Butthole Surfers: The Hole Truth and Nothing Butt
By Kit Macdonald
This delightful piece of work, which is showing as part of the In-Edit music documentaries festival, charts the journey of the anarchic and deeply influential art-punk band Butthole Surfers, formed in Texas in the early 80s by frontman Gibby Haynes and guitarist Paul Leary. Directed by Tom J Stern and produced with the band’s input and full co-operation, the film captures wild live shows, including naked dancers and shotguns being fired over the crowd's heads, backstage chaos and the raw punk ethos that defined the band and its legacy.
A mixture of archival footage, animated interludes, interviews with the band and contributions with a dazzling list of fans and collaborators, including Flea, Dave Grohl, Ice T and Eric Andre, The Hole Truth and Nothing Butt presents a vivid, no-holds-barred portrait of a band that never, ever played by the rules.