained us in life, may his death remind us that life is short. Tell the ones around you that they are loved. Live life with a smile and a laugh. Just as Dave and I shared a laugh while talking at Soundwave. We love you. Each and every one of you. R.I.P. Dave Brockie — Oderus Urungus." Vocalist Tony Foresta of another Richmond, Virginia band, MUNICIPAL WASTE, which toured with GWAR in 2012, wrote on Instagram: "I'm so devastated right now. One of the most fun, brilliant, inspirational and creative people I've ever had the privilege to call a friend has passed. I'm going to miss you so much, pal." Dez Fafara (DEVILDRIVER, COAL CHAMBER): "Rest in peace, my brother!" EMMURE: "We are deeply saddened by the news of our fellow comrade passing away. Dave was a admired individual amongst us. He spoke highly of EMMURE and whether he knew it or not, we were very passionate about him as well. R.I.P., Oderus Urungus. GWAR FOREVER." Ben Orum (ex-ALL SHALL PERISH): "Dave, You were a creative genius. Thank you for bringing so much joy to me and my friends as we grew up with GWAR. RIP." According to Australia's TheMusic.com.au, GWAR's management will issue a statement regarding reports of Brockie's passing at approximately 1:00 p.m. EST today. Brockie is not the first member of GWAR to die at an early age. GWAR guitarist Cory Smoot, who played the character of Flattus Maximus for over ten years, was discovered dead on the band's tour bus on November 3, 2011. He was 34 years old. In a January 2012 interview with Full Metal Jackie, Brockie stated about Smoot's passing: "I think Cory's death is a big wake-up call for all of us. We all breathed a big sigh of relief when we found out it wasn't a drug overdose, to speak quite frankly. But then to think that he was 34 and died of a heart attack — it's really scary." He continued: "Everybody out there needs to take care of themselves, especially you guys who are playing in bands and starting to get up into your 40s and you're all sitting there just like me saying, 'Holy shit, this is still going on and I can keep doing this probably for the rest of my life?' Yeah, you can, but you have to take of yourself. You really, really, really, really do. So I'm trying to quit smoking right now." GWAR's latest album, "Battle Maximus", sold around 3,500 copies in the United States in its first
08 min read

ROB HALFORD: New JUDAS PRIEST Album Is ‘Absolutely Finished’

Manos Spanos
British heavy metal legends JUDAS PRIEST have completed work on their brand new studio album, to be released later in the year. Speaking to Artisan News at last night's (Monday, March 17) VIP listening party for the Ronnie James Dio tribute album "This Is Your Life" and awards gala at the Avalon in Hollywood, California, JUDAS PRIEST singer Rob Halford stated about the band's new CD (see video below): "The record is finished; it's absolutely finished as of today." He added: "It's a relief. It's a relief because whenever PRIEST makes an album, like any band, you put your heart and soul into it; it is that typical 'blood, sweat and tears.' It's not an easy thing to do 40 years later. But PRIEST has always been up for the challenge of that, and it's one of things that we love to do more than anything else as we move on through our metal years. So this is a great time for PRIEST: 40th anniversary, a brand new record. Life couldn't be better." In a 2013 interview with Billboard.com, Halford described the new PRIEST CD's sound as "hard. It's heavy. It's something we think our PRIEST fans will be thrilled with. We know we have a reputation to maintain, and we know we have to deliver something really strong and solid. The album is going to be full of all the great things you love about JUDAS PRIEST — I don't think I can say anything more than that without being hung, drawn and quartered." Speaking to VH1 Radio Network's Dave Basner, Halford said about what fans can expect from JUDAS PRIEST's next LP: "We felt it was very important to follow up [2008's] 'Nostradamus', the last release, and that was a concept experiment and it was a real success for us and the fans loved it, but I think our fans and ourselves as a band, we want to get back to the side of PRIEST that we haven't heard for a few years and reemphasize and remake those big, heavy metal statements again." PRIEST's next album will mark the band's first release with Richie Faulkner, most recently guitarist in the backing band for Lauren Harris (daughter of IRON MAIDEN bassist Steve Harris). Faulkner joined PRIEST as the replacement for original PRIEST guitarist Kenneth "K.K." Downing, who announced his retirement from the band in April 2011. Asked how it has been collaborating on new music with Faulkner, Halford told Guitar World in a 2012 interview: "Really, really strong. Exciting. He's riffing and saying, 'Robby, I'm thinking of this and this and this.' It's really exciting to have that kind of energy, because you feed off of it." He added: "[Richie] went through the ritual on [the 'Epitaph'] tour, did great work on stage, the fans embraced him, so it's now time to see what we're capable of, the writing trio of Glenn [Tipton] and Richie and myself." Regarding whether technology has changed JUDAS PRIEST's songwriting process at all, Halford said: "It's dangerous to walk around with a flash drive on a bunch of keys. [Laughs] To a great extent, it doesn't really change. The technology is amazing in terms of the advantages it brings to music now, some of it good, some of it very bad. It's all about discipline and self-belief, determination, wanting to do the best you can do and not accepting anything that's below par. We've always had that attitude in PRIEST. We've always felt really strongly about any track that goes out for our fans. We're still doing it like we always have: firing up the riffs and finding a vocal melody to go with it, me going into me wonderful world of the Roget's Thesaurus and trying to come up with a new lyric and a new idea. And that's what we've been doing for four decades."
04 min read

VINNIE PAUL On PANTERA: ‘We Accomplished A Lot Of Things That Metal Bands Had Never Done At The Time’

Manos Spanos
On March 7, former PANTERA and current HELLYEAH drummer Vinnie Paul Abbott was interviewed in the studios of the Stockholm, Sweden-based radio station Bandit Rock 106.3. You can now watch the chat below. Asked about PANTERA's enduring influence on younger metal bands, Vinnie Paul said: "I can't complain about that, man. You know, emulation is the greatest form of flattery." He continued: "[PANTERA] was a very influential band and we accomplished a lot of things that metal bands had never done at the time. In 1994, we had the first record by a true heavy metal band to ever hit the Billboard top No. 1 slot. We paved the way. And we always waved the heavy metal flag. So many bands would say that they were alternative, or they were this or that… 'Heavy metal' was a pretty uncool word after about 1992; it was almost like, 'Stay away.' But it didn't bother us one bit. And our fans were the best ever." To celebrate the 20th anniversary of PANTERA's seventh studio album, "Far Beyond Driven", a two-disc edition of the record will be made available on March 25. The new version will include a newly remastered version of the original recordings along with a new live performance from the 1994 Monsters Of Rock festival. When PANTERA broke up in 2003, Vinnie Paul and his brother, PANTERA guitarist "Dimebag" Darrell Abbott formed DAMAGEPLAN. On December 8, 2004, while performing with DAMAGEPLAN at the Alrosa Villa in Columbus, Ohio, Dimebag was shot and killed onstage by Nathan Gale. He was 38 years old.
01 min read