In one of the most delightfully chaotic mashups of the year, shock-rock legends GWAR have flipped the script on Chappell Roan’s pop anthem “Pink Pony Club” — and the result is glorious, surprising, and utterly metal.
Captured as part of The A.V. Club’s A.V. Undercover series, GWAR’s take on the song swaps neon club beats and pop gloss for bone-crushing riffs, thunderous drums, and the kind of theatrical excess only the self-described Scumdogs of the Universe can deliver. What starts as an almost straight-faced rendition quickly mutates into something monstrous, hilarious, and strangely triumphant.
“‘Pink Pony Club’ is about embracing exile from a boring, shitty world and remaking yourself into whatever you want — be who you are, be who you aren’t, piss people off, we don’t care,” vocalist Berserker Blötharsaid of the cover.
A Cover That’s as Unlikely as It Is Electrifying
Originally released in 2020, “Pink Pony Club” became a breakout moment for Chappell Roan, celebrating freedom, queerness, and self-reinvention through joyous pop maximalism. GWAR — formed in Richmond, Virginia in 1984 and infamous for their grotesque costumes, satirical violence, and sci-fi mythology — might seem like the last band to touch it.
And yet, somehow, it makes perfect sense.
Filmed at Chelsea Studios in New York, the performance leans into the song’s emotional core before detonating into full-scale metal chaos. GWAR don’t parody the track so much as reclaim it, amplifying its defiant spirit through distortion, snarled vocals, and their trademark over-the-top spectacle.
Tradition Meets Transgression
This isn’t GWAR’s first left-field choice for A.V. Undercover. The band previously stunned viewers with a heavy, irreverent take on “I’m Just Ken” from the Barbie soundtrack, proving once again that nothing is off-limits in their universe.
With “Pink Pony Club,” GWAR also mark a milestone: their seventh appearance on the long-running cover series — more than any other artist to date. It’s a testament to both their adaptability and their enduring appeal as cultural agitators.
Why This Cover Actually Works
On paper, a costumed thrash-metal band covering a glittery pop anthem sounds like a joke. In practice, it lands because both the original song and GWAR’s entire ethos revolve around the same idea: unapologetic self-expression.
Whether it’s Chappell Roan celebrating escape and identity on the dance floor or GWAR celebrating chaos, absurdity, and rebellion through amplified mayhem, both are about choosing who you are — loudly, defiantly, and without asking permission.
And if this performance ends up being someone’s first exposure to either artist? All the better. The Pink Pony Club has always been open to outsiders.