Dead Kennedys | ||
| Allmusic Biography : The Dead Kennedys merged revolutionary politics with hardcore punk music and, in the process, became one of the defining hardcore bands. Often, they were more notable for their politics than their music, but that was part of their impact. The Kennedys were more inspired by British punk and the fiery, revolutionary-implied politics of the Sex Pistols than the artier tendencies of New York punk rockers. Under the direction of lead vocalist Jello Biafra, the Dead Kennedys became the most political and -- to the eyes of many observers, including Christians and right-wing politicians -- the most dangerous band in hardcore. By the mid-80s, the band had become notorious enough to open themselves up to a prosecution for obscenity (concerning a poster inserted into their 1985 Frankenchrist album), and the ensuing court battle sped the band toward a breakup, but they left behind a legacy that influenced countless punk bands that followed. The Dead Kennedys formed in 1978 in San Francisco when Biafra (vocals; born Eric Boucher) and bassist Klaus Flouride responded to a magazine ad placed by guitarist East Bay Ray. Drummer Ted (born Bruce Slesinger) joined soon after and the band played locally for the first two years of their career, occasionally venturing outside the Bay Area. Within a year, the band released their first independent single, "California Über Alles," an attack on the then-current governor, Jerry Brown. It was followed shortly afterward by their second single, "Holiday in Cambodia." In 1979, Biafra ran for mayor of San Francisco; he finished fourth. By this time, the band had become quite popular in both the American and British underground. Finally, in 1980, the band released their debut album, Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables, on IRS Records. After its release, Ted left the band; he was replaced by drummer Darren H. Peligro. Following the release of Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables, the Dead Kennedys formed their own independent record label, Alternative Tentacles, in 1981. The first release on the label was the Kennedys EP, In God We Trust. That same year, the single "Too Drunk to Fuck" scraped the bottom of Britains pop Top 40, despite being banned from airplay. In 1982, the Kennedys released their second full-length album, Plastic Surgery Disasters. After its release, the band took a hiatus, during which bandmembers -- most notably Klaus Flouride -- performed with various side projects. During that time, Alternative Tentacles began to establish itself as a major force in the American underground. The Dead Kennedys returned in 1985 with Frankenchrist, which was the record that earned the band its greatest notoriety. Included with the album was a poster of the Swiss artist H.R. Gigers Landscape #XX, a garish illustration of penises and anuses. A year after the release of the album, the Kennedys and Alternative Tentacles were prosecuted under revised Californian anti-obscenity laws for distributing pornography to minors because of the poster. For the next two years, the band was embroiled in a bitter legal battle, during which Biafra emerged as one of the most articulate advocates for free speech and vocal opponents of the PMRC. In the summer of 1987, the case ended with a hung jury and was dismissed. Although the Dead Kennedys emerged victorious from the court battle, they didnt remain a band for much longer. Just before the prosecution began in 1986, the band released Bedtime for Democracy, which turned out to be their last official album. After the case was settled, the Kennedys split, releasing the posthumous compilation Give Me Convenience or Give Me Death in 1987. Biafra embarked on a solo career, releasing musical and spoken-word recordings sporadically over the next couple decades. Flouride returned to his fledgling solo career, releasing two albums in the late 80s and early 90s. The DVD format of Dmpos On Broadway, the Dead Kennedys June 1984 performance marking the closing of San Franciscos avant-garde theater and nightclub, was released in May 2000. | ||
