Buttfeed

There are a few constants in Joe Westermoreland’s ‘Tramps Like Us’ – sex, hitchhiking, getting arrested, friendship, love, drugs, and, most of all, music. Joni Mitchell, The Ramones, Siouxsie and the Banshees, Blondie, Television, The Buzzcocks. The list goes on and on, mapping the slide from punk into new wave. It’s the type of ambient detail, overwhelming in sensory and descriptive power, that gives the recently reissued novel an epic, all-encompsing feel. A life. Joe’s language is generous, if simple. It struck me back to my most raw, early observations of what it means to be a gay kid in America. It made me reach out to my first ever kiss just to see how he’s doing. It made me cry.

Tramps Like Us also is a sharp reminder that gay culture is not linear. If the rightward political lurch of today confirms it, so does the irresistible feeling of liberation flowing through Joe’s ecstasy-and-sex fueled life in New Orleans and San Francisco before the death and fear took root. Or take the time when Joe’s homophobic dad clocks him for bringing home his friend, “that queer”. Joe retorts, “They’re not called ‘queers’ anymore. They’re calls ‘Gays’. Language is cyclical too.

In the early 90s, after arriving in New York, Joe started jotting down these tales in an attempt to hold on to the good times and make sense of the recent deaths of his friends, one by one. Throughout the 90s, the scope of the project expanded into the coming-of-age novel now reissued by MCD Books. Back then, at readings Downtown, people would walk out on Joe, uncomfortable with his realness.

Finally the book was due to launch on September 11th, 2001. We know what happens next. Despite praise from the likes of Denis Cooper, Hilton Als, Kevin Killian, and Sarah Schulman, ‘Tramps Like Us’ fell out of print and into obscurity. Now, the faggy bildungsroman is improbably resurrected thanks to a cadre of devoted fans, chief among them our lord and savior Eileen Myles. It’s a sure entry into gay literary canon for its uncommon honesty to self that’s both wide-eyed and infectious.

To get the lowdown on the wild book and Joe’s own sex predilections, I met him for a Quickie…

In London leather lore, The Backstreet is canon. Set up in 1985 by solicitor John Edwards, the men-only bar served a fetty clientele of daddies, rubberists and – as the changing winds of fetish took hold – puppies and superheroes. Formally closing in 2022, the bar had weathered the AIDS epidemic, fickle queens and seven prime ministers. While it’s no longer in business, The Backstreet lives on through a bountiful archive of medieval-style body-cages, dog toys and dusty horse-guard boots.

Around a month ago, I came upon a viral video of a flaming speech given by Spain’s only trans senator against the right-wing’s attack on trans rights. There’s one important detail – her name is Carla Antonelli. For those who don’t know, I am Carlo Antonelli and my nickname is “Carlana”. If life was like bad literature, I’d immediately ask: am I Carla? Is Carla one of my identities? Well, clearly, she is! This I can say with confidence. When I heard about Georgia Meloni’s government in Italy establishing a “medical dysphoria registry” for trans people, was it the Carla in me that gasped? Of course, it was. I needed to hear from Carla, the other Carlo/a. I found her and she’s a pleasant lady wearing a suit – she’s obviously not the other me, but better than me by far…

At our launch festivities in Madrid last month, surprised BUTTheads were fangirling as Álvaro, better known as Guitarricadelafuente, rocked up with his guitar unannounced to debut songs from his new album Spanish Leather. Out now, the release is his gayest yet, with the horny lead video, Full Time Papi, attached below. While his name is a wet Spanish mouthful, Álvaro is a straightforward, committed guy looking to get dirty with life...and maybe some other things. Before the impromptu gig, we caught up with him about his evolution from floppy-haired Youtube twink to “full time papi”.

