Butthole Surfers- Classic or dud?

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what is
this point
?

― Tim Ellison (Tim Ellison), Sunday, 28 August 2005 19:15 (eighteen years ago) link

Well, as far as my point goes anyway, w/ the Zoogz comparison, is that Zoogz can be stupid and annoying, too, but he is also often genuinely funny whereas the Butthole Surfers are ... what ... supposed to be funny?

Also, Zoogz's music is vastly better than the BH Surfers' music and this counts because this is music that we are talking about.

― Tim Ellison (Tim Ellison), Sunday, 28 August 2005 19:47 (eighteen years ago) link

"Zoogz's music is vastly better than the BH Surfers' music"

QUALIFY THIS STATEMENT

― Ian John50n (orion), Sunday, 28 August 2005 19:52 (eighteen years ago) link

Well, I don't know, Ian. I mean, I can't imagine that you're THAT impressed with the BH Surfers, musically speaking, right? They were OK, but like a lot of '80s indie bands, they weren't very tight, they didn't have that great of a sound, etc. Songwriting-wise, I think they were OK, you know, but not great, really. Better than a lot of Shimmy Disc bands, probably?

Zoogz, on the other hand, is seriously talented at a Zappa-type level. And that doesn't just mean goofy complexity all the time. Like Zappa, he was also just plain talented at writing good tunes (plus arranging, having a really tight band that sounded good, etc.).

― Tim Ellison (Tim Ellison), Sunday, 28 August 2005 20:18 (eighteen years ago) link

Nothing per se against Zoogz but the Surfers over him anyday of the week. Far more, shall we say, erratic in intent while more direct in terms of song.

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Sunday, 28 August 2005 20:23 (eighteen years ago) link

I mostly agree with Ian and charlton on this, although I almost never listen to the Butthole Surfers any more, and find them a little depressing for a couple different reasons. I've always thought they did get to be a pretty tight band, but I don't have a musicianly perspective.

― Rockist_Scientist (RSLaRue), Sunday, 28 August 2005 20:24 (eighteen years ago) link

Ned, complexity isn't the antithesis of directness, though.

And what could be more direct than some of Zoogz's pronoucements???

― Tim Ellison (Tim Ellison), Sunday, 28 August 2005 20:33 (eighteen years ago) link

Consider this: there are fourteen tracks on Zoogz's Looser Than Clams compilation LP record. Average time length: just over three minutes.

― Tim Ellison (Tim Ellison), Sunday, 28 August 2005 20:43 (eighteen years ago) link

amateurist + Aaron Zanders = Tim Ellison

― the food has a top snake of 1 (ex machina), Sunday, 28 August 2005 20:46 (eighteen years ago) link

Someone arguing somewhat passionately about stuff + arguing a point that doesn't resonate with Jon Williams well = Jon Williams equates person with Aaron

― Tim Ellison (Tim Ellison), Sunday, 28 August 2005 20:51 (eighteen years ago) link

And if Aaron were to agree w/ me that Zoogz is better than the BH Surfers, then bully for him, ya dick!

― Tim Ellison (Tim Ellison), Sunday, 28 August 2005 21:04 (eighteen years ago) link

ten months pass...

I've never heard Zoogz Rift. Butthole Surfers are one of my favorite bands, though.

― AaronHz (AaronHz), Monday, 17 July 2006 04:30 (seventeen years ago) link

Zoogz is looser than clams.

― Tim Ellison (Tim Ellison), Monday, 17 July 2006 04:34 (seventeen years ago) link

I'll check him out.

― AaronHz (AaronHz), Monday, 17 July 2006 04:36 (seventeen years ago) link

http://static.flickr.com/2/2038201_c81a37f3e6_m.jpg

― less-than three's Christiane F. (drowned in milk), Monday, 17 July 2006 04:50 (seventeen years ago) link

http://www.salon.com/ent/movies/feature/2006/07/05/slacker/story.jpg

― less-than three's Christiane F. (drowned in milk), Monday, 17 July 2006 04:57 (seventeen years ago) link

one month passes...

On August 18 2006, Gibby announced a new Butthole Surfers record is in the making.

― StanM (StanM), Friday, 15 September 2006 22:29 (seventeen years ago) link

They were OK, but like a lot of '80s indie bands, they weren't very tight, they didn't have that great of a sound, etc. Songwriting-wise, I think they were OK, you know, but not great, really. Better than a lot of Shimmy Disc bands, probably?

