untitled cover project

You never know just how to look through someone else’s eyes

I remember the first time someone told me there was a band called The Butthole Surfers, partly because 14-year-old me was thrilled to learn there was a band with “butthole” in its name, and partly because this news was broken to me by a ridiculously square teacher when I asked him what his favorite band was, and hearing him say the words “Butthole Surfers” is something I can’t forget. Because of the source, I assumed they were Some Weird Nerd Shit for many years until someone played Pepper for me and I heard how hard it Fucked. I think I might have heard Pepper before that but thought it was “Loser” by Beck. Beck is a scientologist, isn’t that weird? I can’t tell if Pepper is supposed to be a sendup of Odelay or something. They both came out the same year, 1996.

I tweaked my back today so I was laying in bed on an edible rotting my brain on TikTok when I got served a video using S.G. Goodman’s cover of Pepper by The Butthole Surfers and I couldn’t get it out of my head. She’s an incredible folky country singer-songwriter from Kentucky. I love her voice, especially in this cover. She has three albums I’m gonna spend some time diving into after I’ve listened to her cover of Pepper 1000 times first.

My favorite bit in the cover happens around 2:20 when there’s little a walk on guitar and the drums start playing a new beat and the vibe shifts; done with the monotone moodiness of the original, we transition from 90s alt-rock to down-home country. It’s incredible when she lets loose in the second chorus. Yeah, I’ll have this on heavy repeat for a while.

“My cover of “Pepper” feels like me and it feels like the same intrigue I experienced when hearing the original: to be left wondering what is actually going on here?” Goodman posted last month. Agreed, and here’s the original:

Great video where Erik Estrada from CHiPs plays a guy in a hostage situation? Sure. I think it’s rad that such a fucked-up song about doomed kids and reckless death got radio play and that that meant a bunch of DJs and VJs had to say “Butthole.” Prior to this, the Butthole Surfers were Texas punk wildmen who had put out six albums and had a real wild stage presence. After “Pepper,” they got a little more tame, and their early fans were pissed. Here’s a great Texas Monthly article about it!