The Dwarves are an American punk rock band formed in

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

and based in

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

as of 2009.Gentile, John (2009)
Interview: Blag Dahlia of the Dwarves
, ''

The A.V. Club ''The A.V. Club'' is an American online newspaper and entertainment website featuring reviews, interviews, and other articles that examine films, music, television, books, games, and other elements of pop-culture media. ''The A.V. Club'' was cre ...

'', April 13, 2009, retrieved February 7, 2010 Formed as a

garage punk A garage is a covered structure built for the purpose of parking, storing, protecting, maintaining, and/or repairing vehicles. Specific applications include: *Garage (residential), a building or part of a building for storing one or more vehicle ...

band under the name Suburban Nightmare, their career subsequently saw them move in a

hardcore Hardcore, hard core or hard-core may refer to: Arts and media Film * ''Hardcore'' (1977 film), a British comedy film * ''Hardcore'' (1979 film), an American crime drama film starring George C Scott * ''Hardcore'' (2001 film), a British documen ...

direction before settling into an eclectic punk rock sound emphasizing intentionally shocking lyrics. They have been described as "one of the last true bastions of punk rock ideology in the contemporary musical age".The Dwarves
", ''

Time Off ''Time Off'' was a free weekly tabloid-sized music magazine (street press) that was originally distributed in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. The magazine began on campus in 1976 at the University of Queensland as an initiative of co-editor ...

'', 2009, retrieved February 7, 2010

History

The original members of the Dwarves began making music together in the mid-1980s as teenagers in the Chicago garage rock outfit, Suburban Nightmare, which was compared to

The Sonics The Sonics are an American garage rock band from Tacoma, Washington that formed in 1960. Their aggressive, hard-edged sound has been a major influence on punk and garage music worldwide, and they have been named inspirations to the White Str ...

,Strong, Martin C. (2003) ''The Great Indie Discography'', Canongate, , p. 311-312Carlson, Matt " ''Horror Stories'' Review,

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databa ...

, retrieved February 7, 2010 and which has been described as part of the Paisley Underground scene.Baker, Brian (2008)
Music: The Dwarves
", '' City Beat'', October 28, 2008, retrieved February 7, 2010 This era of the Dwarves is captured on ''Lick It(the psychedelic years 83-86)'' a 34 track collection put out by Recess records in 1999. The band became notorious for self-mutilation, on-stage sex, and taking hard drugs, and their live shows would often only last around fifteen minutes, occasionally cut short due to injury caused by spectators.Carlson, Matt " Dwarves Biography,

, retrieved February 7, 2010Ali, Lorraine (1993) "Violence Gets Dwarves 15 Minutes of Fame at Bogart's", ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the U ...

'', August 6, 1993Punk band aiming for longer return set
, '' London Free Press'', June 12, 2003, retrieved February 7, 2010 The band's sound began to evolve beyond its early garage roots with their second (nine-minute long) LP,Sprague, David
Dwarves
, ''

Trouser Press ''Trouser Press'' was a rock and roll magazine started in New York in 1974 as a mimeographed fanzine by editor/publisher Ira Robbins, fellow fan of the Who Dave Schulps and Karen Rose under the name "Trans-Oceanic Trouser Press" (a reference ...

'', retrieved February 7, 2010 ''Toolin' for a Warm Teabag'', which saw the band drifting towards a more truculent punk rock sound, influenced by

GG Allin Kevin Michael "GG" Allin (born Jesus Christ Allin; August 29, 1956 – June 28, 1993) was an American punk rock musician who performed and recorded with many groups during his career. Allin was best known for his controversial live performances ...

.DaRonco, Mike " ''Lucifer's Crank'' Review,

, retrieved February 7, 2010 Recess records issued ''Free Cocaine 86–88'' in 1999, a 39-song collection that shows the band's transition to the nihilistic style that took them to the Sub Pop era. The band released '' Blood Guts & Pussy'' on Sub Pop in 1990. By this time the Dwarves had dropped their early psychedelic sensibilities and morphed into a hardcore punk band. The ''Blood Guts & Pussy'' LP was followed up by EP ''Lucifer's Crank'' released by No.6 Records, as well as another Sub Pop LP, the metal-punk ''Thank Heaven For Little Girls'', both in 1991. In 1993 the band issued a press release stating their guitarist HeWhoCannotBeNamed had been stabbed to death in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...

