GWAR AT FRANKLIN MUSIC HALL IN PHILADELPHIA
The scumdogs are back at it again! Celebrating the 30th anniversary of their album Scumdogs of the Universe, thrash metal band GWAR are back out on the road and leaving their audience looking like they stepped out of a crime scene. Philadelphia couldn’t have spent a better night out to celebrate Halloween Weekend!
Before GWAR hit the stage, Eyehategod and Napalm Death opened. Both bands had the crowd moshing and getting energized for GWAR during their respective sets. Napalm Death was a lot of fun to watch as frontman Mark Greenway threw himself around the stage while delivering killer vocals.
When it was time for GWAR to come on stage, security and fans braced themselves for the messy night ahead. The thing that I love the most about GWAR is that when you see them live, their shows have a crazy storyline that always delves you deep into their universe. This time, the show started with the first character coming on stage and brandishing a severed head, explaining that he killed one of the members of GWAR. When the band came out another character was beheaded - the start of the chaos. Looking across the barricade and out into the crowd at a GWAR show you see a lot of people wearing white. The venue becomes a splash zone and they’re reading to be stained. If you’re unfamiliar with the band, throughout the show characters are brutally ripped apart and fake blood is spewed into the audience - A LOT of fake blood. The over the top, cartoony nature of this is amusing and you can’t help but laugh and have a great time. The band themselves are always dressed in their giant costumes, which is impressive to watch them perform in as I couldn’t imagine having all the bulky outfits on while still rocking out the way they do.
Being the 30th anniversary of the Scumdogs album, the audience was treated to a setlist that was heavy on tracks from it. GWAR played fan favorites such as “The Salaminizer”, “Sick of You”, and “Death Pod”. In between tracks there were fun bits of story thrown in with some wild fight scenes. The band loves to dismantle characters based on political figures at their shows so of course Joe Biden was the victim for this tour, which also gives the band yet another chance to soak their audience.
You can expect to be in for a fun, entertaining night when going out to see GWAR. Bring a towel in your car for after the show, and get ready to let loose and get messy!
Nicole DiBenedetto is a photographer based out of New Jersey. She likes making new friends and meeting new people so catch her out in the pit and say hi!