PODCAST: Episode 1002 - Butthole Surfers' Paul Leary on "After the Astronaut," Twenty-Eight Years Later

GhostCultKeefy caught up with Paul Leary, co-founder and lead guitarist of the Butthole Surfers, to discuss After the Astronaut, the band's ninth studio album, released June 26, 2026, through Sunset Blvd Records. The record has one of the more remarkable backstories in alternative rock history. Originally recorded in 1998 as the intended follow-up to "Electriclarryland," the album was shelved by Capitol Records, who deemed it uncommercial. The band was subsequently forced to rework the material at Hollywood Records, which eventually became 2001's "Weird Revolution."https://youtu.be/cBK3QLsqS0gDecades later, the Butthole Surfers reclaimed the rights to the original recordings. Paul Leary completely remixed the tracks to present the music exactly as the band intended it back in 1998, making After the Astronaut both a long-overdue release and one of the most compelling stories in rock music in 2026.Buy After the Astronaut and find more info here:https://www.sunsetblvdrecords.com/Special thanks to Heather Hawke at Reybee PR for setting up this interview.This video's #gcshoutout → Misty Routehttps://www.instagram.com/mistyroute/The Usual Suspects:Interview by Ghost Cult Keefyhttps://www.instagram.com/ghostcultkeefyEditing by Omar Cordyhttps://www.instagram.com/ojcpicsTheme music by Salted Woundshttps://www.instagram.com/saltedwoundsnycCheck out our linktree - updated daily with top stories:⁠https://linktr.ee/ghostcultmag#ButtholeSurfers #AfterTheAstronaut #PaulLeary #SunsetBlvdRecords #AlternativeRock