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Doctor Steel
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Doctor Steel
Rion M. Vernon,[permanent dead link] known by his stage name Doctor Steel (full stage name, Doctor Phineas Waldolf Steel) is an American musician and internet personality from Los Angeles. He performed on rare occasions with a "backup band", claiming that a fictitious robot band had malfunctioned. Shows incorporated puppetry, multimedia and performances by female members ("Nurses" and "Scouts") of his street team, The Army of Toy Soldiers. Steel made a brief appearance on The Tonight Show and has had numerous interviews. He was the subject of an article in Wired magazine regarding allegations that Dr. Horrible had copied his style. Steel has frequently been cited as an example of steampunk culture. Rion Vernon is now self-employed and also part of the duo "Manchester & Vernon" on Youtube.
Steel began publicly performing in 1999, essentially busking on the streets of Los Angeles. A few years later, he began performing at venues like The Key Club and the California Institute of Abnormalarts. His live shows combined music with puppetry and video projection that reflect the stories and meanings of the songs.
The albums Dr. Steel and Dr. Steel II: Eclectic Boogaloo were released digitally in 2001, followed by People of Earth in 2002. The Dr. Steel Collection (2004) was Steel's first CD release, featuring several previously released tracks, some slightly altered. The Dr. Steel Collection also features the track "Land of the Lost," about the 1970s version of the show by the same name. Some attempts were made to get the song into the soundtrack of 2009 movie version of Land of the Lost, but they were unsuccessful.
Steel's second CD release was The Dr. Steel Read-A-Long Album (2006). It was a limited distribution and quickly sold out. The album art included a recreation of the sleeve of read-along records, and the disc design resembled that of a vinyl record. In 2007, Steel re-released the first three albums, once again in digital format.
Steel's music can often be heard on a number of steampunk radio broadcasts that stream worldwide, such as The Clockwork Cabaret. His song "Boogieman Boogie" was also included in a compilation of steampunk music released by Gilded Age Records.
Steel's music is eclectic in genre, often combining the noise and distortion of industrial with aspects of European folk, classical, and even jazz, as well as hip-hop, opera and swing. Many songs feature samples from vintage public service announcements and educational films, such as Duck and Cover. Rue Morgue Magazine described the sound as "Industrial Hip-Hop Opera".
Steel cited, as some of his musical influences, Igor Stravinsky, Tom Waits, Pink Floyd, Queen, Mike Patton, Nine Inch Nails, Danny Elfman, Beck, and John Zorn.[non-primary source needed]
On stage, and in all public performances and interviews, Steel maintained the appearance of a mad scientist bent on conquering the world and becoming the future World Emperor. He claimed to be a former toymaker who, in a fit of rage over being fired for creating drastic designs such as babies with buzzsaws for hands, burned down the factory he worked at and was committed to a psychiatric institution. This back-story relates that Steel escaped the sanitarium and retreated to a deserted island laboratory, where he became bent on world conquest to create a "Utopian Playland" where his toy designs could be enjoyed. As a mad scientist, Steel is obsessed with conspiracy theories, giant robots, baking cupcakes and "mind control cookies", and experimenting with hamsters.
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Doctor Steel
Rion M. Vernon,[permanent dead link] known by his stage name Doctor Steel (full stage name, Doctor Phineas Waldolf Steel) is an American musician and internet personality from Los Angeles. He performed on rare occasions with a "backup band", claiming that a fictitious robot band had malfunctioned. Shows incorporated puppetry, multimedia and performances by female members ("Nurses" and "Scouts") of his street team, The Army of Toy Soldiers. Steel made a brief appearance on The Tonight Show and has had numerous interviews. He was the subject of an article in Wired magazine regarding allegations that Dr. Horrible had copied his style. Steel has frequently been cited as an example of steampunk culture. Rion Vernon is now self-employed and also part of the duo "Manchester & Vernon" on Youtube.
Steel began publicly performing in 1999, essentially busking on the streets of Los Angeles. A few years later, he began performing at venues like The Key Club and the California Institute of Abnormalarts. His live shows combined music with puppetry and video projection that reflect the stories and meanings of the songs.
The albums Dr. Steel and Dr. Steel II: Eclectic Boogaloo were released digitally in 2001, followed by People of Earth in 2002. The Dr. Steel Collection (2004) was Steel's first CD release, featuring several previously released tracks, some slightly altered. The Dr. Steel Collection also features the track "Land of the Lost," about the 1970s version of the show by the same name. Some attempts were made to get the song into the soundtrack of 2009 movie version of Land of the Lost, but they were unsuccessful.
Steel's second CD release was The Dr. Steel Read-A-Long Album (2006). It was a limited distribution and quickly sold out. The album art included a recreation of the sleeve of read-along records, and the disc design resembled that of a vinyl record. In 2007, Steel re-released the first three albums, once again in digital format.
Steel's music can often be heard on a number of steampunk radio broadcasts that stream worldwide, such as The Clockwork Cabaret. His song "Boogieman Boogie" was also included in a compilation of steampunk music released by Gilded Age Records.
Steel's music is eclectic in genre, often combining the noise and distortion of industrial with aspects of European folk, classical, and even jazz, as well as hip-hop, opera and swing. Many songs feature samples from vintage public service announcements and educational films, such as Duck and Cover. Rue Morgue Magazine described the sound as "Industrial Hip-Hop Opera".
Steel cited, as some of his musical influences, Igor Stravinsky, Tom Waits, Pink Floyd, Queen, Mike Patton, Nine Inch Nails, Danny Elfman, Beck, and John Zorn.[non-primary source needed]
On stage, and in all public performances and interviews, Steel maintained the appearance of a mad scientist bent on conquering the world and becoming the future World Emperor. He claimed to be a former toymaker who, in a fit of rage over being fired for creating drastic designs such as babies with buzzsaws for hands, burned down the factory he worked at and was committed to a psychiatric institution. This back-story relates that Steel escaped the sanitarium and retreated to a deserted island laboratory, where he became bent on world conquest to create a "Utopian Playland" where his toy designs could be enjoyed. As a mad scientist, Steel is obsessed with conspiracy theories, giant robots, baking cupcakes and "mind control cookies", and experimenting with hamsters.
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