Editing Mike Watt (section)

===Unknown Instructors===
{{Main|Unknown Instructors}}
In 2005, another side project featuring Watt came to light with the announced September 20 release of ''[[The Way Things Work (album)|The Way Things Work]]'', an album of [[musical improvisation|improvised music]] under the group name, [[Unknown Instructors]] with George Hurley, [[Saccharine Trust]]'s Joe Baiza and [[Jack Brewer (musician)|Jack Brewer]], and [[poetry|poet]]/[[saxophone|saxophonist]] Dan McGuire. A month after the album's release, the Unknown Instructors recorded a second album, ''[[The Master's Voice]]'', with [[Pere Ubu (band)|Pere Ubu]] frontman [[David Thomas (musician)|David Thomas]] and artist [[Raymond Pettibon]] joining the core quartet of Watt, Hurley, McGuire and Baiza. A third album with the same lineup, ''Funland'', was released in 2009 and features a semi-cover version (the original lyrics over new music) of [[Captain Beefheart]]'s "Frownland" (from the ''[[Trout Mask Replica]]'' album). Basic tracks have already been laid down for the fourth Unknown Instructors album at Secondmen organist [[Pete Mazich]]'s Casa Hanzo studio in San Pedro.

Watt would further his interest in improvised music by forming a trio, Los Pumpkinheads, with former [[Beastie Boys]] keyboardist [[Money Mark]] and Caroline Bermudez.

On December 14, 2005, the McNally-Smith College of Music in [[Saint Paul, Minnesota]] announced the formation of the Mike Watt Bass Guitar Scholarship, which is to be awarded annually to a bass major starting in the Fall of 2006.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://mcnallysmith.edu/mikewatt.html |title=Bass Guitar Scholarship Programs at McNally Smith College of Music &#124; Mike Watt Scholarship |publisher=Mcnallysmith.edu |access-date=September 14, 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060907203317/http://www.mcnallysmith.edu/mikewatt.html |archive-date=September 7, 2006 }}</ref>

In March 2006, Watt took part in the performance at [[Disney Hall]], [[Los Angeles]], of [[Glenn Branca]]'s "Hallucination City" Symphony #13.