Brendon Small (born February 15, 1975) is an American actor, stand-up comedian, animator, writer, director, producer, and musician known for co-creating the

animated series An animated series is a set of animated works with a common series title, usually related to one another. These episodes should typically share the same main characters, some different secondary characters and a basic theme. Series can have either ...

Home Movies A home movie is a short amateur film or video typically made just to preserve a visual record of family activities, a vacation, or a special event, and intended for viewing at home by family and friends. Originally, home movies were made on ph ...

'' (1999–2004, with

Loren Bouchard Loren Hal Bouchard (born October 10, 1969) is an American animator, writer, producer, director, and composer. He is the creator of several animated TV shows such as ''Bob's Burgers'', ''Lucy, the Daughter of the Devil'', and ''Central Park''. He i ...

) and ''

Metalocalypse ''Metalocalypse'' is an American adult animated television series, created by Brendon Small and Tommy Blacha, which premiered on August 6, 2006, followed by a musical one-hour special, '' Metalocalypse: The Doomstar Requiem'', on October 27, 201 ...

'' (2006–13, with

Tommy Blacha Thomas Blacha (born August 25, 1962) is an American voice actor, writer, and producer. He is known working for shows such as ''Metalocalypse'', ''Da Ali G Show'' and ''Late Night with Conan O'Brien''. Career Blacha started as a local Chicago Co ...

). He also writes the music, and is the main performer for the virtual

melodic death metal Melodic death metal (also referred to as melodeath) is a subgenre of death metal that employs highly melodic guitar riffs, often borrowing from traditional heavy metal (including New Wave of British Heavy Metal). The genre features the heavines ...

band

Dethklok Dethklok is a fictional melodic death metal band featured in the Adult Swim animated television series ''Metalocalypse''. The first official Dethklok album was released on September 25, 2007, entitled '' The Dethalbum''. The album debuted at n ...

, which began as the subject of ''Metalocalypse'' but has taken on a life of its own, with four albums and an occasional live touring band, headed by Small. Small has also released two albums under his own name, in a similar musical style to Dethklok.

Early life and education

Small was born in

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

in 1975. He moved to

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

as a child. Small started learning guitar at the age of 14 after a kid in his neighborhood began teaching him about guitar and music. At his first public performance, his hands shook so wildly that he had trouble controlling the guitar. It would be another ten years before he was comfortable performing in public. He graduated from

Palma High School Palma School is a grade 6-12 Catholic boys school located in Salinas, California, United States. Located in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Monterey, its motto is "Palma Merenti," which translates in English as "Palms to the Victor." History Palm ...

Salinas, California Salinas (; Spanish for "Salt Marsh or Salt Flats") is a city in California and the county seat of Monterey County. With a population of 163,542 in the 2020 Census, Salinas is the most populous city in Monterey County. Salinas is an urban area lo ...

. He graduated from

Berklee College of Music Berklee College of Music is a private music college in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the largest independent college of contemporary music in the world. Known for the study of jazz and modern American music, it also offers college-level cours ...

in 1997. During his music studies, he took several writing and comedy classes at

Emerson College Emerson College is a private college with its main campus in Boston, Massachusetts. It also maintains campuses in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California and Well, Limburg, Netherlands ( Kasteel Well). Founded in 1880 by Charles Wesley Emerson as a ...

. After graduating, he felt that the

rock music Rock music is a broad genre of popular music that originated as " rock and roll" in the United States in the late 1940s and early 1950s, developing into a range of different styles in the mid-1960s and later, particularly in the United States an ...

genre was fading in popularity, so decided to try his hand at stand-up comedy.

Career

Media

Small was performing stand up at The Comedy Studio in

Harvard Square Harvard Square is a triangular plaza at the intersection of Massachusetts Avenue, Brattle Street and John F. Kennedy Street near the center of Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. The term "Harvard Square" is also used to delineate the busin ...

when he was spotted by

, who at the time was casting for the central character for a

UPN The United Paramount Network (UPN) was an American broadcast television network that launched on January 16, 1995. It was originally owned by Chris-Craft Industries' United Television. Viacom (through its Paramount Television unit, which pr ...

pilot produced by

Tom Snyder Productions Soup2Nuts (sometimes referred to as Soup2Nuts Studios, and formerly part of Tom Snyder Productions) was an American animation studio founded by Tom Snyder. The studio is known for its animated comedy series, its use of Squigglevision, a techniqu ...

