The lyrical content in America Must Be Destroyed was greatly inspired by Dave Brockie’s fight with police officers while touring in Charlotte, North Carolina in 1990. The controversy revolved around Brockie’s rubbery penis adornment and ended with him being arrested on charges disseminating obscenity. Brockie was revolted by this attack on his rights and so he created a concept album revolving around an elite "Morality Squad" that attacked the members of Gwar and stole Oderus’s penile attachment. The opening song, "Ham on the Bone" explains this robbery. The story then shifts to Gwar headquarters in Antarctica, where Oderus’s slaves are ordered to shoot up a dinosaur egg with crack. The result is the mighty Gor Gor, a Tyrannosaurus Rex that wreaks havoc on America. Meanwhile, the Morality Squad has enlisted the help of Father Bohab to crucify Gwar in the media. Other songs of interest include "Have You Seen Me?", "Poor Ole Tom", and "The Road Behind", the latter of which is a parody of power ballads. A video, Phallus in Wonderland, was released as a supplement to the album’s storyline. This album was followed by The Road Behind, an EP that contained that single as well as a live version of "Have You Seen Me?". The single "S.F.W." was supposedly released on this album as a bonus track, but this has been discounted by the band. In November of 2009, a special edition of the album was released through Metal Blade, containing the CD and a bonus DVD containing Phallus in Wonderland and Tour De Scum. Gwar fans are referred to as "bohabs", named for Father Bohab. Father Bohab was never actually on the album—he originally appeared in 1989, along with an early Cardinal Syn. On the Tour de Scum is played by one of the slaves on tour, but is portrayed by Brad Roberts in Phallus in Wonderland and It's Sleazy. "Pussy Planet", the album’s closer, was co-written by Slymenstra Hymen, and was slated to be a duet with Beefcake the Mighty. Though not quite a duet, Slymenstra’s voice can still be heard in the song. The song's opening guitar riff is similar to the guitar riff to the Nirvana song "Rape Me" from the 1993 album In Utero but uses different chords. The song ends with the band arguing. The Canadian release of this album does not feature "Crack in the Egg", "Have You Seen Me?" and "Rock N’ Roll Never Felt So Good", and instead has earlier versions of "Krak Down" and "Bad Bad Men" and a version of "O Canada" performed with synthesized infant cries. Flattus Maximus does not perform on this album. Dewey Rowell left the band before recording began, and all of the lead guitars were recorded by Balsac the Jaws of Death. To this day, Balsac will usually play lead when performing songs from this album live. Tim Harriss played lead on the album’s title track; Lee Harris played lead on "Crack in the Egg". Because of the absence of Flattus, the tour cycle surrounding this album was quite short.