After releasing a jaw-dropping five albums in one year, BUTT favorite Arca took up painting as a new rage-and-love fueled means of self-expression. Each canvas is an "angel". As she tells cult author and “Bad Gays" host Huw Lemmey, ‘these are the images that allowed me to fall back in love with making art.’ Like her raw sexuality and live performances – she tours with a massive leather sling on stage – the resulting 22 canvases are freaky and visceral: sprays of neon paint, ripped-up plastic, rubber, makeup, sharpie, glitter – all made in fits of queer passion. After debuting a few of the paintings at the Bourse de Commerce in Paris last year, Arca now unveils all of her mutant angels for the first time in Barcelona. Huw makes sure they touch some sensitive areas...prosthesis, Palestine, penetration. Let’s go.

Charlie Porter is a writer and fashion critic with a green thumb and an eye for well-tailored crotches. When not at his desk, he’s most likely busy gardening or deejaying one of London’s gay parties. Charlie’s debut novel ‘Nova Scotia House’ just published this week and its steamy sex scenes may make some of his fans in the fashion industry clutch their pearls. A tender tale of gay love and loss — set now and in the 1990s — it’s got hookups of every persuasion. We caught up with Charlie for a Quickie to find out how he writes fiction about fucking.

For decades, photographer Del LaGrace Volcano has been taking pictures of tattooed trans guys, leatherfolk getting fisted and dangerously hot dykes. Public sex is one of their favorite kinks. ‘Combining art with danger and sex seems to make sense to my twisted brain,’ they say. Nice! Del honed their cruising skills in San Francisco in the late 1970s before moving to London, where they met loads of friends horny to get off in the great outdoors. In their latest photobook, ‘Queer Dyke Cruising’, two leather-clad lesbian couples hook up on London’s infamous Hampstead Heath. When I call the artist at their current home in Sweden, they open up about their favorite BDSM clubs and spots for intersex exhibitionism.

Hampstead Heath is one of the sluttiest parks in Europe, a cock-sucking destination since the days of Oscar Wilde. So when flyers appeared around the park urging dog-walkers to “take back” the Heath from cruisers and telling gays to “get a room”, queers from ACT UP London and This is My Culture showed up to remind them who was there first. Thank the gay gods for spring weather! It was a perfect pickup place for politically engaged fags, dykes and friends, from the disco tunes playing on a speaker to a rousing game of Who’s bum is this? As for the dog-walkers, there was nothing to “take back” – just one very horny pup taking it from behind.

Colin Self is a musician, puppeteer and self-styled “freak bitch diva” who’s into some serious fantasy role-play. The artist loves to dress up as a big gay orc and is getting used to being called “daddy”. Their new album, respite ∞ levity for the nameless ghost in crisis – a love letter to dead friends and drag queens — just dropped on 21 February, so we called them up for a ‘Quickie’ to ask…

The spit flows freely in George Nebieridze’s new series ‘Drooling Political’. Back in 2015, George gave us a first whiff of his photography with ‘Armpits of Berlin’. Now, the Berlin photographer marvels at another element of good sex – saliva. While often a last-ditch lubricant, it’s also a hot sign of F-you domination. George hails from Georgia, where the government is assaulting the rights and life of the queer community. The series is his own crew’s middle finger to the ruling party.

Q: What’s this all about?
A: “This project is my modest gesture and a reaction to our struggles as Georgian queer immigrants in Berlin. Even though it’s 2025, queerness, being a queer person, is still becoming more and more difficult in Georgia. The deeply closeted and violently homophobic politicians chose the most vulnerable as their target and use the argument of protecting families from “gay propaganda”. I don’t think any propaganda can make anyone gay if they’re confident enough in themselves. Things are getting scarier, but I can’t give up on myself and my community. I keep working and fighting for freedom with everything I can. So let’s spit on them.”

Éamonn is an artist, farmer and basket-weaver in Devonshire, England who’s an expert at working with wood and all things that grow. Recently the half-Dutch, half-Irish country gay — who used to work the door at Amsterdam sex den Club Church — has been teaching “Hedging for Faggots” courses to urban and rural homos. And no, that doesn’t just mean a bundle of sticks. We caught up with him for a “Quickie” to ask…

‘A young man recovers his collection of red cars only to realise that the scale of his fantasies has changed.’ Here's the fully-hard Super 8 fantasy. Shot and directed by Joaquin Wall and Yero in La Plata, Argentina, the film ‘Boxes’ revved up our ‘FIXATIONS’ film series with The One Minutes.

