Glen Meadmore

Glen Meadmore is a Canadian musician, actor and performance artist currently residing in Los Angeles. He has been described as "...the world's greatest exponent of the genre known as gay Christian punk".^[1] He is sometimes referred to as "Cowpunk".

Biography

Glen Meadmore was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. As a teenager, Meadmore played bass and sang with Winnipeg punk band The Psychiatrists. He later became involved in performance art, and appeared on local community television^[2] on his own cable show. Glen is 6'8" tall.

Meadmore moved to Los Angeles in the early 1980s. He continued working as a performance artist, appearing at the famed punk, avant garde, artist scenester hangout nightclub the Anti-Club where he became renowned for his outrageous performances.^[3] During this time, he met African American queer political performance artist Vaginal Davis and the two formed the band Pedro, Muriel and Esther, also known as PME, one of the earliest queer punk bands to emerge. Both Meadmore and "Vag" performed with the band in drag, and were photographed in drag for the cover of their EP on Amoeba Records. Meadmore also utilized his drag persona for underground films he was making with director John Aes-Nihil, such as The Drift. He abandoned this persona in his later films, once again playing male roles.

Meadmore developed a "Christian country punk" persona for solo albums he began recording in 1985. Glen's first two albums blended country stylings and country-style "yodeling" with new wave synthpop production popular at the time, which proved to be an odd and striking mélange.

Glen's third album, Boned, dropped the synths and moved into loud, grungy country punk territory, with lots of feedback.

On his fourth album, Hot, Horny and Born Again, produced by Jack Curtis Dubowsky, Glen showed off improved musicianship and performances, and some of these songs were included in the Bruce LaBruce film Hustler White. During the 1980s Glen had corresponded with serial killer John Wayne Gacy. Gacy did several paintings of Glen, one of which appears on the cover of his album Hot, Horny and Born Again.

Meadmore's most recent recording, Cowboy Songs For Lil Hustlers, produced by Steve Albini, continues in the vein set by Hot, Horny and Born Again. Glen continues to tour and perform as a three-piece in the style of these last two albums, which are a culmination of his unique style.

Glen has performed and recorded with other artists and performers, including Helot Revolt. Glen's band includes Dave Kendrick a former drummer of Devo.

June 2007 saw the reissue of Meadmore's first two LPs on CD.

In February and March 2008 Glen did his first tour, playing concerts in Germany, Austria and Switzerland with the Munich rockband The Lazy and fan and radiomoderator Fritz Ostermayer as support on two concerts.

Obscenity Trial

Glen was arrested February 3, 1989 in Santa Barbara for obscenity related to a performance at UCSB's Pub as part of UCSB's Gay Awareness Week. He was initially charged with indecent exposure, but this was reduced to Disorderly Conduct pertaining to "Lewd and Dissolute Behavior," according to the newspaper The Independent. His attorney was Public Defender Rick Barron. The case was heard by Municipal Court Judge Frank Ochoa. Glen was found not guilty.^[1] This was during the 1980s when many queer performance artists were being tried for their work and having their grants taken away.^[4]

Recordings

Albums

• Chicken & Biscuits, 1987, Amoeba Records; 2007 Pervertidora Records (reissue)
• Squaw Bread, 1988 Amoeba Records; 2007 Pervertidora Records (reissue)
• Boned, Amoeba Records
• Hot, Horny, and Born Again, 1993 Pervertidora Records
• Cowboy Songs for Lil Hustlers, 2002 Pervertidora Records

Singles

• "Just a Girl" / "Arco Plaza", 12" single, 1988, Overzealous Editions

Compilations

• The Ma Barker Story Soundtrack & Compilation, 1990
• Keep On The Sunny Side: A Tribute to the Carter Family CD, Amoeba Records, 1993
• Prayer Is The Answer cassette, 777 was 666, 1998
• God Came Between Us limited edition CD, 777 was 666, 2005

As PME

• "PME", 7" vinyl EP, Amoeba Records, 1991
• The White To Be Angry CD, Spectra Sonic Records, 1998^[5]

Also Appears On

• Helot Revolt, In Your Face, Up Your Butt (guitar), De Stijl Records (1992)
• Songs from Hot, Horny and Born Again are used in the film Hustler White (soundtrack unreleased)

Films

• Americans, by Cameron Hartsfield, 1987
• The Drift, by John Aes-Nihil, 1989
• The Goddess Bunny Channels Shakespeare, by John Aes-Nihil, 1989
• The Ma Barker Story, by John Aes-Nihil, 1990
• Hustler White by Bruce LaBruce and Rick Castro, 1996
• The Goddess Bunny, by Nick Bougas, 1998
• The White To be Angry by Vaginal Davis, 1999

References

Sources

• Ciminelli, David; Knox, Ken (2005) HomoCore: The Loud and Raucous Rise of Queer Rock, Alyson Books, ISBN 1-55583-855-3, ISBN 978-1-55583-855-3
• Young, Paul (2002) L.A. Exposed: Strange Myths and Curious Legends in the City of Angels, p. 130, St. Martin's Griffin, ISBN 0-312-20646-1, ISBN 978-0-312-20646-8
• Mullen, Brendan (2006) Whores: An Oral Biography of Perry Farrell And Jane's Addiction, p. 186, (Glen as Performance artist.) Perseus Books Group, ISBN 0-306-81478-1, ISBN 978-0-306-81478-5
• The Independent May 18, 1989. Page 7. Article title: "Do the Funky Chicken." (On obscenity charge and trial.)
• Goldberg, Dan, "Performer Arrested in Pub for Overexposure" Daily Nexus February 6, 1989

External links

• Glen Meadmore at Internet Movie Database
• Glen Meadmore on Tribe.net
• Glen Meadmore on Queer Music Heritage produced by JD Doyle
• PME