 | Album: 1 of 13 Title: Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables Released: 1980-09 Tracks: 14 Duration: 32:50 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify TrackSamples Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Kill the Poor (03:05) 2 Forward to Death (01:24) 3 When Ya Get Drafted (01:24) 4 Let’s Lynch the Landlord (02:12) 5 Drug Me (01:56) 6 Your Emotions (01:21) 7 Chemical Warfare (02:56) 8 California über alles (03:02) 9 I Kill Children (02:04) 10 Stealing People’s Mail (01:35) 11 Funland at the Beach (01:49) 12 Ill in the Head (02:45) 13 Holiday in Cambodia (04:34) 14 Viva Las Vegas (02:37) |
| Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables : Allmusic album Review : A hyper-speed blast of ultra-polemical, left-wing hardcore punk, and bitingly funny sarcasm, Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables stands as the Dead Kennedys signature statement. As one of the first hardcore albums, it was a galvanizing influence on the musical and attitudinal development of the genre, also helping to kickstart the fertile California scene. The records tactics are not subtle in the least; Jello Biafras odd warble and spat-out lyrics leave no doubt as to what he thinks, baiting his targets of conservatism, violence, overbearing authority, and capitalist greed with a viciously satirical sarcasm that keeps his unflinchingly political outlook from becoming too didactic. The thin production dilutes some of the musics power, but the ragged speed-blur still packs a wallop, and the hooks cribbed from surf and rockabilly give it a gonzo edge. The songwriting isnt consistent all the way through the album, but classics like "Kill the Poor," "Lets Lynch the Landlord," "Chemical Warfare," "California Über Alles," and "Holiday In Cambodia" helped define the hardcore genre and, thus, must be heard. | ||
 | Album: 2 of 13 Title: In God We Trust, Inc. Released: 1981-12 Tracks: 8 Duration: 13:51 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% AlbumCover | 1 Religious Vomit (01:04) 2 Moral Majority (01:55) 3 Hyperactive Child (00:37) 4 Kepone Factory (01:18) 5 Dog Bite (01:13) 6 Nazi Punks Fuck Off (01:02) 7 We’ve Got a Bigger Problem Now (04:29) 8 Rawhide (02:09) |
 | Album: 3 of 13 Title: Plastic Surgery Disasters Released: 1982-10 Tracks: 13 Duration: 42:56 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Advice From Christmas Past / Government Flu (03:00) 2 Terminal Preppie (01:30) 3 Trust Your Mechanic (02:55) 4 Well Paid Scientist (02:22) 5 Buzzbomb (02:21) 6 Forest Fire (02:23) 7 Halloween (03:35) 8 Winnebago Warrior (02:09) 9 Riot (05:57) 10 Bleed for Me (03:24) 11 I Am the Owl (04:52) 12 Dead End (03:56) 13 Moon Over Marin (04:28) |
| Plastic Surgery Disasters : Allmusic album Review : Having proved themselves masters of the quick, vicious smash and bash, on their second full-length album the Kennedys continued in that vein while finding other effective ways to express their all-encompassing message of resistance and satire. Absolutely nobody is safe, whether its the more expected targets of conservative society, or those who claim to follow what the Kennedys and punk promised but only ended up acting like idiots. For the most part, though, its a well-deserved smackdown of all the jerks the early 80s produced, set to some fantastic music. Bookended by random noise jams -- the first one with a wonderfully dismissive spoken-word analysis on societal programming for The Good Life -- Plastic Surgery Disasters shows East Bay Ray, Klaus Fluoride and D.H. Peligro turning into an even more awesome unit than before. Rays sheet-metal intense guitar may once or twice get slammed into too much treble for its own