No sound! What? The oscilating, slow burn of two drummers and a million layers of psych feedback with super low pitch vocals, swirling around the audience -- are you kidding me? They were loose in the best possible sense.

― Period period period (Period period period), Saturday, 16 September 2006 05:16 (seventeen years ago) link

They could be incredibly tight as well (large parts of Psychedelic Jam and John E. Smoke, for instance)

― StanM (StanM), Saturday, 16 September 2006 05:53 (seventeen years ago) link

Then when the Hurdy Gurdy Man come singing songs...of life...

Purple people eater!

― I am not Ted Nugent (Bimble...), Saturday, 16 September 2006 07:22 (seventeen years ago) link

There's a time to shit and a time for God,the last shit that I took was pretty fuckin' odd!

― latebloomer (latebloomer), Saturday, 16 September 2006 08:41 (seventeen years ago) link

They've put up all of "Double Live" as MP3s:

http://www.buttholesurfers.com/DoubleLiveMP3.html

Though you can still order the LP from them.

It's from the era when they had two drummers, the topless dancer with glasses and king tut beard, an out-of-control smoke machine, and were projecting car accident and sex change operation films into said smoke. So you miss the visuals. But it gets point across pretty well.

― bendy (bendy), Saturday, 16 September 2006 10:42 (seventeen years ago) link

Fixed link

― bendy (bendy), Saturday, 16 September 2006 10:43 (seventeen years ago) link

http://www.buttholesurfers.com/hairwaytrack/hairwaytrack_htmlpane3_1_.gif

― Mike Dixn (Mike Dixon), Saturday, 16 September 2006 12:03 (seventeen years ago) link

Ooops. That didn't come out the way I expected.

― Mike Dixn (Mike Dixon), Saturday, 16 September 2006 12:04 (seventeen years ago) link

So I finally got around to downloading Double Live thanks to this thread revival. This is good Saturday night music.

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Sunday, 17 September 2006 01:12 (seventeen years ago) link

Yeah, I got that a while back. Maybe if the new one sells anything (fat chance, probably) LBV will put it and Pioughd back into print.

― Marmot (marmotwolof), Sunday, 17 September 2006 01:18 (seventeen years ago) link

I suspect we'll have to dream further on that front.

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Sunday, 17 September 2006 01:32 (seventeen years ago) link

I downloaded the mp3s and found a sealed copy of pioughd on amazon, I'm good for now.

― Marmot (marmotwolof), Sunday, 17 September 2006 01:35 (seventeen years ago) link

Can we talk about how underrated pioughd is? I really don't see the drop off in quality until IWS, which bores the pants off of me. I might just be partial to it since it was the first BHS I heard (I bought the Rough Trade LP of it back in the early 90s). Revolution, P.S.Y., Hurdy Gurdy, Blindman, Golden Showers, the goofy JAMC verson of Something...I even think the endless reprises of Lonesome Bulldog are pretty funny.

― Marmot (marmotwolof), Sunday, 17 September 2006 01:43 (seventeen years ago) link

So I finally got around to downloading Double Live thanks to this thread revival. This is good Saturday night music.

-- Ned Raggett (ne...), September 17th, 2006.

On behalf of naked vulcans everywhere, thanks, but what the fuck took you so long?

― Butt Dickass (Dick Butkus), Sunday, 17 September 2006 02:05 (seventeen years ago) link

Can we talk about how underrated pioughd is? I really don't see the drop off in quality until IWS, which bores the pants off of me.

Agreed. That's the one I really hate. The follow-up is almost as bad. But the follow-follow-up many years later (Weird Revolution) is at least fun again. Pioughd is a great album. Totally fucking stupid BUT it has PSY studio version and that "You always get to be Iron Man" song, which is the most hilarious thing they ever did, except for Gibby drunk in the studio.

― Butt Dickass (Dick Butkus), Sunday, 17 September 2006 02:07 (seventeen years ago) link

Yeah, "No, I'm Iron Man" haha.
As of right now, I still need Widowermaker, Electriclarryland, Weird Revolution and Humpty Dumpty LSD. Maybe someone can tell me the order of necessity (I'll take your word on Weird > Larry BD, I heard Larry a couple times when it cam out and hated it). I'm pretty curious about Weird, really. I don't think I ever heard one song off it.

