Let the Dead Kennedys Die
Here's another victory of style over substance, and this one comes from providence: The Dead Kennedys have reformed and are touring Australia...without Jello Biafra.
Back when he was our head knob, John Howard said that he liked Bob Dylan 'but not his lyrics'. That statement revealed an outstanding level of ignorance; Dylan was a poet and his music was always backdrop. I mean, really, would anyone go to a Dylan instrumental show? But then again, Howard was a pollie with a wardobe full of matching tracksuits and a worldview that predated Sputnik, should we have expected any less?
The reformation of the Dead Kennedys is the same but the people buying the tickets don't have the same excuse as Johnny.
The music of the Dead Kennedys means nothing without the accompanying lyrics, and Jello Biafra wrote 'em all. Without him singing they're just hollow words. Biafra was the Dead Kennedys. Even moreso than Jagger is the Rolling Stones or Iggy is the Stooges, 'cause while it's hard to imagine the other two bands without those frontmen the Dead Kennedys were the personification of Biafra's politics and social commentary.
It's easy to downplay the hardline politics of the Dead Kennedys but they need to be seen in historical context. Forming in 1978, in an era of ideology, the Dead Kennedys reacted against the issues of the day: American involvement in Asia and Central America, police corruption, rising Cold War rhetoric. The lyrics may have been cloaked in satire but they were fuelled by anger and delivered with urgency. If it all seems a bit earnest now it's only because ideology has been replaced by apathy and no-one gives a shit anymore.
Biafra ran for mayor of San Francisco, fought running battles with Tipper Gore (Al's ex-missus) over free speech and played pranks that became legend. He involved himself in local politics: after Dan White was acquitted for murdering gay politician, Harvey Milk, with a defence that 'he ate too many Twinkies' the band recorded the song 'I Fought The Law And The Law Won' changing it too 'I Fought The Law And I Won'. The new song included the line 'you can get away with murder if you've got a badge' and proceeds went toward the appeal.
During the trial of Dan White, San Francisco police officers wore 'Free Dan White' shirts. There was a series of riots against the police that culminated in the 'White Night' riots. The cover of the Dead Kennedys' first album 'Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables' has a photo of a police car burning. It was taken on the night of the White Night riots.
All of this and Guns and Roses cop the moniker of the 'most dangerous band in the world' for singing songs about being wildboys and boofing the odd supermodel. The most dangerous thing Axl Rose could've done is overdosed on smack. Although the world would've been better for it, I guess.
During his time in the band Biafra expressed disdain for nostagia and greed-fuelled rock reunions, and now the Dead Kennedys - the remaining members and a gormless ring-in - are doing just that. They've become, in Biafra's words, 'the world's greediest karaoke band.' If anyone reading this is going to see them, I hope you have a great night. Don't forget to wear your anarchy badge.
Comments
Hell yeah.
I would to see the Dead Kennedys but I'll be on holiday in Cambodia
Nice summation of the DK's debacle. The remaining members are determined to milk the cash cow to death. There will be a ghost onstage at all of the gigs. The ghost of any credibility.
Ideology is dead Stu. Take some more soma and everything will be juuust fine. Maybe one day you could sing along to the old war songs too, completely ignorant of the irony. But was Brave New World clever allegory or far-fetched fiction? Betcha the ticket buyers say the latter.
It is not possible for ideology to be dead. Ideology simply are. They may change, and hegemonies come and go, but there are always ideologies. As for the DKs. Mouths to feed. Bah humbug to credibility when the baby is crying for food. .
Saw a comment on a YouTube clip of the current DK's lineup doing the rounds which stated something along the lines of seeing them play being like "seeing a really good DKs cover band". Had a chuckle at that one. Almost as good as Biafra's greedy karaoke band quip. There's got to be at least a bit of embarrassment on the part of the current members surely?!?!?
Agree with everything Stu, but who do you think the Dead Kennedy demographic appeals to the most these days? Mostly teenagers who weren't around in their prime. Of course their ideology is passed its use by date, they made it nearly 30 years ago. Are they still entertaining though? Most probably, so who should deny a bunch of kids having fun seeing a band they weren't around for?
Who gives a shit if they're still touring 30 years passed their prime. They used to be a serious punk force but not anymore, and that's pretty obvious to everyone. Even to the current lineup, and that's probably a major factor to why they're doing this; they don't take themselves seriously anymore. So why should they hide from the public when they can do what they love and make a buck out of it? Good on em. Besides, alienating fans and pissing off music snobs sounds like the proper punk thing to do these days.
,...."Good on em. Besides, alienating fans and pissing off music snobs sounds like the proper punk thing to do these days."
Gotta pay that Donde....
Still smells like a pretty crappy sell-out to me though.
But like you say, the kids don't think like that anymore.
Yay, do it for the kids!
There's a justification for everything these days, but only one motivation.
$$$
Maybe about $$$ but ya gotta pay the bills. And I cannot imagine they made too much back in the day ... not worth taking it all too seriously. Although, if you are a music snob/critic that's your 'credible' job haha
Clif,
Why not take it seriously? It was protest music. People protest. They expect to be taken seriously.
