Legendary shock rock outfit Gwar has never shied away from political satire, but according to frontman Mike “Blöthar The Berserker” Bishop, the reaction to their recent stage theatrics reached an entirely new level.
During a recent appearance on “Rocking With Jam Man“, the vocalist discussed the intense criticism the group faced after theatrically disemboweling a dummy resembling former President Donald Trump during their September performance at Riot Fest in Chicago. The bloody spectacle, a staple of the band’s long-running, over-the-top live shows, ignited a massive online debate regarding the boundaries of political parody and free expression in live music.
When asked which of their infamous on-stage “killings” triggered the most severe blowback over the years, Bishop pointed directly to the current political climate, noting a distinct shift in how audiences respond to their gore-filled humor.
“Probably the biggest… All in all, I’m gonna say this, that for years Gwar would do whatever the f**k we wanted. We would kill politicians from both sides of the aisle. We would kill famous people. We never had any backlash. I mean, granted, when we killed Princess Diana, people got a little upset. When we pulled a fish out of Laci Peterson‘s pu**y, people got a little upset. But until Donald Trump got in office, that’s when people started getting extremely upset about politics and music and politics in art. That marked the moment that suddenly Gwar was… People acted as if Gwar had changed, but Gwar didn’t change. The world fricking changed. The way people felt about politics changed. The way people felt about comedy and humor changed,” he said (as transcribed by Blabbermouth).
The frontman expanded on the specific demographics criticizing the band, pointing out that the pushback didn’t come from the groups traditionally associated with censorship or political correctness.
“Comics like to complain about, ‘Uh, well, college campuses and censoring speech.’ And yeah, it is true,” he continued. “College kids are fricking stupid. There’s no question about it. And being uptight about identity politics is absurd, but we still never got any heat from that segment. It’s not like feminists or the politically correct squad, they didn’t really come after Gwar. Who came after Gwar was f**king Trump fans. That’s who came after Gwar. It was people that once… Suddenly they can see that they’re on the outside of a cultural moment. And it’s a weird thing, man.”
Bishop also highlighted the stark difference in reactions across different political administrations, emphasizing how modern censorship often manifests through economic pressure rather than direct government intervention.
“We [fictitiously] killed President Obama. We didn’t hear from the Secret Service. But you [fictitiously] kill Trump, and you better believe that there’s gonna be some s**t going on. And that happened to us. It happened to us not too long ago. And the truth of the matter is that people think that you live in America, and you look around the world and you’re, like, ‘Oh, well, we’re free. They’re not.’ That’s bulls**t. It’s absolute bulls**t. They don’t have to call the police on you. What they have to do is make it hard for you to make money. And that’s what they try to do. And especially a company like Live Nation, which is a big concert company that does shows and stuff like that, they are susceptible to pressure from the government. They need the government to kind of look the other way on some of their bulls**t, like antitrust laws and things like that. And when you upset them, they can lean on you, and that is f**king censorship, no matter what you call it. so, we have faced that. Gwar faces it all the time. It’s a real f**king thing,” he added.
When the interviewer asked for clarification on whether the Secret Service has actually investigated the band over their stage props, the vocalist offered a brief, cryptic response:
“Well, let’s just say that Gwar is on some lists.”
In a recent interview with The Guardian, Gwar rhythm guitarist Mike Derks (better known by his alter-ego Balsac The Jaws Of Death) revealed that the band became the target of serious death threats following the Riot Fest performance. He pointed out the deep irony of facing such severe backlash in a country built on the foundation of free speech.
“In a sense, it’s just laughable, but it was scary when we were getting death threats over social media. It did get me very upset when people were trying to say: ‘Oh, you can’t do that.’ This is the country where we’re supposed to be able to do that! People were saying we can’t do it after we’d been doing it for 40 years,” he said at the time.
Earlier in April, Gwar announced the “Gor Gor Must Die! Tour“, promising to bring their signature blood-soaked theatrical spectacle to venues across the continent.
Joining Gwar on the road will be black ‘n’ roll heavyweights Midnight as direct support. Fast-food parody metal outfit Mac Sabbath is slated to open every night of the trek. Additionally, select dates will feature special appearances by X-Cops and Atomic Rule to round out the stacked touring package.
Gwar “Gor Gor Must Die!” 2026 Tour Dates:
- 27 Oct – Charlottesville, VA @ The Jefferson Theater *
- 28 Oct – Atlanta, GA @ The Masquerade (Heaven) *
- 29 Oct – Jacksonville, FL @ FIVE *
- 30 Oct – 03 Nov – Miami, FL @ Headbangers Boat
- 04 Nov – Fort Lauderdale, FL @ Revolution *
- 05 Nov – Orlando, FL @ The Beacham *
- 06 Nov – Myrtle Beach, SC @ House of Blues *
- 07 Nov – Winston-Salem, NC @ The Ramkat *
- 08 Nov – Nashville, TN @ Brooklyn Bowl *
- 09 Nov – Little Rock, AR @ The Hall *
- 10 Nov – Dallas, TX @ AM/FM *
- 12 Nov – Denver, CO @ Ogden Theatre +
- 13 Nov – Salt Lake City, UT @ Rockwell at The Complex +
- 14 Nov – Las Vegas, NV @ Brooklyn Bowl +
- 15 Nov – Reno, NV @ Cargo Concert Hall +
- 17 Nov – Tempe, AZ @ The Marquee +
- 18 Nov – Anaheim, CA @ House of Blues +
- 19 Nov – Berkeley, CA @ The UC Theatre +
- 20 Nov – Chico, CA @ Senator Theatre +
- 21 Nov – Bend, OR @ Midtown Ballroom +
- 23 Nov – Seattle, WA @ Showbox SoDo +
- 24 Nov – Spokane, WA @ Knitting Factory +
- 25 Nov – Vancouver, BC @ Vogue Theatre +
- 27 Nov – Edmonton, AB @ Midway Music Hall +
- 28 Nov – Calgary, AB @ MacEwan Hall +
- 30 Nov – Winnipeg, MB @ Burton Cummings Theatre +
- 02 Dec – Lincoln, NE @ Bourbon Theatre +
- 03 Dec – Milwaukee, WI @ The Rave *
- 04 Dec – Pontiac, MI @ The Crofoot Ballroom *
- 05 Dec – Cleveland, OH @ House of Blues *
- 06 Dec – McKees Rocks, PA @ Roxian Theatre *
- 08 Dec – Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club *
- 09 Dec – Worcester, MA @ The Palladium *
- 10 Dec – New York, NY @ The Palladium Times Square *
- 11 Dec – Philadelphia, PA @ The Fillmore Philadelphia *
- 12 Dec – Norfolk, VA @ The NorVa *
*with X-Cops +with Atomic Rule
