RagNaRök

Released in 1995, RagNaRök is GWAR’s fifth album. It features a more malleable thrash-punk sound that experiments with progressive metal (“Whargoul”), rap-rock (“Think You Oughta Know This”), and surf punk (“Surf of Syn”). RagNaRök is also notable for the increased appearance of keyboardist Dave Musel.

The album’s story involves arch-enemy Techno Destructo tricking GWAR into believing it is actually the year 1999, with the comet RagNaRök coming to destroy the Earth at the turn of the millennium. The comet is actually a giant robot named Cardinal Syn, who plans to enslave all life on Earth and convert them into his “holy” soldiers. Along the way, Syn’s disciples steal the sperm of Oderus Urungus and use it to impregnate Slymenstra Hymen. This alien offspring is then kidnapped and used as the source of Cardinal Syn’s powers.

As shown in the Surf of Syn music video, GWAR enlists the help of the remorseful Techno Destructo to end Cardinal Syn’s reign of destruction. Techno hijacks Syn’s ship and crashes it into the robot. Cardinal Syn’s head then detaches and returns to space, leaving GWAR behind in the wreckage. Cardinal Syn would later return as the villain on GWAR’s 2009 album Lust In Space.