Butthole Surfers are opening the vault and rewriting their own history. ‘After the Astronaut’, a long-shelved album originally recorded in 1998, finally arrives June 26 through Sunset Blvd. Pulled at the last minute by their label at the time, the record now resurfaces exactly as it was meant to be heard.
“We were pretty stoked to make another album after the success of our previous album and its single ‘Pepper’,” recalls Paul Leary. “Capitol Records was stoked to get that next record until our relationship soured.” What followed was a label reshuffle and a reworked version of the material released years later. This is the original vision, restored.
The sound pushes deeper into the band’s experimental instincts. King Coffey describes the sessions as a return to exploration. “We were using all the digital toys at our disposal at the time… it felt like we were going back to our experimental roots while still navigating the major label ecosystem.” The result is dense, synthetic and deliberately off-center.
Lead single “Jet Fighter” captures that spirit. Built around a 12-string electric and shaped into a warped surf-punk structure, it delivers a jagged, lo-fi charge. The track lands with a strange urgency, blending protest themes with the band’s signature unpredictability.
Elsewhere, the album leans into texture and chaos. “King showed up to the studio one day with a device that could listen in on other people’s cell phone conversations,” Leary says. “We turned it into the song ‘I Don’t Have a Problem’.” That approach defines the record, unconventional, abrasive and fully committed to its own world.
AFTER THE ASTRONAUT
Track ListingSide A
01 – Weird Revolution
02 – Intelligent Guy
03 – Jet Fighter
04 – Mexico
05 – Imbuya
06 – Venus
Side B
07 – The Last Astronaut
08 – Yentel
09 – Junkie Jenny in Gaytown
10- They Came In
11- I Don’t Have a Problem
12 – Turkey and Dressing