So what is this BUTT ROCK, anyway?

Really, not gonna belabor the point because it always pisses people off, but if you're talking Seger/BTO/Bad Company-type buttness, Nashville is really where it wound up.

montgomery buttry

definitely. on some other thread i think i talked about how country is the last bastion of white-american-male swagger. although like roger says about nickelback, there's a lot of defensiveness now even in the nashville swagger. it's a swagger as much in-spite-of as because-of -- where the '70s stuff had a real fuck-you confidence about it.

Well, that may be a difference between the '70s and the '00s. (I hear plenty of defensiveness in Jack White, too -- the indie archness you refer to. And I'd say Toby comes off pretty darn confident, most of the time. Though yeah, defensive too, obviously.)

And honestly, Seger's "Feel Like A Number" (the most obvious song where he talks about working the 9 to 5 for the bossman) isn't all confident swagger either -- I mean, look at its title!

Kid Rock is meta-butt rock. He's way too self-aware of his own butt-ness.

xposting a lot here!

not sure about seger... there's a strand running through but by the time he hits AOR it's also some of his weakest stuff (Katmandu, Strut, Old Time Rock and Roll etc) and feels like schtick.

The stuff that hits is all... well there's that nostalgia again, lament for the lost strength of youth, swagger all swagger'd out now... (plus mostly ballads).

- Beautiful Loser
- Feel Like A Number
- Hollywood Nights
- Night Moves
- Mainstreet
- Roll Me Away
- We've Got Tonight
- Against The Wind
- Like A Rock

Don't necessarily disagree with Kid Rock being too self-aware about his butt, actually.

xp And if you want defensiveness, BTO's "Blue Collar" is total Silent Majority stuff (sorry, I've been reading Nixonland):

Walk your street
And I'll walk mine
And should we meet
Would you spare me some time
Cuz you should see my world
Meet my kind
Before you judge our minds
Blue Collar

So I think you might be overstating '70s swagger, at least a little.

the ironic pose is Kid Rock's genx birthright but he actually feels pretty right on, esp. stuff like "I Am The Bullgod"

I'm like a train I roll hard lettin off much steam
In the Carhart flannel and dusty jeans baby
I never was cool with James Dean
But I be hanging tough with my man Jim Beam...

I wanna flood the world with my twisted thoughts
You can bet all day but I can't be bought
Uh Break it up let's tie one on
I gotta get set to go and cut the lawn
So I grab my walkman but before I cut
I go behind the garage and fire it up

(ugh i hate lyrics-based crit but whattyagonnado?)

So I think you might be overstating '70s swagger, at least a little.
― xhuxk, Tuesday, April 14, 2009

Sort of fair. Swagger is a front for anxiety almost by definition, i'n'it? But in Nickelback BOTH get turned up to 11 along with the dual rectifiers and downtuned PRS.

yeah i was thinking about "feel like a number." there's a lot of defensiveness there. it still sounds liberating though. carrying on the rock'n'roll rebellion narrative that i think ran out of steam sometime in the '80s -- superseded by punk/postpunk and hip-hop on the one hand, and co-opted by "classic rock" and car commercials on the other, until it could be safely pressed into service as a voice of reactionary establishmentarianism in nashville. (and i know that's a huge simplification, and even the most reactionary nashville songs aren't necessarily establishmentarian, but basically i think the music followed the political contours of white middle-class american life -- from cultural dominance to uncertainty to a sort of rear-guard defensiveness.)

so the butt-rock era was really the era when that slice of the population (epimotized among other things by a lot of the dudes in dazed and confused) was at its political-economic height. they had reason to swagger, at least for a little while -- the threats to their dominance were maybe already obvious, but they were still on top.

Seger's "Her Strut" is the very essence of unselfconsciously functional buttness. but where does "Lady Sniff" by the Butthole Surfers fit in?

See, I've always thought of "Her Strut" as really compromised and stiff despite itself, like Seger's equivalent of "Love In An Elevator" or something. (Agree with "butt-rock miyagi/rogermexico" that his music sunk into schtick, though I actually think he made it through the '70s fine, AOR crossover or no -- Stranger In Town in '78 ranks with his best albums. As soon as the '80s start, though, things get a lot iffier, despite okay moments even then.)

Stranger In Town forever gets a pass due to "Still the Same" & "Til it Shines", which are practically butt-free. also, "Fire Lake" didn't come out until after that, so yeah he still managed at least one awesome moment imo

so we seem to be tacitly in agreement that "butt rock" is not a lol80s thing

btw apparently Matt Cameron came around... turns out he plays drums on the immortal Chad Kroeger/Josey Scott soundtrack jam "Hero"... (!!!)

but(t) "compromised and stiff despite itself" would be a good definition for much of this stuff, Chuck. "Her Strut" is butt rock in excelsis.

