Brendon Small (born February 15, 1975) is an American actor, stand-up comedian, animator, writer, director, producer, and musician known for co-creating the

animated series An animated series is a set of Animation, animated works with a common series title, usually related to one another. These episodes should typically share the same main characters, some different secondary characters and a basic theme. Series can ...

'' Home Movies'' (1999–2004, with Loren Bouchard) and '' Metalocalypse'' (2006–13, with Tommy Blacha). He also writes the music, and is the main performer for the virtual

melodic death metal Melodic death metal (also referred to as melodeath) is a subgenre of death metal that employs highly melodic guitar riffs, often borrowing from traditional heavy metal (including New Wave of British Heavy Metal). The genre features the heavi ...

band Dethklok, which began as the subject of ''Metalocalypse'' but has taken on a life of its own, with four albums and an occasional live touring band, headed by Small. Small has also released two albums under his own name, in a similar musical style to Dethklok.

Early life and education

Small was born in

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Roc ...

in 1975. He moved to

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 ...

as a child. Small started learning guitar at the age of 14 after a kid in his neighborhood began teaching him about guitar and music. At his first public performance, his hands shook so wildly that he had trouble controlling the guitar. It would be another ten years before he was comfortable performing in public. He graduated from Palma High School in Salinas, California. He graduated from

Berklee College of Music Berklee College of Music is a private music college in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the largest independent college of contemporary music in the world. Known for the study of jazz and modern American music, it also offers college-level cou ...

in 1997. During his music studies, he took several writing and comedy classes at

Emerson College Emerson College is a private college with its main campus in Boston, Massachusetts. It also maintains campuses in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California and Well, Limburg, Netherlands (Kasteel Well). Founded in 1880 by Charles Wesley Emerson as a ...

. After graduating, he felt that the

rock music Rock music is a broad genre of popular music that originated as "rock and roll" in the United States in the late 1940s and early 1950s, developing into a range of different styles in the mid-1960s and later, particularly in the United States and ...

genre was fading in popularity, so decided to try his hand at stand-up comedy.

Career

Media

Small was performing stand up at The Comedy Studio in Harvard Square when he was spotted by Loren Bouchard, who at the time was casting for the central character for a UPN pilot produced by Tom Snyder Productions, which eventually evolved into '' Home Movies''. Small and Bouchard co-created ''Home Movies'', an animated series that initially aired on the UPN television network which moved to Cartoon Network's

Adult Swim Adult Swim (AS; stylized as dult swim'' and often abbreviated as s'') is an American adult-oriented night-time cable television channel that shares channel space with the basic cable network Cartoon Network and is programmed by its in-house ...

block. The series ran for four seasons from 1999 to 2004. Small was one of the show's writers, while Bouchard served as the director. In the series, he voiced the show's protagonist, 8-year-old aspiring filmmaker Brendon Small, as well as a number of other characters. Small composed the show's theme music, as well as writing and performing numerous other songs for the show's soundtrack. Small lent his voice to a number of other animated shows. He co-starred as Chad in the BET animated sitcom, '' Hey Monie!'', and has voiced many supporting characters in '' The Venture Bros.'', including that show's

shell shock Shell shock is a term coined in World War I by the British psychologist Charles Samuel Myers to describe the type of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) many soldiers were afflicted with during the war (before PTSD was termed). It is a rea ...

ed and drug-addicted version of Jonny Quest. Small has had cameo roles in '' Aqua Teen Hunger Force'', '' Squidbillies'', '' Reno 911!'' and '' Frisky Dingo''. Small, along with

Scott Adsit Robert Scott Adsit (born November 26, 1965) is an American actor, comedian, and writer. Born and raised in the Chicago suburbs, Adsit joined the mainstage cast of Chicago's The Second City in 1994 after attending Columbia College Chicago. He ap ...