. Though this later turned out to be a hoax, the band even went as far as to attach a tribute to the "late" guitarist on their 1993 Sub Pop-released album ''

Sugarfix ''Sugarfix'' is an album released by rock band Dwarves in July 1993 on Sub Pop. It was reissued in February 1999 as a two-album CD along with the band's previous album, ''Thank Heaven for Little Girls''.Strong, Martin C. (2003) ''The Great Indie D ...

''. Sub Pop did not respond well to the hoax and summarily dropped the band from its label. The Dwarves reformed in 1997, releasing '' The Dwarves Are Young and Good Looking'' (described by Adam Bregman of

as "the beginning of a new Dwarves...one that plays real songs, had a set list, and left the club unbloodied"),Bregman, Adam " ''The Dwarves Are Young and Good Looking'' Review,

, retrieved February 7, 2010 and its 2000 followup '' The Dwarves Come Clean''. In 2004 the band released '' The Dwarves Must Die'', its first LP for the indie label

Sympathy for the Record Industry Sympathy for the Record Industry (also known as Sympathy Records or Sympathy 4 the R.I.) is a mainly independent garage rock and punk label formed in 1988 by Long Gone John. The first Sympathy release was the Lazy Cowgirls' ''Radio Cowgirl'' ...

, which featured guest appearances from Dexter Holland (

The Offspring The Offspring is an American rock band from Garden Grove, California, formed in 1984. Originally formed under the name Manic Subsidal, the band's current lineup consists of lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Bryan "Dexter" Holland, lead guit ...

), Nick Oliveri (

Queens of the Stone Age Queens of the Stone Age (commonly abbreviated QOTSA) is an American Rock music, rock band formed in 1996 in Palm Desert, California. The band was founded by vocalist and guitarist Josh Homme, who has been the only constant member throughout mul ...

), Nash Kato (

Urge Overkill Urge Overkill is an American alternative rock band, formed in Chicago, Illinois, United States, consisting of Nathan Kaatrud, who took the stage name Nash Kato (vocals/guitar), and Eddie "King" Roeser (vocals/guitar/bass guitar). They are widely ...

), and voice actor

Gary Owens Gary Owens (born Gary Bernard Altman; May 10, 1934 – February 12, 2015) was an American radio announcer, personality, disc jockey and voice actor. His polished baritone speaking voice generally offered deadpan recitations of total nonsense, wh ...

. Dahlia was assaulted by Josh Homme of QOTSA before a Dwarves show in Los Angeles in 2004, which saw Homme placed on summary probation for thirty-six months.Crandall, Bill & Borzillo-Vrenna, Carrie (2004)
QOTSA Brawl With Dwarves
, ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...

'', November 11, 2004, retrieved February 7, 2010Levitan, Corey (2005)
Homme Sentenced for Brawl
''

'', June 10, 2005, retrieved February 7, 2010

In other media

In the film ''

Me, Myself & Irene ''Me, Myself & Irene'' is a 2000 American slapstick black comedy film directed by the Farrelly brothers, and starring Jim Carrey and Renée Zellweger. Chris Cooper, Robert Forster, Richard Jenkins, Daniel Greene, Anthony Anderson, Jerod Mixon an ...

'', Jim Carrey is seen singing along to Dwarves "Motherfucker", which Dahlia later said he got "tens of thousands of dollars" for.DuShane, Tony (2006)
Punker camp counselor? Blag Dahlia Dwarves' front man calls his solo show his 'camp counselor guy routine' -- with trademark unrepentant, politically incorrect lyrics
, ''

San Francisco Chronicle The ''San Francisco Chronicle'' is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of Northern California. It was founded in 1865 as ''The Daily Dramatic Chronicle'' by teenage brothers Charles de Young and Michael H. de Young. The ...

