This Toilet Earth

Infobox Album |
Name = This Toilet Earth
Type = studio
Artist = GWAR


Released = 1994
Recorded = 1993
Genre = Thrash metal
Length = 40:59
Label = Metal Blade Records
Producer = Scott Wolfe
Reviews = |
Last album = "The Road Behind"
(1992)
This album = "This Toilet Earth"
(1994)
Next album = "RagNaRok"
(1995)

"This Toilet Earth" is the fourth album released by rock/heavy metal/punk band GWAR. Released in 1994, this album was to be one of their oddest and most bittersweet albums. It was the first GWAR album to be censored (the second was "We Kill Everything", which comes in both censored and uncensored versions), due to their gain in popularity as a result of MTV exposure. The music and artwork is almost cartoonish when compared to the previous albums, and the instrumentation has expanded to include horns (in the opener, "Saddam a Go-Go") that reinforce the goofiness.

The album is a blend of chaotic styles reminiscent of Faith No More and Frank Zappa. "Skulhedface" was the movie released to document this album. "Jack the World" was also featured in the Beavis and Butt-head video game for the Sega Genesis.

Storywise, the enemy is now Skulhedface, an alien queen who was deformed in a Synnite Warrior raid on her planet centuries before. In retaliation, she travels to Antarctica, encounters GWAR while they are hibernating, and steals their Jizmoglobin, or life force. Her midget slave Flopsy and she then create a creature made up of the melded parts of evil historical figures (such as Hitler) called the Flesh Column. Skulhedface disguises herself as an evil executive for the Glomco corporation, and uses propaganda to turn GWAR into sickeningly cuddly cartoon characters. Meanwhile, GWAR discovers that the World Maggot is their only opportunity to escape Earth, but Skullhedface stands in their way. Oderus & Co. must regain their Jizz and catch the maggot in time. Both the movie "Skulhedface" and the album feature the voice of Scott Krahl as Skulhedface (Krahl played Gor-Gor in the tour prior to this album). Krahl also played the World Maggot on this tour and movie.

As for the music, it is varied and ranges from poppy ("Jack the World") to gruesome ("Sonderkommando") to goofy ("Pepperoni") and to the unmentionable ("B.D.F."). Perhaps the most catchy tune from the album is "Slap U Around", which is about beating women, which musically has some similarity to Kiss.

"B.D.F."

Because of B.D.F.'s comically vulgar and extremely graphic references to obscene acts that run the gamut from sodomy, necrophilia, pre-natal rape, pedophilia to mutilation (the initials stand for "Baby Dick Fuck," which is used in the chorus of the song), GWAR was forced to release the initial pressing of the CD through Priority Records - this initial pressing was 25,000 copies, according to Brad Roberts. The song was removed from subsequent pressings of the CD through Metal Blade Records. "B.D.F." was not the only song to cover such subject matter - "We Kill Everything"'s "Babyraper," with its less-than-subtle title (as opposed to the abbreviation used for "B.D.F"), goes into extreme detail about the same subject, but, unlike in 1994, was not required to be removed from the album (presumably because it was released at the lowest point of GWAR's popularity). Both songs are still played live, albeit less frequently than other, heavier songs (indeed, very few of the tracks on either album are played live, due largely to story conflicts and new musical direction).

Unlike "Slaves Going Single", first-pressing copies of "This Toilet Earth" are not as rare on eBay. Auctions rarely, if ever, end above $60.

Jack the World

Jack the World is the fourth track in heavy metal band GWAR's fifth album, This Toilet Earth.This song laments losing a 1993 Grammy to Metallica:
"I wanna suck like lovers do"
"I wanna lose a Grammy too"
"I wanna kick the teeth outta you"

Lineup Changes

"This Toilet Earth" is GWAR's first album with Peter Lee as Flattus Maximus. Lee would be shot in a carjacking not too long after the album was finished. As a result, he was out of commission for the beginning of the tour, and most of "Skulhedface"'s filming. He did film one segment with Dave Brockie, however, that started the band X-Cops (Lee jokingly asked Brockie, both dressed as policemen, "What would be cooler than a bunch of cops playing kick-ass rock n' roll?"). As a result, touring for this album was minimal.

It is also the last album with Michael Bishop as an actual full-time member of the band. Bishop, who played Beefcake the Mighty, left the band in 1993, after the recording of This Toilet Earth. He would be replaced by Casey Orr, and then would return for the brief touring preceding, and the recording of, "We Kill Everything".

Track listing

tracklist
title1 = Saddam a Go-Go
length1 = 2:30
title2 = Penis I See
length2 = 2:55
title3 = Eat Steel
note3 = Vocals by Beefcake the Mighty
length3 = 1:28
title4 = Jack The World
length4 = 2:24
title5 = Sonderkommando
length5 = 4:54
title6 = Bad Bad Men
length6 = 3:08
title7 = Pepperoni
length7 = 1:41
title8 = Insidious Soliloquy of Skulhed Face
note8 = Vocals by Skulhedface
length8 = 5:16
title9 = B.D.F.
length9 = 2:23
title10 = Fight
note10 = Vocals by Beefcake the Mighty
length10 = 0:56
title11 = Issue of Tissue (Spacecake)
length11 = 3:10
title12 = Pocket Pool
length12 = 2:27
title13 = Slap U Around
length13 = 2:39
title14 = Krak Down
length14 = 3:22
title15 = Filthy Flow
length15 = 2:14
title16 = The Obliteration of Flab Quarv 7
length16 = 2:42

Line-up

*Dave Brockie (Oderus Urungus) - vocals
*Pete Lee (Flattus Maximus - Lead guitar
*Mike Derks (Balsac the Jaws of Death) - Rhythm guitar, backup vocals; Spoken words on "Obliteration of Flab Quarv 7"
*Michael Bishop (Beefcake the Mighty) - Bass guitar, backing vocals; Lead vocals on "Eat Steel" and "Fight"
*Brad Roberts (Jizmak Da Gusha) - drums
*Danielle Stampe (Slymenstra Hymen) - backing vocals
*Scott Krahl (Skulhedface) - Vocals on "The Insidious Soliloquy of Skulhed Face"