ArnoCorps is a

hard rock Hard rock or heavy rock is a heavier subgenre of rock music typified by aggressive vocals and Distortion (music), distorted electric guitars. Hard rock began in the mid-1960s with the Garage rock, garage, Psychedelic rock, psychedelic and blues ...

group based in

Oakland, California Oakland is a city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. It is the county seat and most populous city in Alameda County, California, Alameda County, with a population of 440,646 in 2020. A major We ...

that exclusively performs songs based on the films of

Arnold Schwarzenegger Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger (born July30, 1947) is an Austrian and American actor, businessman, former politician, and former professional bodybuilder, known for his roles in high-profile action films. Governorship of Arnold Schwarzenegger, ...

. The focus of the band is on inspirational, humorous and energetic live performances. The stage show features audience involvement, including impromptu bodybuilding competitions and endurance tests.

Career

After releasing two self-produced EPs in 2000 and 2001, ArnoCorps built a fan following in the

San Francisco Bay Area The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a List of regions of California, region of California surrounding and including San Francisco Bay, and anchored by the cities of Oakland, San Francisco, and San Jose, California, S ...

. The band's full length

concept album A concept album is an album whose tracks hold a larger purpose or meaning collectively than they do individually. This is typically achieved through a single central narrative or theme, which can be instrumental, compositional, or lyrical. Som ...

was announced for release in 2005, titled ''The Greatest Band Of All Time''. British metal label Anticulture Records released the album in the UK and Europe in February 2006. After receiving critical praise in British magazines such as ''

Metal Hammer ''Metal Hammer'' is a heavy metal music magazine and website founded in 1983, published in the United Kingdom by Future, with other language editions published by different companies available in numerous other countries. ''Metal Hammer'' featu ...

'' and ''

Total Guitar ''Total Guitar'' was a monthly music magazine based in Bath, the United Kingdom, published from 1994 to 2024. The magazine was owned by Future plc, who publish many other magazines ranging from drums and video games to technology magazines. ' ...

'', along with mainstream radio airplay on

BBC Radio 1 BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and Contemporary hit radio, current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including ...

, ArnoCorps headlined tours of the UK and Ireland. The first tour earned the band a 10 out of 10 rating from the BBC for a performance in

Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

, an appearance on commercial radio station

Kerrang! 105.2 Kerrang! Radio is a British specialist rock music radio station related to ''Kerrang!'' magazine, broadcast nationally on DAB and online. Launched in 2002, it is owned and operated by Bauer Media and forms part of the Kerrang! Network, which ...

and a rave review of their London show in the October 2006 issue of '' Bizarre''. In 2008, ArnoCorps was voted "Best San Francisco (local) Rock Band" by the readers of ''

SF Weekly ''SF Weekly'' is an online music publication and formerly alternative weekly newspaper founded in the 1970s in San Francisco, California. It was distributed every Thursday, and was published by the San Francisco Print Media Company. The paper ha ...

''. The band started a

Kickstarter Kickstarter, PBC is an American Benefit corporation, public benefit corporation based in Brooklyn, New York City, that maintains a global crowdfunding platform focused on creativity. The company's stated mission is to "help bring creative project ...

campaign to fund their latest project, ''The Fantastic EP'', which covers the ''

Conan Conan may refer to: People * Saint Conan (died 684), bishop of the Isle of Man * Conan of Cornwall (c. 930 – c. 950), bishop of Cornwall * Conan I of Rennes (died 992), duke of Brythonic Brittany * Conan II, Duke of Brittany (died 1066), duke ...

'' films among other new tracks.

Musical style

The lyrics of ArnoCorps songs have a particular emphasis on Schwarzenegger's

action Action may refer to: * Action (philosophy), something which is done by a person * Action principles the heart of fundamental physics * Action (narrative), a literary mode * Action fiction, a type of genre fiction * Action game, a genre of video gam ...

roles from the 1980s such as ''

The Terminator ''The Terminator'' is a 1984 American science fiction action film directed by James Cameron, written by Cameron and Gale Anne Hurd and produced by Hurd. It stars Arnold Schwarzenegger as the Terminator, a cybernetic assassin sent back in t ...

'', ''

Predator Predation is a biological interaction in which one organism, the predator, kills and eats another organism, its prey. It is one of a family of common List of feeding behaviours, feeding behaviours that includes parasitism and micropredation ...

'' and '' Total Recall'', with many of the lyrics retelling movie dialogue and plots, similar to The Misfits' lyrical focus on

horror films Horror may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Genres *Horror fiction, a genre of fiction **Psychological horror, a subgenre of horror fiction **Christmas horror, a subgenre of horror fiction **Analog horror, a subgenre of horror fiction * ...

and

B-movies A B movie, or B film, is a type of cheap, low-budget commercial motion picture. Originally, during the Golden Age of Hollywood, this term specifically referred to films meant to be shown as the lesser-known second half of a double feature, s ...

