Howard Wulkan Is Bald
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| Howard Wulkan Is Bald | |||||
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| EP by Anal Cunt | |||||
| Released | 2001 | ||||
| Recorded | 1995 | ||||
| Genre | Grindcore | ||||
| Length | 7:27 | ||||
| Label | Self-released | ||||
| Producer | Anal Cunt | ||||
| Anal Cunt chronology | |||||
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Howard Wulkan Is Bald is the name of an EP recorded in 1995 by American grindcore band Anal Cunt. In 2001 it was released in a limited pressing of only 53 copies. Howard Wulkan Is Bald is a concept EP as it features nine songs about Howard Wulkan, a New York music executive, and his apparent baldness. When asked about the EP by a fan, Seth Putnam stated that Anal Cunt made the recording one night when they were drunk, with the intention of sending it to their friend, Howard Wulkan and that the reason for only having 53 copies pressed was "because it sucked so badly". Wulkan himself has commented that he was only ever aware of 8 cassette copies of the album ever being made, which means that up to 61 copies may exist in some form or another. The album is widely available as a bootleg on the internet.
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[edit] Song structures and style
Anal Cunt's alleged inebriation on Howard Wulkan Is Bald is supported by the quality of the performances themselves (or lack thereof). They are obviously not taking any of it very seriously. Also, the album lacks an abundance of original material and consists mostly of cover songs.
[edit] Covers
Most songs on the album are covers performed in a karaoke style, with the members of the band simply singing over the original recordings, with lyrics altered to make them about Howard Wulkan. The songs performed in this way include You Should Be Dancing and If I Can't Have You both originally performed by The Bee Gees. Seth Putnam sings lyrics about Howard Wulkan in a falsetto voice over the original recordings of these songs. Putnam would later make extensive use of this same falsetto singing style on the Picnic of Love album. Anal Cunt had previously recorded an hardcore arrangement of Stayin' Alive on their album Top 40 Hits Apparently, one of the members of Anal Cunt owned a copy of the Saturday Night Fever movie soundtrack. There is also an acoustic cover of the song Bad To The Bone, originally released by George Thorogood and The Destroyers, with the lyrics changed to 'Bald to the bone'. In addition to songs with lyrics, Anal Cunt also adds lyrics to instrumental songs such as Night On Disco Mountain and A Fifth of Beethoven.
[edit] Original material
Some of the songs, however, aren't covers, such as "A Conversation With Howard Wulkan", which is a skit in the form of a conversation, with members of the band asking questions to Howard and the reply to each question being an exaggerated laugh, performed by Seth Putnam. This track, along with parts of some of the other songs, is obviously improvised. The final track on the album is a parody / imitation not of a specific Wesley Willis song, but of the songwriting style featured in the majority of his songs.
[edit] Track listing
- Howard is Bald - 1:51
- Bald to the Bone - 0:47
- A Conversation With Howard Wulkan - 0:37
- Ballad of Baldness - 0:35
- Howard Wulkan is Bald (Acoustic & Jazz Versions) - 0:13
- Night on Bald Mountain - 0:31
- You Should Be Balding - 0:46
- If I Can't Have Hair - 0:18
- Howard Wulkan (Wesley Willis Version) - 1:39
[edit] Who is Howard Wulkan?
Unlike most of the targets of Anal Cunt's ridicule, Howard Wulkan is actually not a famous person or a celebrity. Howard Wulkan is a music executive and native of Queens, New York. He is a former employee of Earache Records and currently works for New York City based record label Expansion Team Records. The album is a playful and lighthearted homage from Anal Cunt to their friend, Howard Wulkan, who worked alongside them in the studio in the mid-90's
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