, appeared as lead characters of the Adult Swim pilot ''Let's Fish''; the show's pilot premiered on May 13, 2007, but the series was not picked up. In April 2005, the Sci Fi Channel announced an upcoming debut of a half-hour animated ensemble comedy show created by Small titled ''Barbarian Chronicles''. The show, which has not aired, was said to be produced by Small and Worldwide Pants Incorporated. Small has said that there are no plans to air the show but that anything can happen in the future. Small posed for a pictorial that appeared in the April 2006 issue of '' Playgirl'' magazine, as part of a humor-themed issue. Small posed naked holding a medieval flail and a strategically placed metal shield that hid his genitals. Small served as co-producer, co-writer and composer for the Adult Swim animated series '' Metalocalypse'', which ran for four seasons from 2006 to 2012, along with a 2013 special, '' Metalocalypse: The Doomstar Requiem''. The series focused on a fictional

band named Dethklok, and each episode features a song performed by the band. In addition to writing, directing and executive producing the series, he also provided voice talent for the characters Skwisgaar Skwigelf, Pickles, and Nathan Explosion, three of the five members of Dethklok. Small has stated that while animation is his dream job, he does not really like watching animation that much. In 2007 and 2009, Small hosted the annual Guitar Superstar competition and in 2008 he was one of the judges. In 2010, Small directed Soundgarden's music video for " Black Rain", and The Damned Things' music video for "We've Got a Situation Here". Small's virtual band Dethklok appeared, via video, at the 2009 Golden Gods Awards. The band received the award for Best International Band. At the 2010 Golden Gods Awards, Small attended and performed with

Brian Posehn Brian Edmund Posehn (; born July 6, 1966) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, voice actor, musician, and writer. After numerous appearances as a television guest star, Posehn acquired his first major recurring role in HBO's '' Mr. Show wit ...

's band and introduced

Fear Factory Fear Factory is an American Heavy metal music, heavy metal band formed in Los Angeles in 1989. Throughout the band's career, they have released ten full-length albums and have evolved through a succession of sounds, all in their main style of ...

's set. At the 2011 Golden Gods Awards, Small attended and introduced DevilDriver's set. Small attended the 2012 Golden Gods Awards and introduced

Trivium The trivium is the lower division of the seven liberal arts and comprises grammar, logic, and rhetoric. The trivium is implicit in ''De nuptiis Philologiae et Mercurii'' ("On the Marriage of Philology and Mercury") by Martianus Capella, but t ...

's set. He was nominated for best guitarist at the 2013 Golden Gods Awards but did not win. In May 2014, Small wrote a column for '' Premier Guitar'' regarding his guitar techniques. Small appeared on Ken Reid's ''TV Guidance Counselor Podcast'' on May 15, 2015, as part of the Bridgetown Comedy Festival in

Portland, Oregon Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, Portland is the county seat of Multnomah County, the most populou ...

Comedy

Small has frequently performed stand-up comedy, first in

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the capital city, state capital and List of municipalities in Massachusetts, most populous city of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financ ...

, before moving to the

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the wor ...

area, where he performs now. Small was one of the hosts (along with Ron Lynch and Craig Anton) of ''The Tomorrow Show'', a live weekly musical and comedic variety show; in his off-time, Small still occasionally appears as a guest. One of his prominent forms of stand-up is character comedy, where he acts out a character he created. Some of the characters he has played are Captain Moustache, Victor Diamond, Tiny and Bernie Fretts, all of which he has performed as in the comedy podcast '' Comedy Bang! Bang!''. In recent years, Small's time has become booked from his music and television career, but he still occasionally performs stand-up at venues such as The Steve Allen Theater, The Ice House and The Baked Potato. Small credits

Monty Python Monty Python (also collectively known as the Pythons) were a British comedy troupe who created the sketch comedy television show '' Monty Python's Flying Circus'', which first aired on the BBC in 1969. Forty-five episodes were made over fo ...

Albert Brooks Albert Brooks (born Albert Lawrence Einstein ; July 22, 1947) is an American actor and filmmaker. He received an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor for 1987's '' Broadcast News'' and was widely praised for his performance as a ...

Woody Allen Heywood "Woody" Allen (born Allan Stewart Konigsberg; November 30, 1935) is an American film director, writer, actor, and comedian whose career spans more than six decades and multiple Academy Award-winning films. He began his career writing ...

and the

Marx Brothers The Marx Brothers were an American family comedy act that was successful in vaudeville, on Broadway, and in motion pictures from 1905 to 1949. Five of the Marx Brothers' thirteen feature films were selected by the American Film Institute (AF ...

as his biggest comedy influences.