'', June 1, 2006, retrieved February 7, 2010 In 2000, the band offered the track "River City Rapist" to George W. Bush as his presidential campaign song. The Bush campaign did not use the song."Dwarves Offer Help to George W. Bush on the Road to the White House", PR Newswire, February 10, 2000 The Dwarves' cover of the Norwegian rock band Turbonegro's song "Hobbit Motherfuckers" from the Turbonegro tribute album "Alpha Motherfuckers" can be heard playing in the comic book store scene in the 2000's indie film "Ghost World" albeit without Blag Dhalia's profanity laden vocals. This song does not appear on the soundtrack album for the film. In 2009, Blag and HeWhoCannotBeNamed were immortalised as Bobbleheads by Aggronautix.Spacek, Nick (2009)
Dwarves Bobbleheads Now Available
", '' The Pitch'', August 18, 2009, retrieved February 7, 2010

Band members

Singer Blag Dahlia (a.k.a. Julius Seizure, born Paul Cafaro),Ritchie, Ryan (2007)
Blood, Guts and Literacy: Blag Dahlia steps out from behind the Dwarves to wax hysterical
", '' OC Weekly'', July 12, 2007, retrieved February 7, 2010 and guitarist HeWhoCannotBeNamed (a.k.a. Pete Vietnamcheque) have always been the two core members of the group. The lineup has shifted around them, and currently consists of members " Rex Everything" on bass and vocals, " Fresh Prince of Darkness" on guitar, and "Hunter Down" on drums. Former members include " Dutch Ovens", " Gregory Pecker", "Chip Fracture", "Wholley Smokes", "Clint Torres", "Tazzie Bushweed", "Thrusty Otis", "Crash Landon", "Wreck Tom", and " Vadge Moore", among others. Drummer Josh Freese appears on many Dwarves recordings.

Musical style

The Dwarves are known for their simple, loud, yet nuanced punk repertoire, and controversial lyrics. Since the garage punk sound of their early days, they developed a more direct

hardcore punk Hardcore punk (also known as simply hardcore) is a punk rock music genre and subculture that originated in the late 1970s. It is generally faster, harder, and more aggressive than other forms of punk rock. Its roots can be traced to earlier p ...

sound, often identified as " scum punk" due to the intentional perversity of the lyrics. Around the turn of millennium, the Dwarves developed more of a manic

pop punk Pop punk (or punk pop) is a rock music genre that combines elements of punk rock with power pop or pop. It is defined for its emphasis on classic pop songcraft, as well as adolescent and anti- suburbia themes, and is distinguished from other p ...

influence. Bits of

, surf rock, pop, hip-hop, and

rock 'n' roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It originated from African-American music such as jazz, rhythm an ...

all factor into the band's current punk rock sound. Their shows have been notable for some aggressive fights on stage (with the audience and even a cop), and because HeWhoCannotBeNamed performs either in nothing but a jockstrap or totally nude, apart from his trademark "Rey Mysterio" wrestling mask.

Cover art

Many of their album covers were intentionally confrontational, often featuring dwarf actor Bobby Faust with an assortment of naked women, sometimes with sacrilegious themes such as re-enacting the

Crucifixion Crucifixion is a method of capital punishment in which the victim is tied or nailed to a large wooden cross or beam and left to hang until eventual death from exhaustion and asphyxiation. It was used as a punishment by the Persians, Carthagi ...

. Faust posed sodomizing a rabbit covered in blood for their 1990 album '' Blood Guts & Pussy''Carlson, Matt " ''Blood Guts & Pussy'' Review,

, retrieved February 7, 2010 - followed up a decade later, with a similar theme, this time covered in soap suds, for '' Come Clean''.

Side projects

* Former drummer Sigh Moan formed Specula with Specter Spec, releasing the ''Erupt'' album in 1995. * Blag Dahlia has worked as a producer for

Joey Santiago Joseph Alberto Santiago (born June 10, 1965) is a Filipino-American guitarist and composer. Active since 1986, Santiago is best known as the lead guitarist for the American alternative rock band Pixies. After the band's breakup in 1993, Santiag ...

's band

The Martinis The Martinis are a rock band formed in Los Angeles, California in 1993. The band consists of Pixies guitarist Joey Santiago and his wife Linda Mallari, both of Filipino Filipino may refer to: * Something from or related to the Philippines ** F ...

,The Martinis' Joey Santiago on...
, ''

CMJ New Music Monthly CMJ Holdings Corp. is a music events and online media company, originally founded in 1978, which ran a website, hosted an annual festival in New York City, and published two magazines, ''CMJ New Music Monthly'' and ''CMJ New Music Report''. Th ...

