Guttermouth
By John Berger
prepared to t(h)rash
Special to the Star-BulletinWhen the guys in Guttermouth are in songwriting mode they consider almost any topic and any special interest group fair game for satire -- except gays, and, maybe, Nazis.
"I got surrounded by seven guys who wanted to beat the living c-- out of me," group vocalist and spokesman Mark Adkins says.
The would-be attackers had taken offense at the mention of Nazis in a Guttermouth song about obnoxious, unreasonable people and/or things the group doesn't like.
The song also mentions "silly jocks," parents, the KKK, Rick James, Coors, riot grrils (sic), chile peppers, and about 20 more objects of the group's scorn -- including themselves. Neo-Nazis didn't get the joke.
"Somehow I talked my way out of (the beating) but it was a very uncomfortable moment."
Guttermouth avoided attacks from the gay community by making a last-minute change in the lyrics and title of another song. "Your Late" is a stream-of-consciousness account of being late for work after staying out too late the night before. It was originally written as "Your Gay."
"We were in the studio and we thought 'We'd better change this.' We rewrote it in about 15 minutes. When we're writing, everyone's a target but you don't want to go overboard."
Guttermouth fans know that the group has written satirically of itself as well. "1,2,3...Slam" off "The Album Formerly Known As Full Length" is a tongue-in-cheek tale of growing up in a mixed race European-American-African-American family. Adkins' stepfather is African-American.
"He's a cop so he's a pretty strait-laced guy and we all get along pretty good. Growing up in a white neighborhood, it was a bizarre upbringing, but when people heard the song, well, anybody that knew me thought it was pretty hilarious. Even my parents."
Guttermouth -- at last report comprising Adkins, Derek Davis, Captain James T. Nunn, Mr. Scott Sheldon and Stever Rapp -- arrived here several days early for a concert tomorrow night at The Source. They'll return home "to Huntington Beach" to start work on their sixth album for Nitro Records.
Make that their seventh Nitro album if you count the label's recent "Deep Thoughts" anthology that includes songs from Guttermouth's three most recent Nitro releases, "Musical Monkey," "The Album Formerly Known As ...," and "Live at the Pharmacy."
Hardcore fans know that "The Album..." was originally released in 1991 before the band signed with Nitro. The new "live" album also has a story behind it.
"We had done a show in South Carolina, and when the tapes resurfaced our friend Warren Fitzgerald from the Vandals remixed it for us and did a really good job.
"Most live albums don't do very well but we're pretty happy with this. There are four brand new studio tracks at the very end -- songs we wrote just two or three months ago."
On a previous stop in Hawaii, Guttermouth was celebrating the success of "Teri Yakimoto," the album with Godzilla on the cover and liner notes suggesting ways active minds and idle fingers could play with and/or destroy Godzilla models using "any flammable aerosol," matches, firecrackers and gasoline.
"We've done all those things with Barbie accessories in my back yard. It works just the same. Molten pools of goo. They were supposed to be Christmas gifts for my friend's nieces, but those little Barbie toys are totally expensive."
Although he's been playing music for 12 years, Adkins says his parents still want him to settle down and get a "real" job.
"I'd say they're typical parents in that respect. They'd rather see me in college or working a regular 9-to-5 job. I make a living, everything's cool, I'm happy, I can't complain, but they're not super into it.
"Maybe great fame and fortune would convince them otherwise. Until then I'd say we're here to make a nuisance of ourselves and have some fun in the process. "
The details
On stage: Guttermouth, Lagwagon and the Sticklers