Music career

Small wrote all the music for the show ''Home Movies'', and released all the songs he had written for the show on the ''Home Movies'': Bonus CD. The CD was included with purchase of the Season 4 DVD box set. He wrote all the music for '' Metalocalypse''. In September 2007, he completed work on the first Dethklok album, '' The Dethalbum'', on which he collaborated with Gene Hoglan to deliver an authentic

sound while simultaneously retaining the light-hearted nature with which Small portrays the heavy metal genre. The album debuted at No. 21 on the ''Billboard'' 200, making it the highest-ranked

death metal Death metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. It typically employs heavily distorted and low-tuned guitars, played with techniques such as palm muting and tremolo picking; deep growling vocals; aggressive, powerful drumming, fe ...

album on the Billboard at the time. In November 2007, Small, Hoglan, Mike Keneally and Bryan Beller performed live as Dethklok at twelve US college campuses in support of ''The Dethalbum''. The

-sponsored "Dethtour" featured Dethklok supporting

indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United States, United Kingdom and New Zealand from the 1970s to the 1980s. Originally used to describe independent record labels, the term became associated with the mu ...

band ...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead. The quartet reunited in 2008 to headline a longer "Dethtour", where they toured the US in June and early July with fellow metal bands Chimaira and Soilent Green. During the tour they released the ...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead/Dethklok split EP for free at the concerts. The second Dethklok album, '' Dethalbum II'', was released on September 29, 2009. ''Dethalbum II'' reached No. 15 on the ''Billboard'' 200, making it the highest charting

album in history, beating the first ''Dethalbum''. A tour in support of the new album began in late 2009, where Dethklok co-headlined with the band Mastodon. DETHKLOK - Nokia Theatre - 6

Small performed guest vocals as Nathan Explosion on the

Zimmers Hole Zimmers Hole is a Canadian heavy metal band from Vancouver. The band formed in 1991, and features former Strapping Young Lad members Byron Stroud, Jed Simon and Gene Hoglan, along with vocalist Chris Valagao. History ''Bound by Fire'' ...

song "The Vowel Song". Small contributed guitar work to the songs "Devils Teeth" from

Exodus Exodus or the Exodus may refer to: Religion * Book of Exodus, second book of the Hebrew Torah and the Christian Bible * The Exodus, the biblical story of the migration of the ancient Israelites from Egypt into Canaan Historical events * Exo ...

's album '' Exhibit B: The Human Condition'', as well as "More Metal Than You" from comedian

's album ''

Fart and Wiener Jokes ''Fart and Wiener Jokes'' is a comedy album by comedian Brian Posehn containing stand-up comedies and two metal songs. The album features guest work from musicians such as Scott Ian (Anthrax), Jamey Jasta (Hatebreed), Mark Morton (Lamb of God), ...

''. Small created the "Murder Mix" of the song "Liar" by

Emilie Autumn Emilie Autumn Liddell (born September 22, 1979) is an American singer-songwriter, poet, author and violinist. Autumn's musical style is described by her as "Fairy Pop", "Fantasy Rock" or "Victoriandustrial". It is influenced by glam rock and ...

from the '' Liar/Dead Is the New Alive'' EP. Small performed the solo for the song "Get It Up" (

Van Halen Van Halen ( ) was an American rock band formed in Pasadena, California, in 1972. Credited with "restoring hard rock to the forefront of the music scene", Van Halen was known for its energetic live shows and for the virtuosity of its lead gu ...

cover) on Sylencers' debut album ''

A Lethal Dose of Truth ''A Lethal Dose of Truth'' is the debut studio album of the Chicago-based thrash metal band Sylencer released in 2012 by their independent label, Sylencer Records, Inc. Track listing Reception Angela from metal-temple.com rated the album 10 ...

''. Small performs a guitar solo on the song "Let's Make Out" on the Sex Slaves album ''Call of the Wild''. In early 2011, Small introduced the Dethklok "Thunderhorse" Explorer from Gibson, a guitar made to his own specifications, and modeled after Skwisgaar's Gibson Explorer. A limited edition Epiphone "Thunderhorse" Explorer, based on the Gibson "Thunderhorse" Explorer, was introduced in early 2013. In May 2012, Small introduced the prototype for the Gibson Flying V "Snow Falcon", built to his own specifications, and modeled after Toki Wartooth's Gibson Flying V. The final version of the guitar was released on December 13, 2013. In April 2012, Small released his debut solo album, ''

Brendon Small's Galaktikon ''Brendon Small's Galaktikon'' is the first solo album debut by Brendon Small, known for his work on the animated television shows ''Metalocalypse'' and '' Home Movies'', and as creator of virtual death metal band, Dethklok. The album features D ...

