10 Trippy Albums You MUST Hear Before You Die
6. The Butthole Surfers - Independent Worm Saloon (1993)
Offensive band name? Check. Nonsensical album title? Check. A bizarre collection of surprisingly melodic, psychedelic punk rock? Check.
Strongly influenced by the counterculture of the sixties, the band’s first major label release opens with the energetic “Who Was in My Room Last Night”, which starts with singer Gibby Haynes’ distorted voice repeating “I’m flying”, before exploding into screaming vocals and fist pumping heavy rock.
Like uppers and downers, the album slips from the hard-edged to the soft and silly, with the likes of the acoustic, southern tinged “The Ballad of Naked Man”: “Naked is always wrong/So get the hell away from me” and folksy “The Wooden Song”. The aptly titled “The Annoying Song” then drifts into the borderline psychotic, with a dance club beat and vocals à la Chipmunks.
The entire album reads like a drug and alcohol fuelled night out, with its highs and lows and it’s not-so-pleasant after effects, complete with the added sound effects of puking and urinating accompanying more typical instrumentation. The Surfers’ twisted humour and outlandish style may leave you scratching your head, or clutching your stomach, but their heavy riffs and pounding drums will definitely leave you stomping your feet. The band’s strange album covers and outrageous, freak show style performances have since become the stuff of music legend.