NOW IN THEATERS! One of the darkest passages in rock history is thoroughly probed in the so-perfect-it-hurts rock doc B******e Surfers: The Hole Truth And Nothing Butt, directed by Tom Stern and written by Stern and Simon Weinstein. It opens with Paul Leary, guitarist for The B******e Surfers, riding a bicycle somewhere in Texas, during what he says is the most normal he has been in his life. He could be mistaken for a pee-paw in a hardware store, instead of the co-founder of a legendary band with a punk rock take on LSD. The B******e Surfers formed in San Antonio in 1981, where Leary and vocalist Gibby Haynes, the son of children’s TV host Mr. Peppermint, had met as college students. The band went through bass players and drummers like toilet paper until finally grabbing Jeff Pinkus on bass, with King Coffey on drums. Then they added two of the most charming women of rock and roll: The adorable drummer Teresa Taylor, and the surprisingly articulate, surreal go-go dancer Kathleen Lynch, known as Tada the S**t Lady.
A candid black-and-white photo of the B******e Surfers appears in B******e Surfers: The Hole Truth and Nothing Butt. © Photo by Keri Pickett
“The band from Texas then flipped the tables with a show at Danceteria that famously shocked New York City’s seen-it-all downtown crowd.”
The band from Texas then flipped the tables with a show at Danceteria that famously shocked New York City’s seen-it-all downtown crowd. While the burning drum cymbals were real, Tada confirms the on-stage sex acts were simulated. Gibby’s intake of substances goes from soft to hard when, once again, working with Ministry proves to be a gateway drug. Al Jourgensen relates a tale of smoking a pile of crack with Gibby, who subsequently goes after invisible spiders with a gun. We get both sides of the breakup with longtime label Touch & Go, with the late Steve Albini being particularly bitter about it (surprise, surprise). Gibby is cautious about speaking about some of the unspeakable times with hard drugs, but only resorts to utter denial when broached about one topic: working with Kid Rock on a B******e Surfers single. It apparently never happened, which is how society treats it as well. However, there is a shattering peek into the horrors of the past that drove Gibby into the narcotic frenzy, so be warned, over and over.
All the disturbing material that the opening warning promises, including the puppet s**t, B******e Surfers: The Hole Truth And Nothing Butt delivers in rapid-fire abundance, as if pouring like an avalanche coming from a mountain. There is not a frame that isn’t dosed, as Stern makes sure the documentary has breakneck momentum like a runaway drug train. The hyperspace pacing is maintained with the repeated shuffling of animation and puppetry in between the stock footage and interviews with the coolest old dudes that ever lived. The effect is similar to an acid trip, so those who have will recognize the sensation, while the young ones get to feel the fry fresh. It’s amazing to see Gibby breathing air, as his insatiable dope fiending made Keith Richards look like Pat Boone. This documentary acts just like an acid flashback, as you can’t stop recalling it once you see it.
"…crucial music history written on an acid blotter with a peyote pen."