''. The album featured Dethklok members Beller on bass and Hoglan on drums. Small described the album as a "high-stakes, intergalactic, extreme rock album" and described it as being similar to Dethklok but with more melodic vocals and rock elements. Small performed songs from ''Brendon Small's Galaktikon'' for the first time at "WesFest 8" on March 3, 2013, in West Hollywood, California. On April 29, 2012, Small started a weekly guitar lesson video series on the Adult Swim YouTube channel, entitled "Shreducation", which consisted of 12 installments. Small, Beller and Hoglan got together to work on the third Dethklok album, '' Dethalbum III'', which was released on October 16, 2012. Small released a fourth Dethklok album, entitled ''

The Doomstar Requiem ''The Doomstar Requiem – A Klok Opera Soundtrack'' is the fourth full-length album by death metal band Dethklok, from the Adult Swim animated series '' Metalocalypse''. It was released digitally on October 27, 2013. It was released on LP and ...

'', on October 29, 2013, which is a soundtrack album to the ''Metalocalypse'' special of the same name. The album featured Hoglan on drums, Beller performing guest bass on a track, and Mike Keneally performing guest vocals. Small released his second album, ''

Brendon Small's Galaktikon II ''Brendon Small's Galaktikon II: Become the Storm'' is the second solo album by Brendon Small, known for his work on the animated television shows '' Metalocalypse'' and ''Home Movies'', and as creator of virtual death metal band Dethklok. The ...

'', in 2017. In 2021, Small released a new instrumental song, "Ghosthorse," to promote his new Epiphone signature model guitar, the GhostHorse Explorer.

BS Records

In 2012, Small self-released his solo album, ''Brendon Small's Galaktikon'', independently on his personal record label BS Records. He funded the album himself, and used all of the profits he received from the album to fund future projects. In 2013, as there was no demand from Cartoon Network's Williams Street Records for another Dethklok album, Small released the fourth Dethklok album, ''

'' (the soundtrack to the TV special of the same name), on BS Records instead. He stated at the time that he wanted to keep Dethklok's music going regardless of whether it would be financially beneficial to him.

Personal life

Small currently resides in Los Angeles. He had a dog named Ernie (a

Weimaraner The Weimaraner ( ) is a large dog that was originally bred as a hunting dog in the early 19th century. Early Weimaraners were used by royalty for hunting large game such as boar, bear and deer. As the popularity of large game hunting began to ...

) that died in January 2014. He has since gotten a new dog named Gilda, also a Weimaraner. Small is of

Lithuanian Lithuanian may refer to: * Lithuanians * Lithuanian language * The country of Lithuania * Grand Duchy of Lithuania * Culture of Lithuania * Lithuanian cuisine * Lithuanian Jews as often called "Lithuanians" (''Lita'im'' or ''Litvaks'') by other Jew ...

descent. Small married interior designer Courtney Bates in 2014.

Filmography

Film and television

Music videos

Pinball machines

Podcasts

Discography

Solo

*2012: ''

'' *2017: '' Brendon Small's Galaktikon II: Become the Storm'' *2021: "Ghosthorse" (Single)

Dethklok

*2007: '' The Dethalbum'' *2007: '' Adult Swim Presents: ...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead on Tour with Dethklok'' (

split album A split album (or split) is a music album that includes tracks by two or more separate artists. There are also singles and EPs of the same variety, which are often called "split singles" and "split EPs" respectively. Split albums differ from " va ...

with ...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead) *2009: '' Dethalbum II'' *2012: '' Dethalbum III'' *2013: ''

Soundtrack

*2004: Songs Brendon's Not Allowed to Name (also known as "web") – Free online download previously available on Small's website, comprising 15 songs from '' Home Movies'' and an early version of the ''Metalocalypse'' theme song *2006: '' Home Movies: Bonus CD'' (released with the ''Home Movies'' Season 4 Boxset) *2006: ''Saw III'' soundtrack (European version) (featured Dethklok song "Hatredcopter"; credited as Brendon Small) *2014: Bear McCreary – '' Knights of Badassdom – Original Motion Picture Soundtrack'' (guitar work on "Your Heart Sucks My Soul")

