Butthole Surfers Locust Abortion Technician CD

Although the Surfers aren't afraid to offer up a fairly straightforward punk song (the rocked-out "Human Cannonball" hints at their future accessibility), these mad sonic scientists seem most comfortable making listeners uncomfortable, as on the closing "22 Going on 23," which happily and intrepidly pushes the limits of offensive subject matter. Though some Surfers diehards (particularly those frightened by this record's surely Gacy-inspired clown face cover) favor the group's earlier work, most fans will attest to the bizarre majesty of LOCUST ABORTION TECHNICIAN.

Although the Surfers aren't afraid to offer up a fairly straightforward punk song (the rocked-out "Human Cannonball" hints at their future accessibility), these mad sonic scientists seem most comfortable making listeners uncomfortable, as on the closing "22 Going on 23," which happily and intrepidly pushes the limits of offensive subject matter. Though some Surfers diehards (particularly those frightened by this record's surely Gacy-inspired clown face cover) favor the group's even earlier work, most fans will attest to the bizarre majesty of LOCUST ABORTION TECHNICIAN.

Widely considered to be the Butthole Surfers' crowning achievement, 1987's LOCUST ABORTION TECHNICIAN plays to the Texas acid-rock band's strengths, unveiling one twisted tune after another. The album begins with "Sweat Loaf," the group's skewering of (and/or tribute to) Black Sabbath's "Sweet Leaf," and then moves on to the sinister, lumbering "Graveyard." As always, the gleefully subversive ensemble's calling cards are Paul Leary's blistering guitar lines and Gibby Haynes's maniacal yelping and distorted crooning.

Butthole Surfers: Gibby Haynes (vocals); Paul Leary (guitar); Jeff Pinker (bass); King Koffey (drums).

Uncut (p.84) - 5 stars out of 5 -- "[P]robably the Buttholes' finest work....They're best remembered as purveyors of the best sort of '70s excess."
Uncut (8/01, p.114) - "...The Buttholes were never quite this strange again..."
Alternative Press (7/95, p.83) - Ranked #28 in AP's list of the `Top 99 Of '85-'95' - "...LOCUST ABORTION TECHNICIAN....represents the Buttholes at their most deliberately focused, confrontational, and downright evil..."
Mojo (Publisher) (3/03, p.76) - Ranked #48 in Mojo's "Top 50 Punk Albums".
Mojo (Publisher) (3/01, p.115) - "...This is a genius-flecked bad trip through a senseless world....The best recorded representation of their oeuvre, teetering between celebration of and revulsion at the sickness endemic in American society..."
Mojo (Publisher) (p.52) - Ranked #5 in Mojo's "The 50 Most Out There Albums Of All Time" - "[O]ne of the most unsettling records of all time."