, which eventually evolved into ''

''. Small and Bouchard co-created ''Home Movies'', an animated series that initially aired on the

television network which moved to

Cartoon Network Cartoon Network (often abbreviated as CN) is an American cable television channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. It is a part of The Cartoon Network, Inc., a division that also has the broadcasting and production activities of Boomerang, Car ...

Adult Swim Adult Swim (AS; stylized as

dult swim Dult is a village in Batala in Gurdaspur district of Punjab State, India. It is located from sub district headquarter, from district headquarter and from Sri Hargobindpur. The village is administrated by Sarpanch an elected representati ...

and often abbreviated as s is an American adult-oriented night-time cable television Television channel, channel that shares channel space with the basic cable network Cartoon Network and is programme ...

block. The series ran for four seasons from 1999 to 2004. Small was one of the show's writers, while Bouchard served as the director. In the series, he voiced the show's protagonist, 8-year-old aspiring filmmaker Brendon Small, as well as a number of other characters. Small composed the show's theme music, as well as writing and performing numerous other songs for the show's soundtrack. Small lent his voice to a number of other animated shows. He co-starred as Chad in the

BET Black Entertainment Television (acronym BET) is an American basic cable channel targeting African-American audiences. It is owned by the CBS Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Global via BET Networks and has offices in New York City, Los A ...

animated sitcom, ''

Hey Monie! ''Hey Monie!'' is an American animated sitcom produced by Soup2Nuts. It features heavily improvised dialogue by the Second City cast, similarly to Soup2Nuts animated sitcom ''Home Movies''. Its creator and executive producer was Dorothea Gilli ...

'', and has voiced many supporting characters in ''

The Venture Bros. ''The Venture Bros.'' is an American adult animated action comedy TV series created by Chris McCulloch (also known as "Jackson Publick") for Cartoon Network's late night programming block Adult Swim. Following a pilot episode on February 16, 200 ...

'', including that show's

shell shock Shell shock is a term coined in World War I by the British psychologist Charles Samuel Myers to describe the type of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) many soldiers were afflicted with during the war (before PTSD was termed). It is a react ...

ed and drug-addicted version of

Jonny Quest ''Jonny Quest'' is a science fiction-adventure media franchise that revolves around the titular boy named Jonny Quest, who accompanies his scientist father on extraordinary adventures. The franchise started with a 1964–1965 television serie ...

. Small has had cameo roles in ''

Aqua Teen Hunger Force ''Aqua Teen Hunger Force'' (also known by various alternative titles), sometimes abbreviated as ''ATHF'' or ''Aqua Teen'', is an American adult animated television series created by Dave Willis and Matt Maiellaro for Cartoon Network's late ni ...

'', ''

Squidbillies ''Squidbillies'' is an American animated television series created by Jim Fortier and Dave Willis for Cartoon Network's late night programming block, Adult Swim. An unofficial pilot for the series aired on April 1, 2005. The series later made ...

'', ''

Reno 911! ''Reno 911!'' is an American comedy television series airing on Comedy Central. It is a mockumentary-style parody of law enforcement documentary shows, specifically '' Cops'', with comic actors playing the police officers. Thomas Lennon, Rober ...

'' and ''

Frisky Dingo ''Frisky Dingo'' is an American adult animated cartoon series created by Adam Reed and Matt Thompson for Adult Swim. The series revolves around the conflict between a supervillain named Killface and a superhero named Awesome X, alias billionair ...

''. Small, along with

Scott Adsit Robert Scott Adsit (born November 26, 1965) is an American actor, comedian, and writer. Born and raised in the Chicago suburbs, Adsit joined the mainstage cast of Chicago's The Second City in 1994 after attending Columbia College Chicago. He app ...

