GWAR And Regional Identity In Richmond, VA | Dr. Michael Bishop | TEDxRVA

GWAR And Regional Identity In Richmond, VA | Dr. Michael Bishop | TEDxRVA

This talk was given at a local TEDx event, produced independently of the TED Conferences. It was filmed and edited by Tijo Media at the Carpenter Theatre at Richmond CenterStage in Richmond, VA. Select images credited to http://www.sofakingcoolonline.com/.

Michael Bishop is a Richmond musician best known for his work with GWAR. In the late 1980s, Bishop started as the bassist for the shock rock band while in high school, creating the character Beefkake the Mighty. Bishop left the band to concentrate on Kepone, a post-punk group who released three records between 1992 and 2000. In 2012, he earned a Ph.D. in music from the University of Virginia, specializing in popular music ethnography and performance studies. Following the death of GWAR singer Dave Brockie in 2014, Michael became the band’s vocalist, the Berserker Blöthar. Today, he stays busy as a writer and learning strategist, a member of Kepone and a country and soul group called the Misery Brothers, and the bassist for Sarah White. He also works with composer J. William Adkins on music, stage, and animation projects.

Driving across the Chesapeake Bay Bridge / Tunnel Linking The Eastern Shore Of Virginia to The Mainland

Driving across the Chesapeake Bay Bridge / Tunnel linking the eastern shore of Virginia to the mainland

Only a few places on earth make me feel as alive, the moment I see them, as the Chesapeake Bay. There is nothing quite like this region and especially the mouth of it opening into the Atlantic Ocean, linking the eastern shore of Virginia to the mainland. Growing up on the Delmarva peninsula we are isolated from everything, except the salty air, austere locals and the beautiful land between the bay and ocean. Life is a bit slower and the dialect is as crisp as Old Bay seeping into a cut after eating hard shell crabs, but I hope it never changes. This 17 mile wide expanse is something to be thankful for on this holiday as it is one of the cradle's of history for the East Coast and the birth of America.

Run What Ya Brung 3 Updates

Updates as of September 19, 2013:

Getting emails and calls from quite a few folks on the run. I added a map below as a link to Google maps which will be updated and also is wide open to the public for folks to add in other elements. Meadows of Dan, VA is where the Willville Bike Camp is and there is also another campground directly next store. The motorcycle camp is very limited other than just camping so if that doesn't suit ya, within the area and over towards Galax and Hillsville there are hotels. 

Right in Meadows of Dan there is a small restaurant, two country stores that have gas and beer, so basic provisions are close by. But then again, it's all remote so maybe do some planning ahead for Friday night, October 11th.

As far as riding on Saturday October 12th goes, we have quite a few options of damn great roads all over the south western Virginia mountains. I am checking road conditions as there is one moutain peak that is a dirt and gravel road close by the party location that has one of the best views in the entire area. It is not easy to get to as it's a maintained road for cell phone towers, but well worth the expedition. 

So dig, dive around and explore the map around the area. We will be just off the Blue Ridge parkway by Coal Creek Road for the party. Lots of great roads and areas to explore. 

Check the map

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Nothing can be quite as good as the crisp fall air and rollin' through the Blue Ridge Mountains. For our third annual Run What Ya Brung, we are opting to hit some new roads and to get a killer back yard party running full throttle. 

This is the rundown plain and simple. Friday night we will be rolling into the Willville Motorcycle Camp in Meadows of Dan, VA. Right up the street at the Floyd Country Store is a Friday night jam session of local musicians. The campsite offers cabins, bunk houses, camp sites along with showers and other facilities on site.

On Saturday we will be hitting some back roads and eventually ending up at a buddy of ours private property for a back yard jam session off the Blue Ridge Parkway, by Galax Virginia. The Jam Session will be with JB Beverley, Buck Thrailkill and Jake Cox for some good ol' Americana, Bluegrass and Real Country music. Camping will be allowed on site for free as long as everyone cleans up after themselves and is respectful of the property.

Anyone is welcome to roll in for the Saturday party if you want to enjoy the music, as it's all about a good time. Being that there is no charge for camping on Saturday as it's private property, it will be at minimum a $10 donation for the band fund. We will be posting a more info about the run shortly, but check your calendar, tune your ride and clear the dates. 

