Let’s start things as we mean to go on – I don’t like Guttermouth. Right, with that off my chest I can be honest as only a reviewer can. Watching this DVD was like Chinese water torture and certainly was not my idea of a fun night in. Regardless of that, to get the good stuff you have to review the dross as well and sadly I drew the short straw. I don’t know what it is about Guttermouth that gets under my skin, but they have something that riles me. Maybe it’s the generic toilet humour pop-punk that, on the whole, isn’t catchy or funny enough to hit the spot? Maybe it’s their dorky frat-boy image that fails to convince? maybe it’s just because they suck? Answers on a postcard…
This DVD is another in the Kung Fu series of live performances and is up to their usual standard. The camera work is ok, the sound quality reasonable and far superior to a bootleg, so no complaints there. The ‘Show Must Go Off’ series has been limited by the non-existent extras which have haunted it and Guttermouth‘s offering is no different. There’s a documentary and a photo gallery – and bugger all else. It’s ironic that the best bit of the entire documentary is the band apologising profusely for releasing ‘Gusto’ – it was bad enough they released it in the first place so an apology is certainly not going to be accepted by me. Anyway, the songs make up the crux of the DVD and very few inspire me. There are 20, making it good value for fans, and there is a wide spread between new and old with only one featured from the awful ‘Gusto’. It’s all nice enough sound wise, the vocals are ok too without being particularly sparkly, but the band literally don’t shut up. They berate people, crack (crap) jokes and encourage young girls to take their tops off.
At the end of the day the quality of the film work makes it a definite purchase for collectors and fans, but for those who don’t like Guttermouth, well, leave well alone. There are far, far better bands out there worthy of your money.
Paul