Wet and kinky? Pocket raincoats, known to the American-inclined as rain ponchos, hold unexplored sex potential according to filmmaker Cathal O’Brien. The 42-year-old Londoner answers six questions about his fetish to accompany his film on the sticky matter. When Cathal isn’t whipping cheap plastic out on unsuspecting hookups, he can be found deejaying at spots like the Divine in Dalston, or making steamy films with his signature approach of re-filming his footage via old TV sets. At the premiere of the ‘FIXATIONS’ series with the One Minutes, he gifted a yellow one to BUTT. He’s looking to grow the community…

Cassils is a super strong artist who has pumped up their body to Arnold Schwarzenegger-approved extremes. The trans muscle guru embodies the gym-to-museum pipeline with ease. They sent us some pics from their latest performance so we called them up for a 7-minute “Quickie”…

Yola Camilleri and Lokin’s film ‘How to eat pasta pussy in 4 steps’ inspires eager home cooks everywhere with a helpful guide to munching noodles. The hungry couple’s contribution to our ‘FIXATIONS’ series with the One Minutes begins with mixing and kneading the dough, then cutting the tagliatelle, cooking until al dente and finally, it’s ready to eat — no cutlery or plates required! Just lie back and enjoy the meal. Buon appetito!

In BUTT no. 35, Thyago Sainte visited Jörg at his Berlin allotment fuck pad, where the frisky host put on his all-time favorite orgy track — Dancing in the Moonlight by Baku-based artist Roudeep. Nothing like some deep house to get  orgy vibe going, right? Well, we thought better to ask you... What’s your soundtrack for sex? Here's a running list, plus we made a playlist on Spotify. 

Karim loves deepthroat and reports being a dom at Dance Dance Revolution. The Spanish-Moroccan content creator also visited 12 countries this year for sex, including Mexico, where he modeled the new BUTT block tee and had his first ‘inner’ golden shower. Fabulous.

On my way to meet Ayleen Kandemir, my nerves are kicking in. I’ve heard she likes a drink, and honestly, I could use one now, too. Not much is known about her, but I often spot her on the street in Neukölln, dressed in head-to-toe latex, frozen like a public sculpture. She’s just as iconic as one. She’s become a fixture of the Berlin public transport network, where she likes to pose on the floor and sometimes gets mistaken for someone who’s fallen and needs assistance. When people talk about her, their eyes widen as if they had seen a ghost. Some say you’ll turn to stone when you see her, like Medusa.

When artist Chivas Clem moved back to Paris, Texas after more than a decade in NYC, he didn’t have the warmest memories of his rural hometown. As a kid, he sometimes felt like the only gay in the village. But starting in 2016, he started befriending young men in his neighborhood, many of them drifters — the kinds of guys who were stereotyped as bigots and blamed for Donald Trump’s election, when most of them didn’t even have the right to vote. All of them seemed misunderstood, and some of them a little bit gay. His exhibition ‘Shirttail Kin’, now up at Dallas Contemporary, shows a tender and sexy side to these tough, scruffy bros, but it’s no redneck romance. The show’s title is a Southern term for “chosen family”. Sweet!

Izzy Spears and I first met backstage at Homobloc, the super-huge and super-gay music festival in Manchester, where he headlined alongside some favorite queers, like Hercules and Love, Affair, Christeene, Olof Dreijer and LSDXOXO. Izzy’s blend of horror rap, punk and grunge goes hard — the title of his new album, BLOOD, SWEAT AND DAMNATION, sums up the vibe. We shared a sweaty hug and made plans to meet after the festival for an interview — clothing optional, so Izzy could show me his tribal dick tattoo. After a stroll through Manchester’s Gay Village, Izzy told me about growing up in the Black Israelite community of Atlanta and all his tour trade, though I got too dickstracted to write it all down. (It’s a big, um, tattoo.) A couple days later, between sound checks on his UK tour, we speak again, this time on the record.