That both members were unabashedly gay, and that The Kids in the Hall were skyrocketing to fame, Mouth Congress was put on the backburner. Thompson told Brooklyn Magazine the band didn’t take off because it was impossible to be out of the closet in the 80s. Young, frustrated and terrified to be young gay men at the height of the AIDS era, the duo each channeled their sexuality into delightfully crude lyrics about race, gender, fucking and general nonsense. They recorded over 600 songs that didn’t see the light of day until 2021.īrooklyn label Captured Tracks released the band’s three-song single “ Ahhhh the Pollution” for Record Store Day, followed by “ Waiting for Henry,” a 29-song compilation of their best songs, restored and available for the first time. Mouth Congress formed in 1984 and were active for nine years. Known for their work as part of the legendary comedy troupe The Kids in the Hall, Scott Thompson and Paul Bellini began their careers as a gay electro-punk band called Mouth Congress-named for the Kama Sutra’s term for oral sex.