good, but his spaghetti-western-cranked-to-ten playing is fantastic stuff at its best. The others have their moments, like Peligros rolling drum breaks on "Trust Your Mechanic." When the band aims for subtlety, the results are grand -- the sudden silences on "Trust Your Mechanic," the goofy hipswing start to "Forest Fire." Unsurprisingly, Biafra is still at the center of it all; once again, the song titles make it clear whats at play. "Terminal Preppie," rips into an example of the type with gusto, and the wonderfully sneering "Winnebago Warrior" is just the tip of the iceberg. The real highlight can be found at the end -- "Moon Over Marin," with a soaring, anthemic surf-rock line from Ray offsetting Biafras semi-apocalyptic vision of the Bay Areas snooty region. | ||
 | Album: 4 of 13 Title: A Skateboard Party Released: 1983-03 Tracks: 18 Duration: 00:00 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% AlbumCover | 1 Man With the Dog (?) 2 Forward to Death (?) 3 Kepone Factory (?) 4 Life Sentence (?) 5 Trust Your Mechanic (?) 6 Moral Majority (?) 7 Forest Fire (?) 8 Winnebago Warrior (?) 9 Police Jerk (?) 10 Bleed for Me (?) 11 Holiday in Cambodia (?) 12 Let’s Lynch the Landlord (?) 13 Chemical Warfare (?) 14 Nazi Punks Fuck Off (?) 15 California über alles (?) 16 Bigger Problem Now (?) 17 Too Drunk to Fuck (?) 18 Kill the Poor (?) |
 | Album: 5 of 13 Title: Frankenchrist Released: 1985 Tracks: 10 Duration: 44:57 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Soup Is Good Food (04:16) 2 Hellnation (02:20) 3 This Could Be Anywhere (This Could Be Everywhere) (05:23) 4 A Growing Boy Needs His Lunch (05:48) 5 Chicken Farm (05:04) 6 Jock-O-Rama (Invasion of the Beef Patrol) (04:05) 7 Goons of Hazzard (04:23) 8 MTV - Get Off the Air (03:36) 9 At My Job (03:39) 10 Stars and Stripes of Corruption (06:19) |
| Frankenchrist : Allmusic album Review : Released after a three-year studio hiatus, this album picks up right where Plastic Surgery Disasters left off. As always, the lyrics are among the most literate and angry in all of rock & roll. "Goons of Hazard" scores the culture of guns and the rednecks who love them, utilizing full-textured hard rock to set the verses. "Soup Is Good Food" lacerates the concept of disposable people in disposable jobs, pairing this idea with repeated guitar riff-based music that suggests a nightmare version of 1960s songs. "Jock-O-Rama" excoriates organized sports and macho attitudes; musically, the outer sections wed rockabilly and hardcore influences, sandwiching a slow middle section that spoofs martial numbers like Barry Sadlers "Ballad of the Green Berets." "This Could Be Anywhere" has critical lyrics about racism and classicism set to music highly reminiscent of the Sex Pistols. "Hellnation" has garbled, wide-range, muckracking verses set to stun-speed punk that recalls numbers from In God We Trust Inc. The excellent "MTV -- Get Off the Air" lambastes the corporate influences on rock & roll; musically, the song exhibits a tripartite structure, using a vacuously poppy opening, a speed hardcore central section, and a mid-tempo rocking finale that prominently features trumpet (a very brief coda reprise of hardcore ends the number). The finest selection on this album (and perhaps in the whole Dead Kennedys canon) is the anthemic "Stars and Stripes of Corruption." This number also utilizes a three-part construct, consisting here of a hard-rocking midsection flanked by faster, punk-oriented material. The verses here are stunningly detailed, describing what the band believes is wrong with the United States and what the solutions should be. This wonderful and challenging album is very highly recommended. | ||