Video games

*2006: '' Guitar Hero II'' (Dethklok – "Thunderhorse") *2009: '' Brütal Legend'' (Dethklok – "Murmaider") *2010: '' Guitar Hero 5'' " Metal Track Pack" DLC (Dethklok – "Laser Cannon Deth Sentence") *2010: '' Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock'' (Dethklok – "Bloodlines") *2011: '' Saints Row: The Third'' ("Adult Swim" radio station; Dethklok – "The Cyborg Slayers") *2015: '' Rocksmith 2014'' " Dethklok 3-Song Pack" DLC (Dethklok – "Thunderhorse", "Awaken", "Go Into the Water")

Guest work

*2006:

– '' Liar/Dead Is the New Alive'' ("Murder Mix" of the song "Liar") *2008:

– '' When You Were Shouting at the Devil... We Were in League with Satan'' (guest vocals on "The Vowel Song" as Nathan Explosion) *2010:

– ''

'' (guitar work on "More Metal Than You") *2010:

– '' Exhibit B: The Human Condition'' (guitar solo on "Devils Teeth") *2012: Sex Slaves – ''Call of the Wild'' (guitar solo on "Let's Make Out") *2012: Sylencer – ''

'' (guitar solo on "Get It Up") (

cover) *2014:

Flying Lotus Steven Ellison (born October 7, 1983), known by his stage name Flying Lotus or sometimes FlyLo, is an American record producer, DJ, filmmaker and rapper from Los Angeles. He is also the founder of the record label Brainfeeder. Flying Lotus h ...

– '' You're Dead!'' (guitar work on "Turkey Dog Coma" and "Siren Song") *2014: Romantic Rebel – ''Romantic Rebel'' (guitar work on "Lie") *2014: The Levinson Bros &

Rob Kutner Rob Kutner is an American comedy writer. Career As a writer for '' Dennis Miller Live'', he was nominated for a 2003 Writers' Guild of America Award. After '' Dennis Miller Live'' left the air, Kutner went on to write for '' The Daily Show'', wh ...

– "The Season of ForGiftNess" (guest vocals and guitar solo) *2015:

The Aristocrats "The Aristocrats" is a taboo-defying off-color joke that has been told by numerous stand-up comedians since the vaudeville era . It relates the story of a family trying to get an agent to book their stage act, which is revealed to be remarkably ...

– ''

Tres Caballeros ''Tres Caballeros'' (Spanish for "Three gentlemen") is the third studio album by The Aristocrats, released on June 23, 2015.

Collaborations and other appearances

*2005:

They Might Be Giants They Might Be Giants (often abbreviated as TMBG) is an American alternative rock band formed in 1982 by John Flansburgh and John Linnell. During TMBG's early years, Flansburgh and Linnell frequently performed as a duo, often accompanied by a dr ...

– '' Venue Songs DVD/CD'' (co-writer of "Taste the Fame") *2014: Nashville Pussy – ''Up The Dosage'' (writer of "Takin' it Easy")

References

External links

* *
Brendon's InstagramBrendon's TwitterBrendon's MyspaceBrendon Small's Berklee Alumni profile
ttp://www.brendonsmall.com/media-frame.html Original linkbr>SCI FI Reveals New Series (Archived URL)Original link
including ''Barbarian Chronicles''
Brendon Small interview (2008)Scene Missing Magazine Interviews Brendon SmallInterview with Brendon Small at Lambgoat.comInterview with Brendon Small at Metalunderground.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Small, Brendon 1975 births Living people American music video directors American television producers American cartoonists American comedy musicians American male composers 21st-century American composers American heavy metal bass guitarists American heavy metal guitarists American heavy metal singers American multi-instrumentalists Death metal musicians American rock singers American satirists American stand-up comedians American male television actors American television directors American television writers American male television writers American television composers Home Movies (TV series) American male voice actors Writers from Springfield, Illinois Berklee College of Music alumni American people of Lithuanian descent American male bass guitarists Showrunners Comedians from Illinois Screenwriters from Illinois Musicians from Illinois Animators from Illinois 21st-century American singers 21st-century American comedians 21st-century American bass guitarists 21st-century American male singers 21st-century American screenwriters 21st-century American male writers Dethklok members