Texas’ Butthole Surfers foray into the bizarre — Why did it take me so long to write about the Butthole Surfers? They are the quintessential band for any experimental rock fan. Their freak-outs have inspired other Weird Albums Series contenders (e.g., Ween.) I’ve written about how the Beatles inspired Ween. But it wasn’t just the Beatles who inspired…

Revamping a genre for a modern generation — When hardcore punk emerged in the 80s, some bands experimented and reshaped the subgenre. The sound these bands created became post-hardcore, a style of music that mixed hardcore with other genres, say pop or R&B. In the early 2000s, post-hardcore reformed its sound. The bands Circa Survive, Saosin, and The…

He faded into obscurity for 27 years, but South Africa brought him back — Rodriguez stood there with his hand pressed in front of his mouth. Thousands of South Africans came to Cape Town in 1998 to see him. Like Rodriguez, the crowd was speechless — this couldn’t be Rodriguez. They thought he was dead and the person on stage was an impersonator. But…

The second offering from San Francisco’s Oxbow — In 1991, rock resurged with grunge. Nirvana, Pearl Jam, and Soundgarden dominated the charts. While angry and dynamic rock conquered the charts, other rock subgenres wrote songs for those who liked their rock louder and more frantic. With Oxbow’s second album, King of the Jews, these listeners got their wish…

Not cool, baby — After a long night of wiping surfaces, I can go home. It’s monotonous wiping other people’s shit. I think I saw an employee spitting on a table so I could clean it. At least they make my job entertaining. But my house is more fun than my job. I’ve everything…

It may be crass and raunchy, but it was impactful — This article contains light spoilers. Hollywood was unprepared for a road-trip comedy with two Asian leads. Studio executives told writers Jon Hurwitz and Hayden Schlossberg it wouldn’t work. One studio even suggested that the leads be black and white. Of course, Jon Hurwitz and Hayden Schlossberg won’t settle for less. …

Idiosyncrasies reimagined — Caution: This list contains explicit content. There is a day for every occasion. Do you have an idea? It can become a national holiday. So, it’s not surprising my favorite genre, experimental, has a nationwide holiday. August 24th marks Strange Music Day, and to celebrate, let’s list ten weird and…

The unorthodox proto-punk and krautrock band — Every year, music enthusiasts and historians add to the music history lexicon. They discovered bands who began music genres but didn’t get recognition. For example, we learned Bam Bam started the grunge movement, and a Black woman may’ve invented rock’n’roll. The same can be said about today’s entry in the…

Only the strong learn Capoeira — One day when I was four years old, binging my favorite Barney VHS. My father comes home with a mysterious tape. He said it’s a movie about fighting that I knew I’d love. I asked Dad where he got the VHS from. I can’t get a straight answer. …