, appeared as lead characters of the Adult Swim pilot ''Let's Fish''; the show's pilot premiered on May 13, 2007, but the series was not picked up. In April 2005, the

Sci Fi Channel Syfy (formerly Sci-Fi Channel, later shortened to Sci Fi; stylized as SYFY) is an American basic cable channel owned by the NBCUniversal Television and Streaming division of Comcast's NBCUniversal through NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment. Lau ...

announced an upcoming debut of a half-hour animated ensemble comedy show created by Small titled ''Barbarian Chronicles''. The show, which has not aired, was said to be produced by Small and

Worldwide Pants Incorporated Worldwide Pants Inc. is an American television and film production company founded and owned by comedian and talk show host David Letterman. The company was formerly headquartered at the Ed Sullivan Theater building in New York City, but has sinc ...

. Small has said that there are no plans to air the show but that anything can happen in the future. Small posed for a pictorial that appeared in the April 2006 issue of ''

Playgirl ''Playgirl'' was an American magazine that featured general interest articles, lifestyle and celebrity news, in addition to nude or semi-nude men. In the 1970s and 1980s, the magazine printed monthly and was marketed mainly to women, although i ...

'' magazine, as part of a humor-themed issue. Small posed naked holding a medieval flail and a strategically placed metal shield that hid his genitals. Small served as co-producer, co-writer and composer for the Adult Swim animated series ''

'', which ran for four seasons from 2006 to 2012, along with a 2013 special, '' Metalocalypse: The Doomstar Requiem''. The series focused on a fictional

band named

, and each episode features a song performed by the band. In addition to writing, directing and executive producing the series, he also provided voice talent for the characters

Skwisgaar Skwigelf Dethklok is a fictional melodic death metal band featured in the Adult Swim animated television series ''Metalocalypse''. The first official Dethklok album was released on September 25, 2007, entitled ''The Dethalbum''. The album debuted at nu ...

Pickles Pickles may refer to: Dogs * Pickles (dog) (died 1967), a dog that found the stolen World Cup trophy in 1966 * Pickles (pickleball), a dog often cited as the name origin for the sport of pickleball * Mr. Pickles, the titular demonic dog in ...

, and

Nathan Explosion Dethklok is a fictional melodic death metal band featured in the Adult Swim animated television series ''Metalocalypse''. The first official Dethklok album was released on September 25, 2007, entitled ''The Dethalbum''. The album debuted at nu ...

, three of the five members of Dethklok. Small has stated that while animation is his dream job, he does not really like watching animation that much. In 2007 and 2009, Small hosted the annual

Guitar Superstar Guitar Superstar is a yearly competition hosted by the Guitar Player magazine in which 10 finalists compete for the title of Guitar Superstar or Guitar Hero for the year. The competition started in 2005 as the Guitar Hero Competition but was change ...

competition and in 2008 he was one of the judges. In 2010, Small directed

Soundgarden Soundgarden was an American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1984 by singer and drummer Chris Cornell, lead guitarist Kim Thayil (both of whom are the only members to appear in every incarnation of the band), and bassist Hiro Yamamo ...

's music video for " Black Rain", and

The Damned Things The Damned Things is an American rock supergroup consisting of Fall Out Boy's Joe Trohman and Andy Hurley, Anthrax's Scott Ian, Every Time I Die's Keith Buckley, and Alkaline Trio's Dan Andriano. The band's name is inspired by the lyrics in Ram ...

' music video for "We've Got a Situation Here". Small's virtual band

appeared, via video, at the 2009 Golden Gods Awards. The band received the award for Best International Band. At the 2010 Golden Gods Awards, Small attended and performed with

Brian Posehn Brian Edmund Posehn (; born July 6, 1966) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, voice actor, musician, and writer. After numerous appearances as a television guest star, Posehn acquired his first major recurring role in HBO's '' Mr. Show wi ...

's band and introduced

Fear Factory Fear Factory is an American heavy metal band formed in Los Angeles in 1989. Throughout the band's career, they have released ten full-length albums and have evolved through a succession of sounds, all in their main style of industrial metal. ...

's set. At the 2011 Golden Gods Awards, Small attended and introduced

DevilDriver DevilDriver is an American heavy metal band from Santa Barbara, California, formed in 2002, consisting of vocalist Dez Fafara, lead guitarist Mike Spreitzer, drummer Davier Pérez, bassist Jon Miller and rhythm guitarist Alex Lee. The band was ...

