Michael Bishop (bassist)
Michael Bishop (born September 7, 1968) is an American musician.
Michael Bishop | |
---|---|
Birth name | Michael Bryan Bishop |
Also known as | Beefkake the Mighty, Blothar The Berserker |
Born | Honolulu, Hawaii, United States | September 7, 1968
Genres | Hard rock, Shock rock, heavy metal, punk, |
Occupation(s) | Musician, songwriter |
Instruments | Bass guitar, vocals |
Years active | 1984–present |
Labels | Metal Blade, Quarterstick Records |
Associated acts | Kepone, GWAR, |
Website | www |
Life and career
He attended Thomas Dale High School in Chester, Virginia. Most notably, he was the bass guitarist and, after a 20-year hiatus, is currently the lead vocalist for the American heavy metal band Gwar.[1] Bishop's first band was the Hopewell, VA-based hardcore outfit The Guilty. As a member of Gwar, he was the first to play the role of "Beefcake the Mighty".[2] The name of Beefcake was taken from Bishop's nickname during his punk years. Bishop was the bassist and lead vocalist for Kepone from 1991 through the band's breakup in 1997.[3] All three members of Kepone later performed together again as American Grizzly until that band's breakup in 2005. He played with the Misery Brothers, a country/soul band local to Charlottesville, Virginia from 2007 to 2009.[4][5][6]
Bishop earned a Ph.D. in music from UVA in 2012 and taught writing and topics in American music history at the university, specializing in popular music ethnography and performance studies.[7]
Since 2011, Kepone has reunited to play occasional shows, although it remains unknown if the band will create any new music. Outside of performing Bishop:
- teaches undergraduate courses in American music history and writing at the University of Virginia;
- is the Learning Strategist and Lead Technical Writer at education technology company Interfolio
As of August 2014, Bishop is the lead vocalist for Gwar as a new character Blothar, replacing the late singer Dave Brockie who played the role of Oderus Urungus due to his death of heroin overdose on March 23, 2014.
Discography
- Gwar
- Hell-O (1988)
- Scumdogs of the Universe (1990)
- America Must Be Destroyed (1992)
- This Toilet Earth (1994)
- We Kill Everything (1999)
- The Blood of Gods (2017)
- Kepone
- Ugly Dance (1994)
- Skin (1995)
- Kepone (1997)
References
- Gwar
- Huey, Steve. "Biography: GWAR". Allmusic. Retrieved May 31, 2010.
- "Kepone Discography". discogs.com. Retrieved October 27, 2017.
- "McIntire Department of Music Newsletter". University of Virginia. Archived from the original on November 27, 2011. Retrieved July 31, 2012.
- "Misery Brothers". Myspace. Retrieved February 9, 2009.
- "Friday". Nailgun: A Central Virginia Music Blog. Nailgun Media. Retrieved July 31, 2012.
- TEDx. "MEET OUR SPEAKERS". TEDx RVA. Archived from the original on August 6, 2015. Retrieved August 13, 2015.