'', Issue No. 123/124, p.6 and is also half of the duo The Uncontrollable with

Nick Oliveri Nick Steven Oliveri (born October 21, 1971) is an American multi-instrumentalist, singer and songwriter. He is perhaps best known as a former bassist of Kyuss and later Queens of the Stone Age from 1998 to 2004. Oliveri is also a solo artist a ...

.Baker, Brian (2010)
UNPLUGGED AND UNCONTROLLABLE: Stoner-rock vet Nick Oliveri explores his dark side on Death Acoustic
, '' Cleveland Scene'', February 3, 2010, retrieved February 7, 2010Kerr, Dave (2006)
Nick Oliveri: Mondo Uncontrollable
, '' The Skinny'', October 13, 2006, retrieved February 7, 2010 * Blag Dahlia has also performed solo acoustic sets, which he described as his "camp counselor guy routine", released a bluegrass album, ''Blackgrass'' in 1995 under the name Earl Lee Grace. * Blag Dahlia was a part the side project Penetration Moon, which released a sole single, "Fifth a Day", in 1991. * Blag Dahlia has published two books, ''Armed to the Teeth with Lipstick'' (1998) and ''Nina'' (2006). * Blag Dahlia sings "Doing the Sponge" in the ''

SpongeBob SquarePants ''SpongeBob SquarePants'' (or simply ''SpongeBob'') is an American animated comedy television series created by marine science educator and animator Stephen Hillenburg for Nickelodeon. It chronicles the adventures of the title character ...

'' episode ''The Chaperone'', which originally aired on

Nickelodeon Nickelodeon (often shortened to Nick) is an American pay television channel which launched on April 1, 1979, as the first cable channel for children. It is run by Paramount Global through its networks division's Kids and Family Group. It ...

October 2, 1999. "Doing the Sponge" is written by Salt Peter (Peter Straus), former bassist for the Dwarves.Chun, Gary C.W. (2004)
Punk with pomp
, '' Honolulu Star-Bulletin'', December 3, 2004, retrieved February 7, 2010 * Blag Dahlia's most recent side project is pop/rock band Candy Now!, which he formed with Angelina Moysov of Persephone's Bees. * HeWhoCannotBeNamed has released two solo albums, which have featured guest appearances from his fellow Dwarves members, including Blag Dahlia. "Humaniterrorist", a vinyl only release in 2012, and "Love/Hate", a compact disc-only release in 2013. * Blag Dahlia on Vocals recording The Who's "The Kids are Alright" with Peted on guitar of The Adicts and Cell Block 5 * Blag Dahlia sings vocals on the Royce Cracker single "Who Put the Methamphetamine in Mr. Everything". * Rex Everything sings vocals on the Royce Cracker single "Doin' Whatche Say". The Royce Cracker Dwarves split 7-inch was released on Zodiac Killer Records (ZKR038) in 2009.Zodiac Killer Records (2009)
Royce Cracker Dwarves Split
, January 13, 2009, retrieved February 7, 2010Royce Cracker (2009)
Royce Cracker Dwarves Split
, January 13, 2009, retrieved February 7, 2010 * Marc Diamond plays guitar, and Andy Selway plays drums on the Royce Cracker single "Meth Stop Calling".

Discography

Albums

* ''A Hard Day's Nightmare'' (as The Surburban Nightmare) LP (Midnight Records, 1985, MIR LP 109) * '' Horror Stories'' LP ( Voxx Records, 1986, VXS 200.037) * ''Toolin' For A Warm Teabag'' LP (Nasty Gash Records, 1988, NG 001) * '' Blood Guts & Pussy'' LP ( Sub Pop, 1990, SP 67) * ''

Thank Heaven for Little Girls "Thank Heaven for Little Girls" is a 1957 song written by Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe and associated with Maurice Chevalier, its original performer. It opened and closed the 1958 film '' Gigi''. Alfred Drake performed the song in the 1 ...

'' LP (Sub Pop, 1991, SP 126) * ''

'' LP (Sub Pop, 1993, SP 197) * '' The Dwarves Are Young and Good Looking'' LP (Theologian Records, 1997, T53) * '' The Dwarves Come Clean'' LP ( Epitaph Records, 2000, 86575 1) * ''How To Win Friends And Influence People'' (Reptilian Records, 2001, REP 068) * '' The Dwarves Must Die'' (2004) * '' The Dwarves Are Born Again'' (2011) * '' The Dwarves Invented Rock & Roll'' (2014) * ''Radio Free Dwarves'' (Riot Style Records / Greedy) (2015) * ''Take Back The Night'' (

Burger Records Burger Records was an American independent record label and record store in Fullerton, California, United States. The label was founded in 2007 by Sean Bohrman and Lee Rickard, members of the power pop band Thee Makeout Party. The record/video s ...