's set. Small attended the 2012 Golden Gods Awards and introduced

Trivium The trivium is the lower division of the seven liberal arts and comprises grammar, logic, and rhetoric. The trivium is implicit in ''De nuptiis Philologiae et Mercurii'' ("On the Marriage of Philology and Mercury") by Martianus Capella, but t ...

's set. He was nominated for best guitarist at the 2013 Golden Gods Awards but did not win. In May 2014, Small wrote a column for ''

Premier Guitar ''Premier Guitar'' is a media company devoted to guitarists. It is based in Marion, Iowa, and it's staff is focused on creating the best website, videos, podcasts, and print/digital magazine for gearheads around the world. Interviews have include ...

'' regarding his guitar techniques. Small appeared on Ken Reid's ''TV Guidance Counselor Podcast'' on May 15, 2015, as part of the Bridgetown Comedy Festival in

Portland, Oregon Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, Portland is the county seat of Multnomah County, the most populous co ...

Comedy

Small has frequently performed stand-up comedy, first in

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

, before moving to the

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

area, where he performs now. Small was one of the hosts (along with Ron Lynch and

Craig Anton Craig Ward Anton (born August 28, 1962) is an American actor and comedian. He is best known for his roles as Mr. Pettus in ''Lizzie McGuire'' and Lloyd Diffy in '' Phil of the Future''. Early life Anton was born and raised in Omaha, Nebraska, ...

) of ''The Tomorrow Show'', a live weekly musical and comedic variety show; in his off-time, Small still occasionally appears as a guest. One of his prominent forms of stand-up is character comedy, where he acts out a character he created. Some of the characters he has played are Captain Moustache, Victor Diamond, Tiny and Bernie Fretts, all of which he has performed as in the comedy podcast ''

Comedy Bang! Bang! ''Comedy Bang! Bang!'' (formerly ''Comedy Death-Ray Radio'') is a weekly comedy audio podcast, which originally began airing as a radio show on May 1, 2009.A Special Thing Forums:Comedy Death-Ray Radio starts today! Popularly known as ''Humani ...

''. In recent years, Small's time has become booked from his music and television career, but he still occasionally performs stand-up at venues such as

The Steve Allen Theater The Steve Allen Theater at the Center for Inquiry in Hollywood, California, was a 99-seat theater which was developed by founding artistic director Amit Itelman. Moved to The Carl Sagan & Ann Druyan Theater. The Center for Inquiry is a nonprofit ...

, The Ice House and

The Baked Potato The Baked Potato is a prominent jazz club on Cahuenga Boulevard in Studio City, Los Angeles, California, opened by Don Randi (father of bassist Leah Randi) in 1970. Randi formed his own group, Don Randi and Quest, as the house band. Over the ye ...

. Small credits

Monty Python Monty Python (also collectively known as the Pythons) were a British comedy troupe who created the sketch comedy television show '' Monty Python's Flying Circus'', which first aired on the BBC in 1969. Forty-five episodes were made over four ...

Albert Brooks Albert Brooks (born Albert Lawrence Einstein ; July 22, 1947) is an American actor and filmmaker. He received an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor for 1987's '' Broadcast News'' and was widely praised for his performance as a ...

Woody Allen Heywood "Woody" Allen (born Allan Stewart Konigsberg; November 30, 1935) is an American film director, writer, actor, and comedian whose career spans more than six decades and multiple Academy Award-winning films. He began his career writing ...

and the

Marx Brothers The Marx Brothers were an American family comedy act that was successful in vaudeville, on Broadway, and in motion pictures from 1905 to 1949. Five of the Marx Brothers' thirteen feature films were selected by the American Film Institute (AFI) ...

as his biggest comedy influences.

Music career

Small wrote all the music for the show ''Home Movies'', and released all the songs he had written for the show on the ''Home Movies'': Bonus CD. The CD was included with purchase of the Season 4 DVD box set. He wrote all the music for ''

''. In September 2007, he completed work on the first Dethklok album, ''

The Dethalbum ''The Dethalbum'' is the debut album by virtual band Dethklok, from American animated sitcom ''Metalocalypse''. It was released on September 25, 2007. The album features full length songs from the TV series, as well as previously unreleased track ...

