Live: GWAR in Indianapolis

Intergalactic metal gods GWAR have hit the road for their annual Fall trek. This time, they brought a party with them in Nekrogoblikon and Crobot, landing at Indy’s Vogue Theatre- a venue GWAR have destroyed time and time again but somehow keeps building itself back up.  Crobot kicked things off with a show that started with frontman Brandon Yeagley hatching out of a giant egg and jumping out onto the stage.  Throughout the night, they upped the ante for GWAR and Nekrogoblikon, with Yeagley jumping on his bandmates’ shoulders, flashing a giant flood light around the venue, making sure the crowd was ready for the next two bands.  Nekrogoblikon kept the eccentricities going with hype man John Goblikon- yes, a goblin- dancing around the stage, high-fiving the band and fans, playing ukulele and air guitar and even pulling out the recorder we all know and love from elementary school before leaving the stage pretending it was a goblin penis.  As if this wasn’t enough, GWAR hadn’t even taken the stage yet but, when they did, the party really started.  As the set change took place, scenes from the new, critically acclaimed This Is GWAR documentary played on the stage screen as fans watched with excitement.  The set started with a decapitation and blood spraying the security pit and fans in the first few rows, drenching them in crimson.  The band played long time fan favorites while throwing in a few from their new record, The New Dark Ages, which got just as big of a response as songs like “Sadam A Go-Go,” “Bring Back The Bomb” or “Sick Of You.”  The murder and killing was running rampant as always, with GWAR murdering a redneck to start the show, a military soldier during “Bring Back The Bomb,” members of the Union and Confederacy- after which GWAR obviously won the Civil War and many more moments fans would walk away remembering forever. Whether this was fans’ first GWAR show or their 100th GWAR show, it didn’t matter. The production and stage show in 2022 are right in line with the show from years and decades before. GWAR haven’t strayed from what’s made them so popular- they’ve embraced it and continue to push the envelope year after year and the tour they\’ve brought this time around is the most fun, strange, weird one yet. -Reggie Edwards