 | Album: 6 of 13 Title: Bedtime for Democracy Released: 1986 Tracks: 21 Duration: 48:28 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Take This Job and Shove It (01:24) 2 Hop With the Jet Set (02:06) 3 Dear Abby (01:09) 4 Rambozo the Clown (02:24) 5 Fleshdunce (01:29) 6 The Great Wall (01:32) 7 Shrink (01:44) 8 Triumph of the Swill (02:16) 9 Macho Insecurity (01:29) 10 I Spy (02:29) 11 Cesspools in Eden (05:54) 12 One-Way Ticket to Pluto (01:38) 13 Do the Slag (01:36) 14 A Commercial (01:32) 15 Gone With My Wind (01:42) 16 Anarchy for Sale (01:18) 17 Chickenshit Conformist (05:58) 18 Where Do Ya Draw the Line (02:38) 19 Potshot Heard Round the World (02:10) 20 D.M.S.O. (02:09) 21 Lie Detector (03:41) |
| Bedtime for Democracy : Allmusic album Review : The Dead Kennedys go out in a blaze of snarling, defiant glory in their final studio release. They drub a bushel baskets worth of entrenched interests, including scientists, the military, the power hungry, macho attitudes, classicism, lie detectors, Reagan and his economic policies, the press, the entertainment industry, and the commercialization of rock and revolutionary attitudes. The albums manic speed punk style recalls In God We Trust Inc., particularly on the frenetic cover of Johnny Paychecks hit "Take This Job and Shove It." When the tempo slows, a few songs resemble frantic rockabilly; of these, "Hop With the Jetset" lampoons the privileged classes, "I Spy" savages government agents, and "Where Do Ya Draw the Line" is a plea in favor of anarchy. The quiet, furtive "D.M.S.O." is a highly atypical number strongly resembling the theme to The Pink Panther. The lengthy, anthemic "Cesspools in Eden" is a hard rock number with unusual chord changes and lyrics railing against toxic waste; similarly, "Chickenshit Conformist" alternates slow and hyperfast sections and sports wide-ranging verses that constitute a scathing indictment of the rock music industry. As usual, the rushed hardcore numbers often garble or swallow up the well-written lyrics (if you want people to follow you into revolution, your ideas need to be intelligible). The album cover sports witheringly disparaging artwork; also included in this release are two muckraking newspapers, one containing clip art, and the other written articles about the obscenity trial embroiling the band at that point. While its not totally successful, at least the Dead Kennedys had the satisfaction of going out on their own terms. Its all well worth hearing. | ||
 | Album: 7 of 13 Title: Give Me Convenience or Give Me Death Released: 1987-05 Tracks: 17 Duration: 51:20 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Police Truck (02:24) 2 Too Drunk to Fuck (02:39) 3 California über alles (03:26) 4 The Man With the Dogs (03:02) 5 In-Sight (01:40) 6 Life Sentence (02:39) 7 A Child and His Lawnmower (00:55) 8 Holiday in Cambodia (03:44) 9 I Fought the Law (02:18) 10 Saturday Night Holocaust (04:20) 11 Pull My Strings (05:52) 12 Short Songs (00:28) 13 Straight As (02:13) 14 Kinky Sex Makes the World Go ’Round (04:17) 15 The Prey (03:48) 16 Night of the Living Rednecks (05:10) 17 Buzzbomb From Pasadena (02:22) |
| Give Me Convenience or Give Me Death : Allmusic album Review : Hounded by political enemies and reaching their personal breaking point, the Kennedys bowed with a retrospective of some of their fiercest, finest moments. If one needs a starting point for the bands fierce, funny assault on any level of complacency imaginable, Give Me Convenience is indeed as convenient as it gets. Focusing for the most part on non-album cuts or various rarities, it appeals to hardcore Dead Kennedys fans as well as neophytes. The collection includes some of the bands earliest greats, like the legendary rant "Too Drunk to Fuck," as withering a depiction of getting trashed and stupid as any. While the definitive "California Über Alles" and "Holiday in Cambodia" make the cut from the first album, there are also plenty of more obscure and unknown goodies. The second half features live tracks like the hilarious "Pull My Strings," which vivisects typical rock star pomposity (knowingly quoting