'', on which he collaborated with

Gene Hoglan Eugene Victor Hoglan II (born August 31, 1967) is an American drummer, acclaimed for his creativity in drum arrangements, including use of abstract devices for percussion effects and his trademark lengthy double-kick drum rhythms. Though his pla ...

to deliver an authentic

sound while simultaneously retaining the light-hearted nature with which Small portrays the heavy metal genre. The album debuted at No. 21 on the ''Billboard'' 200, making it the highest-ranked

death metal Death metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. It typically employs heavily distorted and low-tuned guitars, played with techniques such as palm muting and tremolo picking; deep growling vocals; aggressive, powerful drumming, feat ...

album on the Billboard at the time. In November 2007, Small, Hoglan,

Mike Keneally Michael Joseph Keneally (born December 20, 1961) is an American session guitarist, keyboardist, vocalist and composer. Early years and musical influences Keneally started playing music at the age of 7 when he received an electric organ for h ...

and

Bryan Beller Bryan Beller (born May 6, 1971) is an American bass guitarist known for his work with Joe Satriani, The Aristocrats, Dethklok, Mike Keneally, Steve Vai, James LaBrie of Dream Theater and Dweezil Zappa, as well as his four solo album releases, ...

performed live as Dethklok at twelve US college campuses in support of ''The Dethalbum''. The

Adult Swim Adult Swim (AS; stylized as

-sponsored "Dethtour" featured Dethklok supporting

indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United States, United Kingdom and New Zealand from the 1970s to the 1980s. Originally used to describe independent record labels, the term became associated with the mu ...

band ...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead. The quartet reunited in 2008 to headline a longer "Dethtour", where they toured the US in June and early July with fellow metal bands

Chimaira Chimaira () is an American heavy metal band from Cleveland, Ohio. Formed in August 1998, the group was a member of the New Wave of American Heavy Metal scene. The band's name is derived from the word Chimera, a monstrous creature in Greek myth ...

and

Soilent Green Soilent Green is an American extreme metal band formed in 1988 in Chalmette/ Metairie on the suburbs of New Orleans, Louisiana. Described as a sludge metal and grindcore band, the group blends elements of death metal, black metal, hardcor ...

. During the tour they released the ...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead/Dethklok split EP for free at the concerts. The second Dethklok album, ''

Dethalbum II ''Dethalbum II'' is the second full length album by virtual band Dethklok, from the animated series ''Metalocalypse''. The CD and deluxe CD/DVD were released on September 29, 2009. The album was later released on LP to the United States and Canada. ...

'', was released on September 29, 2009. ''Dethalbum II'' reached No. 15 on the ''Billboard'' 200, making it the highest charting

album in history, beating the first ''Dethalbum''. A tour in support of the new album began in late 2009, where Dethklok co-headlined with the band

Mastodon A mastodon ( 'breast' + 'tooth') is any proboscidean belonging to the extinct genus ''Mammut'' (family Mammutidae). Mastodons inhabited North and Central America during the late Miocene or late Pliocene up to their extinction at the end of th ...

Small performed guest vocals as Nathan Explosion on the

Zimmers Hole Zimmers Hole is a Canadian heavy metal band from Vancouver. The band formed in 1991, and features former Strapping Young Lad members Byron Stroud, Jed Simon and Gene Hoglan, along with vocalist Chris Valagao. History ''Bound by Fire'' Zi ...

song "The Vowel Song". Small contributed guitar work to the songs "Devils Teeth" from

Exodus Exodus or the Exodus may refer to: Religion * Book of Exodus, second book of the Hebrew Torah and the Christian Bible * The Exodus, the biblical story of the migration of the ancient Israelites from Egypt into Canaan Historical events * Ex ...

