Now, you’d think such a visually intense description would be enough, but Hughes isn’t satisfied. He went one step further when reached on the line from his home.
“I also wanted to add that I have a dildo strapped on as well, made out of Captain Beefheart, that I use simultaneously. That’s a better description.”
Sex is such a recurring theme within his work as Boots Electric that it was hard to get him to stop talking sex once the topic was brought up. Hughes outlined the role of sex within rock and roll with his trademark honesty and biting wit.
“Within rock and roll, sex belongs just as it started: out in the open. Otherwise it’s bullshit. Rock and roll, in my opinion is fundamentally about sex. When you take sex out of rock and roll, you get guys talking about politics. There’s a couple of old Beatles interview and you’d get John saying “No, “Lucy In the Sky With Diamonds” is about my little girls schoolmate.” It’s like, shut the fuck up! Who are you kidding, it’s about acid. When you start pretending things aren’t what they really are, that’s when shit goes to hell.”
Hughes’ ability to look at sex in an honest but still playful manner is a personality trait that is manifested on Honkey Kong. Stylistically, it’s a departure from Eagles of Death Metal, favouring digitally-infused hooks and lively keyboards. Hughes seems to take great pleasure in what he’s accomplished.
“You can look at it as a departure from Eagles of Death Metal, but I look at it as more of a return to myself,” he quips, mocking himself.
“I approach songwriting in a different way than a lot of people. I write in notions. A lot of times, I’ll write a song because I want to be able to look in the mirror and pump my fist like Freddie Mercury. And that’s all I want to do. Simple pleasures, you know? I like to quote Boogie Nights: ‘I like lollipops in my mouth and butter in my ass.’”
So we’ve covered sex and rock and roll, but what about drugs, the pivotal middle notion in the age old adage? Hughes has done his fair share of indulging. That’s what makes Jesse Hughes and his creative output so contagious: he is not a character. He’s living a life that may seem outrageous, but to him, it’s the only life he knows.
The acoustic shuffle of Swallowed By the Night is one of the more revealing tracks on the record. Depressing at times, it ends the record with glimmer of hope. Written during his stint at Crossroads rehab in Antigua, Hughes speaks with clarity regarding the song and how drugs have affected his writing process.
“I actually found rehab incredibly effective and enlightening. It taught me a lot about what true responsibility really is. It was like a four star resort with intensive counselling. And I’m thinking, ‘Wait, I’m being rewarded with a month-long vacation for being a degenerate drug addict? That doesn’t seem to make any sense.’ Then I kept thinking ‘Everyone should have my drug problem. Some people’s drug problems make them sell their bodies for crack. Mine makes me write songs.’”
BY JOSHUA KLOKE
