Heavy metal legends GWAR have shocked the world with a performance on NPR's celebrated Tiny Desk Concert series.
The result of a Hard Times joke gone very right, GWAR appeared on the latest broadcast of Tiny Desk Concert. The elaborately costumed band somehow squeezed into the pokey confines of the NPR studio space to let rip on a set consisting of Sex Cow, I'll Be Your Monster, Ratcatcher and Phantom Limb.
As anyone who has seen GWAR live could attest, the group's banter is equally as entertaining as their wildly performative metal shenanigans, and the Tiny Desk Concert performance featured a fair dose of their absurd humour.
Despite being seasoned veterans, Blothar the Bezerker did admit to being nervous, stating "We're actually a little nervous here", "we were worried, cause let's face it, GWAR is a little bit lowbrow. Just a little, somehow, maybe", before revealing that to "boost their cultural profile" and "add a little class to proceedings" they'd invited "famed conductor" Wilhelm Fartwrangler to "oversee the performance".
Watch the full performance below.
The GWAR performance is one of the more memorable appearances on the show since Baltimore hardcore punks Turnstile rocked the NPR institution in 2022.
Recorded at the home of drummer Daniel Fang with filming and editing handled by the one and only hate5six and audio handled by Paul Mercer, Turnstile reimagined a selection of songs from their world-conquering album Glow On. The performance features the band incorporating elements of electric piano into their sound with great impact and you can tell that they enjoyed the process of cultivating a unique Tiny Desk Concert experience, with the performance taking place against a wonderful installation art piece by Crucial John of Give.
Turnstile's latest full-length, Glow On which was released via Roadrunner Records in 2021 when it was one of our albums-of-the-year!
Listen to the best new heavy tracks via the Metal Maniacs playlist.