Run What Ya Brung 3 on Google Maps

To get in touch about the run, hit us up on Facebook

Run What Ya Brung 3, October 11th and 12th 2013, western Virginia mountains

Run What Ya Brung 3 - Western, Virginia

Nothing can be quite as good as the crisp fall air and rollin' through the Blue Ridge Mountains. For our third annual Run What Ya Brung, we are opting to hit some new roads and to get a killer back yard party running full throttle. 

This is the rundown plain and simple. Friday night we will be rolling into the Willville Motorcycle Camp in Meadows of Dan, VA. Right up the street at the Floyd Country Store is a Friday night jam session of local musicians. The campsite offers cabins, bunk houses, camp sites along with showers and other facilities on site.

On Saturday we will be hitting some back roads and eventually ending up at a buddy of ours private property for a back yard jam session off the Blue Ridge Parkway, by Galax Virginia. The Jam Session will be with JB Beverley, Buck Thrailkill and Jake Cox for some good ol' Americana, Bluegrass and Real Country music. Camping will be allowed on site for free as long as everyone cleans up after themselves and is respectful of the property.

Anyone is welcome to roll in for the Saturday party if you want to enjoy the music, as it's all about a good time. Being that there is no charge for camping on Saturday as it's private property, it will be at minimum a $10 donation for the band fund. We will be posting a more info about the run shortly, but check your calendar, tune your ride and clear the dates. 

Run What Ya Brung 3 on Google Maps

To get in touch about the run, hit us up on Facebook

Run What Ya Brung 3 - motorcycle run, Blue Ridge Mountains, VA - October 11th and 12th

A Sportster Crafted Into A City And Trail Prowler

Damn it can be quite refreshing to see a bike that was never intended to go in a certain direction, be completely reconfigured and revamped into another form of road beast. This here Sportster, that I was shown around the side of the building by my buddy Wes goes above and beyond in the cool department. Instead of just adding a hard tail to an older Sportster a much more unique plan was conceived and carried out. Great looking bike and well put together build.

Sportster re-envisioned to hit the trails

Dual Sport Sportster and bad ass!

Lamb of God Reveal New Album

A post over at TrueCultHeavyMetal.com caught our attention this morning and that being the one and only Lamb Of God's announcement of their new album. These guys bring the thunder like no other and their tight ensemble harkens back to the amazing shows once displayed by Pantera. Will be interested to see the growth in their sound or will they continue to tread similar waters. Metal doesn't like to be pigeon holed and many folks enjoy their mix of medleys to be consistent, but with a talent such as Lamb of God, would be stoked to see just how far they can push their boundaries and yet still remain on point.

Link to original post on TrueCultHeavyMetal.com

"Pure American metallers Lamb Of God have announced their new album, including the tracklisting and the album art. Their sixth full lenth under the Lamb Of God moniker was produced by Josh Wilbur (who produced previous album 'Wrath') and will be released on January 24 via Roadrunner records. Entitled 'Resolution', the album consists of 14 tracks, and was described to Terrorizer by bass player John Campbell as their "smartest" album to date. "Every single time you read a band talking about having a new record come out, of course they're going to say it's the greatest thing they've ever done," says John. "But I think our body of work, if you look at it from 'Burn The Priest' on, every record is truly a progression. I think we've got a lot better at what we do, and I feel this record falls right into line with that. We've really topped ourselves, it's making some new waves, and it's my favourite and the best sounding record that we have to date." And while he describes the album as being sonically closest to 'Wrath' out of all their records, there are some new tricks in the bag.

"There's one song on there that has some string arrangements and there's another vocalist involved in a song – not a guest appearance, we don't have Glen Danzig showing up on our record – but one song has a string arrangement and operatic vocals." Given how brilliant 'Wrath' was, we're beyond excited for this new record. January 24 cannot come soon enough."He says: in the bag. He says:

RESOLUTION 1.24.12 from Lamb of God on Vimeo.

The tracklisting for 'Resolution' is as follows: 

1. Straight for the Sun 

2. Desolation 

3. Ghost Walking 

4. Guilty 

5. The Undertow 

6. The Number Six 

7. Barbarosa 

8. Invictus 

9. Cheated 

10. Insurrection 

11. Terminally Unique 

12. To The End 

13. Visitation 

14. King Me