Brad Kent

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Brad Kent played (guitar) with all of the early Vancouver punk rock bands in one incarnation or another, particularly Victorian Pork, the band which spawned not only D.O.A. but the Pointed Sticks and the Subhumans. Later he went to San Francisco to play guitar for the Avengers with Penelope Houston.

In Vancouver in 1977 Kent was a member of The Skulls, which also featured singer Joey Shithead, bassist Wimpy Roy, drummer Dimwit, and guitarist SImon Werner. The Skulls moved to Toronto, with eventual plans to relocate to London England, but Kent stayed behind and formed Victorian Pork, which became a proving ground for several future Vancouver punk scene stalwarts, including Ian Tiles, Tony Bardach, Gerry Useless, Randy Rampage and Chuck Biscuits. When the Skulls broke up and hobbled back to Vancouver, Joey Shithead formed DOA with Victorian Pork drummer Chuck Biscuits (Dimwit's younger brother) and former Victorian Pork drummer Randy Rampage, who moved to bass. Meanwhile, Dimwit and Wimpy formed the Subhumans with (The Subhumans official website doesn't tell you this) Brad Kent on guitar (this original version was a trio, Wimpy played bass and sang). Later, the more recognized lineup was formed with former Victorian Pork bassist Gerry Hannah AKA Gerry Useless and guitarist Mike Graham AKA Mike Normal. (Mike and Gerry were in the Stiffs with Zippy Pinhead & Sid Sick. When the Stiffs broke up Zippy & Sid formed Rabid). A little while later, Brad Kent would join DOA, expanding them to a 4-piece, right after the release of DOA's Disco Sucks EP. You can see this Brad Kent version of DOA on the DOA DVD compilation Greatest Shits, which shows DOA & Kent blazing through a version of Disco Sucks on the back of a flatbed truck in Stanley Park at an anarchist/punk "festival" in 1978! (The newer DOA DVD Smash The State includes more of this footage!) This is the version of DOA that toured down to San Francisco's Mabuhay Gardens on 2 separate trips, impressing the scene down there & making lifelong fans out of the Dils, Dead Kennedys & Avengers. After getting kicked out of DOA (they returned to a trio for next 45, The Prisoner), Brad Kent formed the Wasted Lives, with singer Phil Smith, guitarist Colin Griffiths, drummer Andy Graffiti, and future Modernettes bassist Mary Armstrong. But then he got the invitation to join The Avengers and moved down to San Francisco. Then the Avengers broke up, and he formed the 45s with Controllers drummer Carla du Plantier AKA Mad Dog, singer Heather Haley of the Zellots, and Randy Rampage who was on hiatus from DOA. But Rampage rejoined DOA, and Kent entered a period of relative inactivity. Around 1982 when Rampage left DOA (again), the two of them collaborated on Randy Rampage's solo 12-inch EP. All through this period Kent & Rampage gigged as The Sick Ones, with various guest vocalists. Then they got more serious and embraced their heavy metal inner selves, forming Ground Zero. After that band split, Randy became singer for Annihilator while Brad joined Iron Gypsy. Then Brad joined Death Sentence after their album came out.

In the late 90s Brad Kent reformed Victorian Pork in Vancouver for a brief time.