Brendon Small
A multi-hyphenate creative who fused absurdist comedy with genuine metal virtuosity, giving birth to the world's most successful fictional band.
Born 1975 (age 51)·American actor, comedian, writer, and musician·Birthday: February 15·Generation X
Biography
Brendon Small emerged from the Boston music and comedy scene, a guitarist with serious chops and a sharp, dry wit. His breakthrough came with 'Home Movies,' the low-fi animated series he co-created that became a cult classic for its improvised dialogue and neurotic charm. He then unleashed 'Metalocalypse,' a darkly hilarious satire of death metal and celebrity that resonated because of its authentic core: Small himself composed and performed the complex, legitimate music for the show's fictional band, Dethklok. The joke became real as Dethklok albums charted on Billboard, outselling many actual metal acts, and Small took the music on tour with a live band. His career is a unique alchemy, proving that parody is most powerful when the creator deeply understands and can execute the very thing he's poking fun at, building a bridge between comedy clubs and mosh pits.
Generation X
1965–1980
The latchkey kids. Raised during divorce, recession, and the end of the Cold War. Skeptical, self-reliant, media-literate. They invented indie culture, grunge, and the early internet — then watched the Boomers take credit.
Brendon was born in 1975, placing them squarely in the Generation X. The events that shaped this generation — economic uncertainty, the end of the Cold War, and the rise of personal computing — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Brendon Was Born
The biggest hits of 1975
#1 Movie
Jaws
Best Picture
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
#1 TV Show
All in the Family
Brendon's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1975Born
Fall of Saigon ends the Vietnam War
Gas: $0.57/galHome: $27,600Min wage: $2.10/hrPresident: Gerald Ford"Love Will Keep Us Together" — Captain & TennilleBest Picture: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
1980Started school
John Lennon shot and killed in New York
Gas: $1.19/galHome: $47,200Min wage: $3.10/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"Call Me" — BlondieBest Picture: Ordinary People
1988Became a teenager
Pan Am Flight 103 bombed over Lockerbie
Gas: $0.90/galHome: $74,800Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Faith" — George MichaelBest Picture: Rain Man
1991Could drive
Soviet Union dissolves; World Wide Web goes public
Gas: $1.14/galHome: $82,400Min wage: $4.25/hrPresident: George H.W. Bush"(Everything I Do) I Do It for You" — Bryan AdamsBest Picture: The Silence of the Lambs
1993Could vote
European Union officially established
Gas: $1.11/galHome: $86,600Min wage: $4.25/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"I Will Always Love You" — Whitney HoustonBest Picture: Schindler's List
1996Turned 21
Dolly the sheep cloned
Gas: $1.23/galHome: $99,700Min wage: $4.75/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Macarena" — Los del RioBest Picture: The English Patient
2005Turned 30
Hurricane Katrina devastates New Orleans; YouTube launches
Gas: $2.30/galHome: $167,500Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: George W. Bush"We Belong Together" — Mariah CareyBest Picture: Crash
2015Turned 40
Paris climate agreement; same-sex marriage legalized in the US
Gas: $2.43/galHome: $171,900Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Uptown Funk" — Mark Ronson ft. Bruno MarsBest Picture: Spotlight
2025Turned 50
AI agents go mainstream
Gas: $3.10/galHome: $385,000Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Donald Trump"APT." — Rose & Bruno Mars
2026Age 51 today
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Co-created and was the primary creative force behind the acclaimed animated series 'Home Movies' and 'Metalocalypse.'
- As the writer and performer for Dethklok, he has released multiple albums that have charted on the Billboard 200.
- Toured internationally performing Dethklok's music with a full live band, blurring the lines between fictional comedy and real concert spectacle.
- Released solo instrumental albums, 'Brendon Small's Galaktikon' I and II, showcasing his guitar and composition skills in a progressive metal context.
Did You Know?
He holds a degree from the Berklee College of Music in guitar performance.
The character Coach John McGuirk on 'Home Movies' was voiced by H. Jon Benjamin and heavily based on Small's own high school wrestling coach.
He provided the voice for both the lead character, Nathan Explosion, and the guitarist, Skwisgaar Skwigelf, on 'Metalocalypse.'
Small is an avid user of and has done promotional work for the Line 6 Variax modeling guitar.
“I'm just trying to make a cartoon about a death metal band.”