― Marmot (marmotwolof), Sunday, 17 September 2006 02:20 (seventeen years ago) link

The order is:

Humpty Dumpty LSD, Widowermaker, Electriclarryland (not that good at all; practically IWS)

― Butt Dickass (Dick Butkus), Sunday, 17 September 2006 02:44 (seventeen years ago) link

but what the fuck took you so long?

I was lazy! I'd hear it all before, of course.

"...and I walked on down the hall, and I saw my father again..."

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Sunday, 17 September 2006 03:21 (seventeen years ago) link

Moving to Florida is inspired genius.

― Earl Nash (earlnash), Sunday, 17 September 2006 05:12 (seventeen years ago) link

"I'm gonna potty train the Chairman Mao"

― Marmot (marmotwolof), Sunday, 17 September 2006 05:23 (seventeen years ago) link

There is a song called "Lady Sniff" and it has not been equalled ever in the entire range of music ever. I heard that when I was 14. There aren't words to describe it. It is utter, utter filth. It is a fantastic piece of history.

― Ficky Stingers (Bimble...), Sunday, 17 September 2006 08:08 (seventeen years ago) link

Even some of that Hairway To Steven album wasn't too bad as I recall.

― Ficky Stingers (Bimble...), Sunday, 17 September 2006 08:10 (seventeen years ago) link

The beginning of Jimi (Hairway track 1) rocks almost as much as Lady Sniff.

― Marmot (marmotwolof), Sunday, 17 September 2006 08:12 (seventeen years ago) link

I once cleared an entire student indie night dancefloor in less than a minute with "Jimi", bar one couple who continued to dance, ballroom style, to it.

― Si.C@rter (SiC@rter), Sunday, 17 September 2006 11:32 (seventeen years ago) link

CLASSIC until they started to sound like a Goth band, thereafter DUD

― Oh No It's Dadaismus! (Dada), Sunday, 17 September 2006 11:41 (seventeen years ago) link

They have a lot more videos than I thought

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RQ9lCXVLpiY&mode=related&search=

― StanM (StanM), Sunday, 17 September 2006 17:01 (seventeen years ago) link

Sorry. Even more like this:

http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=butthole+surfers&search=Search

― StanM (StanM), Sunday, 17 September 2006 17:05 (seventeen years ago) link

Y'know "Piough" or whatever's actually really amazing, on headphones at least. Like, their best record. Someone's drunk!

― Richard Bliss (mazdachik), Sunday, 24 September 2006 12:11 (seventeen years ago) link

So classic. They changed everything when they came out. I love the Indian wardance drum beats and the truly psychotic guitar. Check out the video for "Graveyard"

― JB Young (JB Young), Sunday, 24 September 2006 15:05 (seventeen years ago) link

Were they the first ones to create psychedelia that wasn't trying to be spiritual or intelligent? But, instead, stupid and psychotic?

― Butt Dickass (Dick Butkus), Sunday, 24 September 2006 15:35 (seventeen years ago) link

Classic, duh.

Marmot, ya gotta get Humpty Dumpty if only for the rousing froth-at-the-mouth track "I Hate My Job", which is the only other tune they've ever done that equals "Suicide".

― sleeve version 2.0 (sleeve testing), Sunday, 24 September 2006 15:35 (seventeen years ago) link

Were they the first ones to create psychedelia that wasn't trying to be spiritual or intelligent? But, instead, stupid and psychotic?

No, there was plenty of '60s US garage psych that was intentionally dumb, intending it as humor. And plenty of it somewhat psychotic as well - though not making a real big POINT about it like the Butthole Surfers. Also plenty of '70s proto-punk w/ garbage-psych aspects that was fucked up as well.

― Tim Ellison (Tim Ellison), Sunday, 24 September 2006 15:56 (seventeen years ago) link

Any examples I might check into?

The only thing I can think of is that Spazz song ("Get offa the floor, boy, people gonna think you're a Spazz") from the Pebbles comp and another one called "I Wanna Get Back (from The World of LSD)" or something like that... but I can't think of any where the singer WAS the fool. They were usually talking about the fool or being foolish. Hope you get what I'm saying.

― Butt Dickass (Dick Butkus), Sunday, 24 September 2006 16:01 (seventeen years ago) link

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