Glen Meadmore
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Glen Meadmore is a Canadian musician, actor and performance artist currently residing in Los Angeles.
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[edit] 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 public access television [1] 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 renown for his outrageous performances.[2] 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. According to the University of Illinois at Chicago, he is "...the world's greatest exponent of the genre known as gay Christian punk". [3] He is sometimes referred to as "Cowpunk". His most recent recording, Cowboy Songs For Lil Hustlers was produced by Steve Albini.
Glen has performed and recorded with other artists and performers, including Helot Revolt. Glen's band includes Dave Kendrick a former drummer of Devo. During the 1980s Glen 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.
June 2007 saw the reissue of Meadmore's first two LPs on CD.
[edit] 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. [4] This was during the 1980s when many queer performance artists were being tried for their work and having their grants taken away.[5]
[edit] Recordings
[edit] 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
[edit] Singles
- "Just a Girl" / "Arco Plaza", 12" single, 1988, Overzealous Editions
[edit] 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
[edit] As PME
- "PME", 7" vinyl EP, Amoeba Records, 1991
- The White To Be Angry CD, Spectra Sonic Records, 1998[6]
[edit] 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)
[edit] 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, 1324
[edit] References
- ^ Winnipeg Babysitter, by Daniel Barrow > Woodland Pattern > Experimental Film and Video
- ^ Paul Young, L.A. Exposed: Strange Myths and Curious Legends in the City of Angels, St. Martin's Griffin, ISBN-10:0312206461 ISBN-13: 978-0312206468
- ^ Homocore at MBLGTCC
- ^ Homocore at MBLGTCC
- ^ NEA v. Finley: Artists' Statements
- ^ Vaginal Davis Dot Com: Discography
[edit] Sources
- Ciminelli, David; Knox, Ken (2005) HomoCore: The Loud and Raucous Rise of Queer Rock, Alyson Books, ISBN 1555838553, ISBN 978-1555838553 [1]
- Young, Paul (2002) L.A. Exposed: Strange Myths and Curious Legends in the City of Angels, p.130, St. Martin's Griffin, ISBN 0312206461, ISBN 978-0312206468 [2]
- Mullen, Brendan (2006) Whores: An Oral Biography of Perry Farrell And Jane's Addiction, p.186, (Glen as Performance artist.) Perseus Books Group, ISBN 0306814781, ISBN 978-0306814785 [3]
- 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