's album '' Exhibit B: The Human Condition'', as well as "More Metal Than You" from comedian

's album '' Fart and Wiener Jokes''. Small created the "Murder Mix" of the song "Liar" by

Emilie Autumn Emilie Autumn Liddell (born September 22, 1979) is an American singer-songwriter, poet, author and violinist. Autumn's musical style is described by her as "Fairy Pop", "Fantasy Rock" or "Victoriandustrial". It is influenced by glam rock and ...

from the '' Liar/Dead Is the New Alive'' EP. Small performed the solo for the song "Get It Up" (

Van Halen Van Halen ( ) was an American rock band formed in Pasadena, California, in 1972. Credited with "restoring hard rock to the forefront of the music scene", Van Halen was known for its energetic live shows and for the virtuosity of its lead gu ...

cover) on

Sylencer Sylencer is an American thrash metal group from Chicago, Illinois, formed in 2006 by Markus Johansson (vocals, guitar) and Johnny Rox (bass guitar). During recording of their debut album, '' A Lethal Dose of Truth'', the band recruited drummer Ke ...

s' debut album '' A Lethal Dose of Truth''. Small performs a guitar solo on the song "Let's Make Out" on the Sex Slaves album ''Call of the Wild''. In early 2011, Small introduced the Dethklok "Thunderhorse" Explorer from

Gibson Gibson may refer to: People * Gibson (surname) Businesses * Gibson Brands, Inc., an American manufacturer of guitars, other musical instruments, and audio equipment * Gibson Technology, and English automotive and motorsport company based * Gi ...

, a guitar made to his own specifications, and modeled after Skwisgaar's Gibson Explorer. A limited edition

Epiphone Epiphone is an American musical instrument brand that traces its roots to a musical instrument manufacturing business founded in 1873 by Anastasios Stathopoulos in Smyrna, Ottoman Empire, and moved to New York City in 1908. After taking over his f ...

"Thunderhorse" Explorer, based on the Gibson "Thunderhorse" Explorer, was introduced in early 2013. In May 2012, Small introduced the prototype for the Gibson Flying V "Snow Falcon", built to his own specifications, and modeled after Toki Wartooth's Gibson Flying V. The final version of the guitar was released on December 13, 2013. In April 2012, Small released his debut solo album, '' Brendon Small's Galaktikon''. The album featured Dethklok members Beller on bass and Hoglan on drums. Small described the album as a "high-stakes, intergalactic, extreme rock album" and described it as being similar to Dethklok but with more melodic vocals and rock elements. Small performed songs from ''Brendon Small's Galaktikon'' for the first time at "WesFest 8" on March 3, 2013, in

West Hollywood West Hollywood is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Incorporated in 1984, it is home to the Sunset Strip. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 U.S. Census, its population was 35,757. It is considered one of the most ...

, California. On April 29, 2012, Small started a weekly guitar lesson video series on the Adult Swim YouTube channel, entitled "Shreducation", which consisted of 12 installments. Small, Beller and Hoglan got together to work on the third Dethklok album, ''

Dethalbum III ''Dethalbum III'' is the third full-length album by virtual death metal band Dethklok, from the Adult Swim animated series ''Metalocalypse''. The CD and deluxe CD/DVD were released on October 16, 2012. It contains music from the second, third and ...

'', which was released on October 16, 2012. Small released a fourth Dethklok album, entitled ''

The Doomstar Requiem ''The Doomstar Requiem – A Klok Opera Soundtrack'' is the fourth full-length album by death metal band Dethklok, from the Adult Swim animated series ''Metalocalypse''. It was released digitally on October 27, 2013. It was released on LP and C ...

'', on October 29, 2013, which is a soundtrack album to the ''Metalocalypse'' special of the same name. The album featured Hoglan on drums, Beller performing guest bass on a track, and

performing guest vocals. Small released his second album, ''

Brendon Small's Galaktikon II ''Brendon Small's Galaktikon II: Become the Storm'' is the second solo album by Brendon Small, known for his work on the animated television shows ''Metalocalypse'' and '' Home Movies'', and as creator of virtual death metal band Dethklok. The al ...

'', in 2017. In 2021, Small released a new instrumental song, "Ghosthorse," to promote his new

signature model guitar, the GhostHorse Explorer.