/ Greedy) (2018)

Compilations

* '' Free Cocaine'' DLP ( Recess Records, 1999, RECESS No. 51) * '' Lick It'' DLP (Recess Records, 1999, RECESS No. 52) * ''Greedy Boot 1'' (2005) - only available from their website

Live

* ''Toolin' for Lucifers Crank'' (1996) * ''Fuck You Up and Get Live'' (2005) * ''Radio Free Dwarves'' (2015)

EPs

* ''Lucifer's Crank'' cassette EP (self issued, 1988, reissued on 7-inch by Rough Trade No.6 (Karbon), 1991, KAR 13/7) * ''We Kill Cock Throbbin cassette-EP (self-issued, 1988) *
Underworld / Lies / Down By The River
' ( Sub Pop, 1993, SP 183B) * ''Fake ID, Bitch 10-inch Vinyl (2011)

Singles

* "Lick It" 7-inch (Ubik, 1988) * "She's Dead" / "Fuckhead" 7-inch ( Sub Pop SP50, 1990) * "Drugstore" / "Detention Girl" / "Astro Boy" / "Motherfucker" 7-inch (Sub Pop SP81, 1990) * "Sit on My Face" / "I Wanna Kill Your Boyfriend" (by Seizure) split 7-inch (Sympathy For the Record Industry, SFTRI 132, 1991) * "Lucky Tonight" / "Speed Demon" / "Dairy Queen" 7-inch (Sub Pop SP21/163, 1992) * "Anybody Out There" / "Who Cares" 7-inch (Sub Pop SP84/254, 1993) * " That's Rock 'n' Roll" / "I'm a Man" 7-inch (Sympathy For The Record Industry SFTRI 280, 1994) * ''Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (But Blondes Don't Like Cripples)'' 7-inch EP (Man's Ruin MR005, 1995) * "I Will Deny You" / "The Dwarves are Young and Good Looking" / "One Life to Live" 7-inch (Reptilian REP018, 1997) * "We Must Have Blood" / "Surfing the Intercourse Barn" 7-inch (Man's Ruin MR051, 1997) * ''Dwarves/Royce Cracker 7-inch Vinyl/CD ( Zodiac Killer Records ZKR038, 2009) * "Trailer Trash" 7-inch (Recess Records, 2014) * "Get Up & Get High" 7-inch (No Balls Records, 2014) * "Gentleman Blag" 7-inch (

Fat Wreck Chords Fat Wreck Chords (pronounced "Fat Records") is a San Francisco, California-based independent record label, focused on punk rock. It was started by NOFX lead singer Michael Burkett (better known as Fat Mike) in 1990. The label has released mater ...

, 2015) * "Fun to Try" 7-inch (Burger Records, 2015) * Dwarves/Svetlanas split 7-inch (Altercation Records, 2016)

Videos

* ''Fuck You Up and Get Live'' DVD (2004) * ''FEFU'' DVD (2006)

Music videos

* I'm a Living Sickness (1986) * Drugstore (1990) * We Must Have Blood (1997) * Over You (2000) * Salt Lake City (2004) * FEFU (2004) * Massacre (2005) * Stop Me (2011) * The Band That Wouldn't Die (2011) * You'll Never Take Us Alive (2012) * Devil's Level (2018)

Compilation appearances

* 1999: ''

Short Music for Short People ''Short Music for Short People'' is a 1999 compilation album released on the Fat Wreck Chords record label A record label, or record company, is a brand or trademark of music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Somet ...

'' (

, Track ''The Band That Wouldn't Die'') * 2017: ''Punk against Trump'' (Denizen Records, Track ''Trailer Trash'')

References

External links

Official band websiteBlag Dahlia in Loren Cass FilmFour questions with The Dwarves lead singer Blag DahliaFeature: The New Pop Idol: Candy Now and Blag Dahlia?!
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dwarves Epitaph Records artists Hardcore punk groups from Illinois Musical groups from Chicago Garage punk groups Sympathy for the Record Industry artists Garage rock groups from Illinois