the Knacks "My Sharona") before shifting into an even nuttier chorus. Another screamingly funny number is the improv "Night of the Living Rednecks," done "while Ray was changing strings" at an Oregon date in 1979. After threatening to play the theme from the Dinah Shore show, the remaining three members light into something resembling a beat/50s hep groove, only with Biafra recalling a tale of idiots encountered during a previous visit to Portland. Meanwhile, theres a version of "I Fought the Law," which easily trumps the Clashs version, helped by a lyric change or two along the way. Messy, nutty, and fun, Convenience is a treat and a half. | ||
 | Album: 8 of 13 Title: Plastic Surgery Disasters / In God We Trust, Inc. Released: 1988 Tracks: 21 Duration: 56:47 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify AlbumCover | 1 Advice From Christmas Past / Government Flu (03:00) 2 Terminal Preppie (01:30) 3 Trust Your Mechanic (02:55) 4 Well Paid Scientist (02:22) 5 Buzzbomb (02:21) 6 Forest Fire (02:23) 7 Halloween (03:35) 8 Winnebago Warrior (02:09) 9 Riot (05:57) 10 Bleed for Me (03:24) 11 I Am the Owl (04:52) 12 Dead End (03:56) 13 Moon Over Marin (04:28) 14 Religious Vomit (01:04) 15 Moral Majority (01:55) 16 Hyperactive Child (00:37) 17 Kepone Factory (01:18) 18 Dog Bite (01:13) 19 Nazi Punks Fuck Off (01:02) 20 We’ve Got a Bigger Problem Now (04:29) 21 Rawhide (02:09) |
 | Album: 9 of 13 Title: Mutiny on the Bay Released: 2001 Tracks: 14 Duration: 51:16 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Introduction (00:22) 2 Police Truck (02:38) 3 Kill the Poor (03:04) 4 Holiday in Cambodia (04:30) 5 Moon Over Marin (03:34) 6 California über alles (04:29) 7 MTV - Get Off the Air (04:14) 8 Too Drunk to Fuck (02:54) 9 Goons of Hazzard (04:07) 10 This Could Be Anywhere (04:22) 11 Forward to Death (01:10) 12 I Am the Owl (05:15) 13 Hellnation (02:59) 14 Riot (07:31) |
| Mutiny on the Bay : Allmusic album Review : Jello Biafra would never have released this. The result of a judge siding with the other three members in their lawsuit against singer/leader Biafra, this live LP and the reissues of their LPs via license is messy. On one hand, the matter was decided in open court, rightly or wrongly, and we certainly dont blame Manifesto for taking on the valuable catalog once it became legally East Bay Rays, D.H. Peligros, and Klaus Flourides to barter. And its not our place to tell the curious not to buy these rather fine records, either. It just feels hollow, somehow. Ray, Peligro, and Flouride dont know how lucky they were that Biafra kept control of the catalog from the onset, released it all on his own Alternative Tentacles, and kept it all in print. Theyve been paid hundreds of thousands of dollars over two decades, while pretty much every other musician in the other punk/hardcore bands were ripped off by shady, bankrupt indie labels. One feels sympathy with Biafras side of a dispute over a minimal accounting error. And his refusal to exploit the catalog strikes me as fair enough. Secondly, it was Biafras personality, knowledge, crazy antics, and most of all his astounding, singular lyrics that made the band so popular. Biafras crack about his vocals coming in and out (due to the chaos of those old shows, he never worried much about staying on mic) is entirely valid. The LP sounds great otherwise. Culled from four different shows after Peligro joined in 1982, the sound is consistent, the set list inspired, the playing sharper than many of their New York shows, and the live photos are first-rate history. Call this the one good thing that came out of the bitter suit. (Sorry, Jello!) | ||
