1998

After a few years without releasing a major studio album, focusing instead on multimedia projects, The Residents spent most of 1998 producing the biblical album Wormwood: Curious Stories from the Bible, which was performed at the Fillmore and swiftly adapted into a two-hour live show in the next year, marking the group's return to touring. The ambitious project featured contributions from several new musicians; most notably assistant Carla Fabrizio and guitarist Nolan Cook, who would go on to be core collaborators for the band for nearly 25 years.

Timeline

March

• 6th: The career retrospective CD Twenty-Five Years of Eyeball Excellence is released by Bomba in Japan.
• 26th: The Residents make plans with David Lynch to produce a TV show based on Bad Day on the Midway. The show is scheduled to air in the Fall of 1999.
• 29th: The Mole Show: Live at the Roxy is released on CD in Japan.
• 31st: The Residents' upcoming new album is announced to be titled Wormwood: Curious Stories from the Bible.

May

• 1st: Lynn Hershman-Leeson's film Conceiving Ada (scored by The Residents) premieres at the San Francisco Film Festival.

July

• 24th: The Residents finish work on Wormwood.

August

• 30th: The Big Bubble and an expanded Residue (titled Residue Deux) are reissued on CD in the US and Japan.

September

• 15th: Wormwood: Curious Stories from the Bible is released by Euro Ralph.
• 16th: A release party for Wormwood is hosted by Euro Ralph at the B-Movie in Hamburg, Germany.
• 27th: The Residents announce a three-night run of shows at the Fillmore in San Francisco.
• Conceiving Ada is released for theaters.

October

• 13th: Wormwood is released in the US. It was also released in Japan a few days earlier.
• 28th - 31st: The Residents perform Wormwood at the Fillmore in San Francisco.
  • This is the first appearance of guitarist Nolan Cook who would continue to work with the band for two and a half decades.

November

• 10th: The Smelly Tongues fan site (which the Cryptic Corporation often kept in touch with) is launched.

Releases

• Wormwood: Curious Stories From The Bible (CD, East Side Digital / Euro Ralph / Bomba Records, ESD 81332 / CD 019 / BOM 22081)
• Live At The Fillmore (2xCD, Ralph America, RA 002)
• I Hate Heaven (CD, Euro Ralph, CD 020, Promo)
• Twenty-Five Years Of Eyeball Excellence (CD, Bomba Records, BOM22058, Compilation)

Re-Releases

• Meet The Residents (CD, Euro Ralph, CD 018)
• Mark of The Mole (CD, East Side Digital, ESD 81292)
• Ralph Records 10th Anniversary Radio Special! (Ralph America, CD, RA 003)
• The Tunes Of Two Cities (CD, East Side Digital, ESD 81302)
• Intermission (CD, East Side Digital / Bomba Recods, ESD 81312 / BOM811)
• The Big Bubble (CD, East Side Digital / Bomba Recods, ESD 81462 / BOM22078)
• The Mole Show Live At The Roxy (CD, Bomba Recods, BOM22062)
• Residue Deux (CD, East Side Digital / Bomba Recods, ESD 81322 / BOM22077, Compilation)
• Title In Limbo (CD, Ralph America, RA 004)

Compilation appearances

• It Came From Shreveport-Bossier: The Music Of Northwest Louisiana (CD, BGB Records, 427640, Promo)
  • Includes "Hello Skinny".
• Radio Free - Cult Cuts That Were Too Cool For Radio (CD, Rykodisc, D 121588)
  • Includes "Easter Woman", "The Nameless Souls" and "Moisture"
• I'll Never Get Out Of This World Alive (Hank Williams Revisited) (CD, Trikont, US-0247)
  • Includes "Ramblin' Man".
• Beware The Cat Magazine - Winter 98 (CD, Beware The Cat Magazine, included with the Winter 1998 issue of Beware The Cat Magazine)
  • Includes "God's Magic Finger".