Alisa's Oddities: Hatebeak

Okay, stop me if you've heard this one, but my friend Hollywood Steve just turned me onto Hatebeak. It's a death metal band fronted by - wait for it - a parrot named Waldo. Yes, you read that correctly. According to the San Francisco Chronicle, Waldo and his human band members Blake and Mark, both audio engineers in Baltimore, have a record called Beak of Putrefaction, chock full of parrothead-banging hits like the Carcass-inspired "Reek of Putrefaction," "God of Empty Nest" (nicked from Morbid Angel's "God of Emptiness"), and "Seeds of Destruction."

The record was released by Reptilian Records, an underground record story in Baltimore which is sadly closing its storefront in January. As the label's chief executive officer, Chris X warned, "you will not be able to dodge the talons of hate of Hatebeak. You can run, but you cannot fly."

Don't expect a Mercury Lounge show any time soon. The bird is uncomfortable with touring and has ridiculous demands on its rider. But for those of you who are interested in hearing the squawks of terror, the band has a MySpace page.