 | Album: 10 of 13 Title: Live at the Deaf Club Released: 2004-05-03 Tracks: 15 Duration: 39:24 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Introduction by DJ Johnny Walker (00:20) 2 Kill the Poor (disco version) (03:57) 3 Back in Rhodesia (early version of When You Get Drafted) (01:31) 4 Man With the Dogs (03:22) 5 Gaslight (02:41) 6 California über alles (03:45) 7 Ill in the Head (03:25) 8 Straight A’s (02:13) 9 Short Songs (00:31) 10 Holiday in Cambodia (04:33) 11 Police Truck (02:55) 12 Forward to Death (01:53) 13 Have I the Right (02:16) 14 Back in the USSR (02:31) 15 Viva Las Vegas (03:31) |
 | Album: 11 of 13 Title: Milking the Sacred Cow Released: 2007-10-09 Tracks: 12 Duration: 38:55 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 California über alles (03:26) 2 Police Truck (02:26) 3 Kill the Poor (03:05) 4 Holiday in Cambodia (03:45) 5 Nazi Punks Fuck Off (01:04) 6 Too Drunk to Fuck (02:39) 7 Viva Las Vegas (02:37) 8 Moon Over Marin (03:43) 9 Halloween (03:35) 10 MTV - Get Off the Air (03:36) 11 Soup Is Good Food (live) (04:39) 12 Jock-O-Rama (live) (04:19) |
| Milking the Sacred Cow : Allmusic album Review : The very concept of a "greatest hits" collection from San Francisco punk legends the Dead Kennedys fits right in with the groups penchant for establishment parody, but the irony is that Manifestos 12-track Milking the Sacred Cow is the perfect primer for young punks in training and a satisfying shot of politically charged jet fuel for longtime fans. Classic cuts like "California Uber Alles," "Holiday in Cambodia," and "Too Drunk to Fuck" were the gateway drug for a lot of people just finding their way into the scene, especially those who were looking for an American version of the Sex Pistols -- Jello Biafra proved that he could match Johnny Rotten sneer for sneer -- but live versions of "Soup Is Good Food" and "Jock-O-Rama," as electrifying as they are, keep this collection just shy of perfection. That said, it still provides a satisfying crack in the jaw, even if its missing fan favorites like "Terminal Preppie," "Trust Your Mechanic," and "Chemical Warfare." Honor students should pick up Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables, Frankenchrist, and Give Me Convenience or Give Me Death, but those looking for a quick fix or a cheat will find no better teat to affix their snarl to than this. | ||
 | Album: 12 of 13 Title: Iguana Studios Rehearsal Tape: San Francisco 1978 Released: 2018-11-23 Tracks: 13 Duration: 37:28 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% AlbumCover | 1 Man With the Dogs (03:19) 2 Kepone Kids (02:11) 3 Forward to Death (01:40) 4 Kill the Poor (03:27) 5 Your Emotions (01:48) 6 Dreadlocks of the Suburbs (03:02) 7 I Kill Children (02:18) 8 Cold Fish (02:50) 9 Holiday in Cambodia (04:31) 10 Kidnap (01:24) 11 Mutations of Today (05:04) 12 Rawhide (02:07) 13 California über alles (03:47) |
 | Album: 13 of 13 Title: DK 40 Released: 2019-04-26 Tracks: 47 Duration: 00:00 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify AlbumCover | 1 Moral Majority (?) 2 I Am the Owl (?) 3 Life Sentence (?) 4 Police Truck (?) 5 Riot (?) 6 Bleed for Me (?) 7 Holiday in Cambodia (?) 8 Let’s Lynch the Landlord (?) 9 Chemical Warfare (?) 10 Nazi Punks Fuck Off (?) 11 Kill the Poor (?) 12 We’ve Got a Bigger Problem Now (?) 13 Too Drunk to Fuck (?) 1 Skateboard Talk + Intro Noise (?) 2 Man With the Dogs (?) 3 Forward to Death (?) 4 Kepone Factory (?) 5 Life Sentence (?) 6 Trust Your Mechanic (?) 7 Moral Majority (?) 8 Forest Fire (?) 9 Winnebago Warrior (?) 10 Police Truck (?) 11 Bleed for Me (?) 12 Holiday in Cambodia (?) 13 Let’s Lynch the Landlord (?) 14 Chemical Warfare (?) 15 Nazi Punks Fuck Off (?) 16 We’ve Got a Bigger Problem Now (?) 17 Too Drunk to Fuck (?) 18 Kill the Poor (?) 1 Darren’s Mom (?) 2 Goons of Hazzard (?) 3 Hellnation (?) 4 This Could Be Anywhere (?) 5 Soup Is Good Food (?) 6 Chemical Warfare (?) 7 Macho Insecurity (?) 8 A Growing Boy Needs His Lunch (?) 9 Forest Fire (?) 10 Moon Over Marin (?) 11 Jock‐O‐Rama (?) 12 Encore (?) 13 Stars and Stripes of Corruption (?) 14 Second Encore (?) 15 MTV Get Off the Air (?) 16 Holiday in Cambodia (?) |