Butt rock, often used in discussions with or by people for whom the description hard rock for people who don't like hard rock was coined. So you have the Troggs, who were -- at best -- good for "Wild Thing" and a couple other minor singles, never really big shakes in the US, but not Foghat.

Jason Aldean comes to mind here, mostly because he does so many Bad Company-like things and is the very picture of the bull-headed strong man of action on stage and in his videos.

When Trace Adkins isn't doing his sensitive ballads or I came to God stuff, he seems to be in the territory of butt rock, particularly the new one on the X album about marrying for money.

UFO's "Only You Can Rock Me," "Natural Thing," "Too Hot to Handle" and "Rock Bottom" fit here.

If modern country still is tolerant of simple white swagger, it's because it's required, as opposed to required that it be delivered with a wink or sweat-on-the-neck self-consciousness in other venues.

So I guess anything with a young audience that requires even superficial nods to self-examination fundamentally prevents 'butt rock.'

KISS!

Fire Lake" didn't come out until after that, so yeah he still managed at least one awesome moment

Yeah, that was a good one. I always liked "Makin' Thunderbirds" off The Distance, too.

Jason Aldean comes to mind

I was going to mention him. If "She's Country" doesn't qualify as butt-rock in 2009, nothing does.

The name Bunny Brains conjures images of crazed music arising from cramped quarters and players probably naked and on amphetamines. It all makes sense when the disc starts, until they settle into the organ-ground, dinosaur dirge-groove of the nine minute "You're A Stud." Bunny Brains are a rolling-thunder basement band with ancient prog rhythms and Weenlike bombast, and some entertaining butt-rock tendencies on, for instance, "Kukla, Fran and Bunny."
Patrick Barber PUNCTURE

butt rock vs cock rock

I'm new to the concept of butt rock, but some of these glam/cock rock bands seem to miss the mark. I would imagine butt rock to have plenty of boogie in there, like Molly Hatchet's Flirting With Disaster.

In fact, upon further reflection, Molly Hatchet seem to be a prime exponent of the butt rock genre.

put a donk butt on it

In fact, upon further reflection, Molly Hatchet seem to be a prime exponent of the butt rock genre.

Being massively effective in stadiums is part of it. Molly Hatchet was one of the big US stadium bands for a time.

Plus they were massively foul-looking mostly ensuring that the women in the audience were the of the show-us-your-tits wimmen as property demographic. Contrast this with Keith Urban, also bing in stadiums, who has rather emphatically gone for very few guys but all girls who like to cuddle him slice.

http://www.mtv.com/onair/beavisandbutthead/personality_images/relaunch_crops/281x211_tom.jpg
One of them calls himself Butt-hole.. the other one's name is Joe I think..

I don't know what's happening to me. I've got this thing about Loverboy right now.
http://baseballsnatcher.mlblogs.com/Loverboy-GetLucky1981.jpg

I mean, I understand, this is really embarassing. But their greatest hits is just hitting my spot right now.

LOLOLOL I didn't know Tipsy Mothra posted it before I did! LOLOLOLOL

Okay I've read about 75% of this thread and there are some major LOLZ posts going on here. One thing I will say is that the original post by rogermexico needs to sortof be put in a plaque or something as I think it is a milestone significant contribution to ILM. I had never heard of "butt rock" until the late 90's but I think the idea of its inclusion of hair metal was pretty obvious.

I do think though, that if Spinal Tap's "Big Bottom" is not a part of this, then we've totally missed the point. Thanks dudes.

Also, I would like to know, in all innocence, if people think Journey is butt rock or not. Because if they are, I'm going to be really disillusioned and disappointed.

Journey were melodic (half-assed?) semi-butt rock.

Thanks, I think that's just about what I wanted to hear.

Please someone stop me before I start posting Loverboy You Tube videos on this thread. Please. They had synths, dude! ("Take Me To The Top"!) They were WAY ahead of the rest because of this simple fact. But I can't bear it. I'm going to die of embarassment over them.

Yeah, butt-rock has always been sort of meat and potatoes to me, which rules out the likes of Journey or Boston. "Godzilla" by BOC is sort of meta-butt-rock as well, since it's so funny. But if "Godzilla" weren't taking the piss, and were 30% less funky, it would be total butt-rock.

Foreigner gets pretty butt-y at times, but again - too slick. Molly Hatchet seem OTM. Grand Funk, BTO. Deep Purple is sort of ur-butt-rock. If Sabbath had far fewer hooks, it'd be more butt, too. Kiss is totally butt ("I was Made for Loving You" is butt-disco!). Hank Williams, Jr. is like butt-country.

All the stoner metal acts course with butt-DNA as well. Kyuss, Fu Manchu ... butt-rock in the rear view mirror may be closer than it appears.