BS Records

In 2012, Small self-released his solo album, ''Brendon Small's Galaktikon'', independently on his personal record label BS Records. He funded the album himself, and used all of the profits he received from the album to fund future projects. In 2013, as there was no demand from Cartoon Network's

Williams Street Records Williams Street Records LLC is an American independent record company founded by Jason DeMarco, based in Atlanta, Georgia. It is a joint venture of Cartoon Network's Williams Street Productions and Warner Music Group ( Warner Bros. Discovery's ...

for another Dethklok album, Small released the fourth Dethklok album, ''

'' (the soundtrack to the TV special of the same name), on BS Records instead. He stated at the time that he wanted to keep Dethklok's music going regardless of whether it would be financially beneficial to him.

Personal life

Small currently resides in Los Angeles. He had a dog named Ernie (a

Weimaraner The Weimaraner ( ) is a large dog that was originally bred as a hunting dog in the early 19th century. Early Weimaraners were used by royalty for hunting large game such as boar, bear and deer. As the popularity of large game hunting began to ...

) that died in January 2014. He has since gotten a new dog named Gilda, also a Weimaraner. Small is of Lithuanian descent. Small married interior designer Courtney Bates in 2014.

Filmography

Film and television

Music videos

Pinball machines

Podcasts

Discography

Solo

*2012: '' Brendon Small's Galaktikon'' *2017: '' Brendon Small's Galaktikon II: Become the Storm'' *2021: "Ghosthorse" (Single)

Dethklok Dethklok is a fictional melodic death metal band featured in the Adult Swim animated television series ''Metalocalypse''. The first official Dethklok album was released on September 25, 2007, entitled '' The Dethalbum''. The album debuted at n ...

*2007: ''

'' *2007: '' Adult Swim Presents: ...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead on Tour with Dethklok'' (

split album A split album (or split) is a music album that includes tracks by two or more separate artists. There are also singles and EPs of the same variety, which are often called "split singles" and "split EPs" respectively. Split albums differ from "var ...

with ...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead) *2009: ''

'' *2012: ''

'' *2013: ''

Soundtrack

*2004: Songs Brendon's Not Allowed to Name (also known as "web") – Free online download previously available on Small's website, comprising 15 songs from ''

'' and an early version of the ''Metalocalypse'' theme song *2006: '' Home Movies: Bonus CD'' (released with the ''Home Movies'' Season 4 Boxset) *2006: ''Saw III'' soundtrack (European version) (featured Dethklok song "Hatredcopter"; credited as Brendon Small) *2014:

Bear McCreary Bear McCreary (born February 17, 1979) is an American musician and composer of film, television, and video game scores based in Los Angeles, California. His work includes the scores of the television series ''Battlestar Galactica'' (2004), ''Age ...

– '' Knights of Badassdom – Original Motion Picture Soundtrack'' (guitar work on "Your Heart Sucks My Soul")

Video games

*2006: ''

Guitar Hero II ''Guitar Hero II'' is a music rhythm video game developed by Harmonix and published by RedOctane for the PlayStation 2 and Activision for the Xbox 360. It is the second main installment in the ''Guitar Hero'' series and is the sequel to 2005's ...

'' (Dethklok – "Thunderhorse") *2009: ''

Brütal Legend ''Brütal Legend'' is an action-adventure video game with real-time strategy game elements created by Double Fine and published by Electronic Arts for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. The game was released during October 2009 in North America, ...

'' (Dethklok – "Murmaider") *2010: ''

Guitar Hero 5 ''Guitar Hero 5'' (initially referred to as ''Guitar Hero V'') is a 2009 music rhythm video game developed by Neversoft and published by Activision. It is the fifth main installment in the ''Guitar Hero'' series. The game was released internat ...

'' " Metal Track Pack" DLC (Dethklok – "Laser Cannon Deth Sentence") *2010: '' Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock'' (Dethklok – "Bloodlines") *2011: '' Saints Row: The Third'' ("Adult Swim" radio station; Dethklok – "The Cyborg Slayers") *2015: ''

Rocksmith 2014 ''Rocksmith 2014'' is a music video game produced by Ubisoft. It is a followup to the 2011 game ''Rocksmith'', but has been described as a replacement to the original game rather than a sequel. Like its predecessor, the game allows players to plug ...

