Butthole Surfers Working on First New LP in 16 Years
As fans learned back in July, the psychedelic punk band Butthole Surfers are at work on their ninth studio album. Now plans for the LP, which they previously confirmed was on deck, seem to be solidifying, with an anticipated release next summer. It'll be the pioneering group's first full-length in more than 15 years.
"It has never been done. No one has put out a decent record 35 years into their career," singer Gibby Haynes told Rolling Stone. "Well, except for Johnny Cash. But we're not Johnny Cash. It's gonna be a tough road to do a record that's presentable. It's really gonna be hard. … But, given that, looking forward to it!"
The Butthole Sufers' last release was 2001's Weird Revolution.
The band began writing and recording in guitarist Paul Leary's home studio in Austin, Texas. He says the album will be all over the map, sonically, including some pop, some rock, "some ambient things and some really stupid things," and will likely include some songs of Butthole Surfers' past with new arrangements, or, as Leary puts it, "in a completely ridiculous format."
Drummer King Coffey agreed, saying that "There's some pop stuff, but there's a lot of songs with no real agenda," adding, "It's like noise with, like, just throbbing beats to it. It's kind of, in a way, what we've always done. We try to scatter ourselves all across the board."
The band has three finished songs, and 15 more are in the works, they said. The album will be released by Five Music Inc., Artist Network Management's in-house label.
"We're not in a position like a lot of other bands. Like, take Metallica. God bless 'em, I love Metallica. But all they gotta do is put out another Metallica record," Haynes said. "The same thing with Foo Fighters. That's all they gotta do is put out another Foo Fighters record. 'Cause, I mean, they've got a sound. Or, they've got a song," says Haynes, laughing. "If it ain't broke, don't fix it. But, I guess we're just continually broken and in a struggle to fix it. So, it's gonna be a wild one."
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