"UFO's "Only You Can Rock Me," "Natural Thing," "Too Hot to Handle" and "Rock Bottom" fit here. "

those are some killer tunes

butt rock vs cock rock

Can't it be both?

When Trace Adkins isn't doing his sensitive ballads or I came to God stuff, he seems to be in the territory of butt rock

Plus he did "Honky Tonk Badonkadonk," which if not sonically full-on butt-rock per se' is certainly as butt-oriented a country hit as has ever existed.

And honestly, Seger's "Feel Like A Number" (the most obvious song where he talks about working the 9 to 5 for the bossman) isn't all confident swagger either -- I mean, look at its title!

― xhuxk, Tuesday, April 14, 2009

Spent some time with this one (goddamn can dude sing his balls off or what?) and despite the refrain, it's really a kick-against-the-pricks cri de couer sort of thing i'n'it? cataloging the long list of daily insults in order to reject and rise above. it's sort of straightforwardly heroic.

All the stoner metal acts course with butt-DNA as well. Kyuss, Fu Manchu ... butt-rock in the rear view mirror may be closer than it appears

Yeah, they have it. But it doesn't always express for the butt rock protein. You need a singer with some command to do this. Fu Manchu doesn't have one. Well, technically, he's a 'singer.' and the sentiment and aim is there.

i always thought of butt rock as metal-prog for some reason, like the stuff the kid w/ a mullet and a megadeth t-shirt in jr. high probably listened to. it was an easy insulting association to make at the time, people who listen to "butt rock" when you're a teenager are poorer than you amirite? now i pretty much wish i had been friends w/ that kid

in my mind, the Channel 101 guys are already hard at work on a successor to Yacht Rock centered around butt rock

butt rock vs cock rock

Can't it be both?

nah, that's totally gay

butt frock would be a good band name tho

LOLOL Damn straight! It'd have to be a band of trannies, though I think.

"Honky Tonk Badonkadonk," which if not sonically full-on butt-rock per se' is certainly as butt-oriented a country hit as has ever existed.

Not quite a hit, but Alejandro Escavedo's "I Like Her Better When She Walks Away" was covered by Los Lonely Boys and it ended up on GW Bush's ipod. When Alejandro heard about it he refused to play the song live anymore.

Best AE song imho; another thing GWB ruined for the rest of us.

Silent Majority finds creative new uses for classic butt-rock:

Rock anthems like "We're Not Gonna Take it" and "Takin' Care of Business" swirled with chants for states' rights. Protester signs blasted mortgage bailouts; others compared President Barack Obama and legislators to Somali pirates.

http://www.statesman.com/news/content/news/stories/local/04/16/0416teaparties.html

Randy Bachman leaves BTO behind; retains butt:

Rolling Past Expiry Hard Rock 2009

"...states right's"

Cue descriptor for southern bigots/IRS deniers, cultural warriors, Ted Nugent crazies, etc

Very exclusionary by nature, strangely, does not exclude butt rocking.

More modern-day country butt:

Rolling Country 2009 Thread

I would like to think that "Black Betty" is the mos buttrockingest song ever done. The Ram Jam version, natch.

^ understands

Latter Day Butt Rock Protein

long distance bridal registry protein?

disagree with xhukx about "Her Strut" above; it sounds like Seger doing AC/DC. but I dunno, maybe that's stiff too? certainly boys with stiffies. love to watch her strut!

"Her Strut" is excellent....always a fave of this devil rock fan. I'm researching "butt-rock" again...fans online point again to peacock rockers like Loverboy and Scorpions. I'm fond of this definition, because I remember that in high school we had a soft spot for the mullet rockers who dabbled in new wave. Seemed to be a cult building around them (as opposed to burnout rock).

Thanks to Spotify, I can locate shitloads of "rocker" bands tainted by new wave music, hair gel, and synths. I found compiling a playlist rather painful, though. I mean, it's like exploring an urban sewer....is it worth the stench to come up with a few gems...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EChz4nq-1Pk

I think Sirius XM would do well to add a Butt Rock channel.

I think that's kind of what Classic Vinyl and 70's Rewind already are.

canonical ILM butt rock analysis: The most buttrockin' song on Buddy Blue's list of the top 50 Butt Rock Anthems (search term: buttrock)

Living in small town southern Minnesota in the late 70s I saw this Iowa band a couple times, and had completely forgotten about them for the for the last 40 years. I think I may still have this song on a 45.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZKKq7naXsu0

https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/music/story/2023-09-15/maren-morris-the-bridge-nashville-country-music-leaving

“After the Trump years, people’s biases were on full display. It just revealed who people really were and that they were proud to be misogynistic and racist and homophobic and transphobic. All these things were being celebrated, and it was weirdly dovetailing with this hyper-masculine branch of country music. I call it butt rock.”