'' " Dethklok 3-Song Pack" DLC (Dethklok – "Thunderhorse", "Awaken", "Go Into the Water")

Guest work

*2006:

– '' Liar/Dead Is the New Alive'' ("Murder Mix" of the song "Liar") *2008:

– '' When You Were Shouting at the Devil... We Were in League with Satan'' (guest vocals on "The Vowel Song" as

) *2010:

– '' Fart and Wiener Jokes'' (guitar work on "More Metal Than You") *2010:

– '' Exhibit B: The Human Condition'' (guitar solo on "Devils Teeth") *2012: Sex Slaves – ''Call of the Wild'' (guitar solo on "Let's Make Out") *2012:

– '' A Lethal Dose of Truth'' (guitar solo on "Get It Up") (

cover) *2014:

Flying Lotus Steven Ellison (born October 7, 1983), known by his stage name Flying Lotus or sometimes FlyLo, is an American record producer, Disc jockey, DJ, filmmaker and rapper from Los Angeles. He is also the founder of the record label Brainfeeder. Flyi ...

– ''

You're Dead! ''You're Dead!'' is the fifth studio album by American music producer Flying Lotus, released on October 6, 2014 by Warp Records. Flying Lotus recorded the album at his home in Los Angeles, using Ableton Live and other instruments and software. Li ...

'' (guitar work on "Turkey Dog Coma" and "Siren Song") *2014: Romantic Rebel – ''Romantic Rebel'' (guitar work on "Lie") *2014: The Levinson Bros &

Rob Kutner Rob Kutner is an American comedy writer. Career As a writer for ''Dennis Miller Live'', he was nominated for a 2003 Writers' Guild of America Award. After ''Dennis Miller Live'' left the air, Kutner went on to write for ''The Daily Show'', where ...

– "The Season of ForGiftNess" (guest vocals and guitar solo) *2015: The Aristocrats – '' Tres Caballeros'' (guest vocals on "Smuggler's Corridor") *2020: Posehn – ''Grandpa Metal'' (guitar solo on "Goblin Love")

Collaborations and other appearances

*2005:

They Might Be Giants They Might Be Giants (often abbreviated as TMBG) is an American alternative rock band formed in 1982 by John Flansburgh and John Linnell. During TMBG's early years, Flansburgh and Linnell frequently performed as a duo, often accompanied by a d ...

– '' Venue Songs DVD/CD'' (co-writer of "Taste the Fame") *2014:

Nashville Pussy Nashville Pussy is an American rock band from Atlanta, Georgia. Initially called Hell's Half-Acre, the band's name comes from Ted Nugent's introduction to "Wang Dang Sweet Poontang" on the '' Double Live Gonzo'' album. Following the initial ...

– ''Up The Dosage'' (writer of "Takin' it Easy")

References

External links

* *
Brendon's InstagramBrendon's TwitterBrendon's MyspaceBrendon Small's Berklee Alumni profile
ttp://www.brendonsmall.com/media-frame.html Original linkbr>SCI FI Reveals New Series (Archived URL)Original link
including ''Barbarian Chronicles''
Brendon Small interview (2008)Scene Missing Magazine Interviews Brendon SmallInterview with Brendon Small at Lambgoat.comInterview with Brendon Small at Metalunderground.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Small, Brendon 1975 births Living people American music video directors American television producers American cartoonists American comedy musicians American male composers 21st-century American composers American heavy metal bass guitarists American heavy metal guitarists American heavy metal singers American multi-instrumentalists Death metal musicians American rock singers American satirists American stand-up comedians American male television actors American television directors American television writers American male television writers American television composers Home Movies (TV series) American male voice actors Writers from Springfield, Illinois Berklee College of Music alumni American people of Lithuanian descent American male bass guitarists Showrunners Comedians from Illinois Screenwriters from Illinois Musicians from Illinois Animators from Illinois 21st-century American singers 21st-century American comedians 21st-century American bass guitarists 21st-century American male singers 21st-century American screenwriters 21st-century American male writers Dethklok members