. As a further part of their concept, ArnoCorps make tongue-in-cheek claims of being inspired by ancient

folklore Folklore is the body of expressive culture shared by a particular group of people, culture or subculture. This includes oral traditions such as Narrative, tales, myths, legends, proverbs, Poetry, poems, jokes, and other oral traditions. This also ...

and

mythology Myth is a genre of folklore consisting primarily of narratives that play a fundamental role in a society. For scholars, this is very different from the vernacular usage of the term "myth" that refers to a belief that is not true. Instead, the ...

originating from the

alps The Alps () are some of the highest and most extensive mountain ranges in Europe, stretching approximately across eight Alpine countries (from west to east): Monaco, France, Switzerland, Italy, Liechtenstein, Germany, Austria and Slovenia. ...

of their "native" Austria, suggesting that there are actually

sociological Sociology is the scientific study of human society that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. The term sociology was coined in ...

and

philosophical Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...

topics being addressed in their lyrics. As part of a

publicity stunt In marketing, a publicity stunt is a planned event designed to attract the public's attention to the event's organizers or their cause. Publicity stunts can be professionally organized, or set up by amateurs. Such events are frequently utiliz ...

, the band accused several

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood ...

movie studios A film studio (also known as movie studio or simply studio) is a major entertainment company that makes films. Today, studios are mostly financing and distribution entities. In addition, they may have their own studio facility or facilities; howe ...

with "stealing" the mythology of Austria for plot material. In 2004, the band attempted to launch a

class-action lawsuit A class action is a form of lawsuit. Class Action may also refer to: * ''Class Action'' (film), 1991, starring Gene Hackman and Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio * Class Action (band), a garage house band * "Class Action" (''Teenage Robot''), a 2002 e ...

against the studios on behalf of the Austrian people, although the case failed to go to court.

Live performances

The band combines a military-centric appearance with a musical style rooted in both

hardcore punk Hardcore punk (commonly abbreviated to hardcore or hXc) is a punk rock music genre#subtypes, subgenre and subculture that originated in the late 1970s. It is generally faster, harder, and more aggressive than other forms of punk rock. Its roots ...

(particularly

skate punk Skate punk (also known as skatecore and skate rock) is a skateboarding, skater subculture and punk rock Music genre, subgenre that developed in the 1980s. Originally a form of hardcore punk that had been closely associated with skate culture, sk ...

) and heavy metal. Describing their music as "Action Adventure Hardcore Rock and Roll", the focus of the band is on energetic live performances which feature interaction with the audience. Attendees and fans are referred to by the band as "Goddamn Heroes and Sheroes." The band's stage show sees all six members dressed specifically in combat fatigues and camouflage paint (inspired by the movies ''

'' and ''

Commando A commando is a combatant, or operative of an elite light infantry or special operations force, specially trained for carrying out raids and operating in small teams behind enemy lines. Originally, "a commando" was a type of combat unit, as oppo ...

'') and address the audience in "ballsy" accents. Each band member uses a

pseudonym A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true meaning ( orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individual's o ...

and have heroic backstories. ArnoCorps often performs with two bass players in their line-up (an arrangement they refer to as "heroic symmetry").

Discography

* ''ArnoCorps EP01'' (2000) * ''ArnoCorps EP02'' (2001) * ''

The Greatest Band Of All Time ArnoCorps is a hard rock group based in Oakland, California that exclusively performs songs based on the films of Arnold Schwarzenegger. The focus of the band is on inspirational, humorous and energetic live performances. The stage show features au ...

'' (2005 US, 2006 UK) * ''The Ballsy EP'' (2009) * ''The 2001 EP'' (2011 Re-release of remastered and remixed select tracks from EP01 and EP02) * ''Two More!'' (2012) * ''The Fantastic EP'' (2013) * ''The Unbelievable'' (2017) * ''Welcome to the Gym!'' (2019)

Current lineup

* Holzfeuer - Vocals * Erich Nagelbett - Guitar * Vielmehr Klampfe - Guitar * Öddum Kriegtroll - Guitar * Inzo Der Barrakuda - Lead Bass * Karl Dichtschnur - Low Bass * Gellend Adler - Drums

Past members

* Der Wölf * Schlagbolzen * Halstucha * Toten Adler * Baron Von Trotz

References

External links

*
Label Website

ArnoCorps on MySpace

ArnoCorps on Schwarzenegger.com

Interview by Sound Scene Revolution (Podcast)

Interview with ArnoCorps on Deviant Nation
{{DEFAULTSORT:Arnocorps Musical groups from San Francisco Bands with fictional stage personas Musical groups established in 2000