Or is it because it was music that it shouldnt be taken seriously? To that end, if the same message was delivered in literature, philosophy or some higher art like film, would you take it seriously?
That sounds like snobbishness to me.
Tell that to the Midnight Oil fans Stu.
At least Jello had the good sense to leave with his own cred intact.
People who took Garrett seriously could have an excuse for feeling slightly ripped off.
The ideology is not dead, just the punters have become sucessful sellouts, like the baby boomer "hippies" who dont live by any of the convictions of their youth, all become overconsuming jetsetting pigs with no credibility.
While I agree with much of the article I could deal with the no Jello thing, cos that is Jello doing what he does best. What I cant deal with is a crowd full of morons that believe bands like Blink182 are Punks
I had a dream...seriously - after reading this forum I dreamt that Bob Dylan was doing an Aussie tour, and the venues were at Bunnings (not sure if you get that over-east, its a mega-mart like wal mart in the U.S). I was shocked until I looked around at the crowd, and they were all having a damn good time! Then I thought why not? and the show went on. Moral? It's all entertainment and if the ideology rubs off on even 2% then its not lost.
Maybe I'm a happily irrational optimist on this one rather than my usual cynical pessimist stance, but I even haven't lost faith in Garrett. Biafra said, "Don't hate the media, BECOME the media," in a spoken word I heard, and although watered down, perhaps Garrett will take some of his Australian "No Reaction" Punk rock roots and yet become the Labor Party? Seriously, who else have they got?
i doubt theyll be gettin rich off the tour. maybe they were sick off working at there normal jobs, not getting enough time off to go surfing and they figured out a way to get a free trip to australia. maybe they were sick off living under jellos shadow. maybe they rollin down the stairs too drunk to care.
WHOSE THE SELL-OUTS?! - I agree with the remaining Dead Kennedies selling out but I wonder what Jello would think about the fact that ads for Ultimate Fight Club were scrolling away next to your blurb. With song titles like 'Goons of Hazards,'Nazis Punks F#*@ off', 'Jock-O-Rama' and Jello's general stance against mucho thug behaviour, here we have a website, owned by 7 getting on their soap box whilst having no moral fibre to stop airing such filth! Ironic hey!?
swell-net-sell-outs, you need to do some research. Firstly, Swellnet is not owned by 7. Secondly, the ads displayed across the site are usually sourced from a 'Run Of Network' campaign - that means that the advertiser (in this case, Main Event) is advertising across maybe ten or fifteen sites - one of which in this case is Swellnet. These ads are sourced through our agency (Yahoo!7), not Swellnet directly.
BTW, correct spelling would be 'swellnet-sell-outs', not 'swell-net-sell-outs'. Swellnet is one word, not two.
Just sayin'.
@stu, prob best to not take ANY of it seriously. i mean we all dance for money and lack credibility at some point or another. me more than others, i will admit lol also don't worry be happy, otherwise the grey hairs arrive even faster. btw i did not mean you are a snob i was just being general. i was following the lead of dondellion comment ...
If East Bay Ray, Klaus & the crew need to do a "retirement fund tour", then so be it. I'd still rather see them than Jimmy f*ckn Barnes.
I am going to the Melbourne gig, my wife and I are stoked that they are coming to Australia, would be good if Jello was there. I will let you know what the gig was like.
Good Grief I saw these guys three times back in 1983 at the trade union club and various other venues in sydney. There is no way these old boys will Ever recapture those days, so they need some dosh good on them the people that are going to see them will never know Jellos true worth to the DKs not now not ever RIP the true DKs
i mean we all dance for money and lack credibility at some point or another.
That's beautifully put Clif. I'm dancing as we speak, and have long since decided that there is more credibility in dancing than trying to wake up my fellow workers to the fact that they are fucking hopeless at their jobs.
I'm dancing all the way to retirement. I could go crazy and make not one jot of difference, or dance. At least it's my dance.
Love your work - How's china treating you, or are you another Clif who is just impersonating the real Clif. :-)
China is going better than expected, mate. I have had some waves sneaking into my corner. Still a bit cold though, but the punchy peaks have warmed me (averaging 2-3ft). Typhoons and Philippines/Taiwan season a little way off yet. Hainan has been consistent. As has Dongshan Island. N-e trade wind swells keeping me riding. Gets a bit lonely in the h2o though, all the locals pointing at the weird "laowai". Been riding the Shanghai skatepark too ... that place is literally deadly. http://sb77.wordpress.com/2010/06/10/skate-parks-of-asia-shanghai/
Jello Biafra is touring Australia with his new band The Guantanamo School of Medicine. Their latest album title owes a debt to Neil Young, 'White People and the Damage Done.'
Tour details here: http://www.tonedeaf.com.au/news/tournews/277974/jello-biafra-guantanamo-...
See you there Stu...and can you believe The Drones are playing the Opera House
Yep, see you there BB, and no I can't believe The Drones are playing the OH. Although what I find more unbelievable is that I said no to free tix to Neil Young on Sunday night due to the flu. Had the shakes, chills, and delusions too it would seem.
......never mind Neil get yourself to the Opera House to absorb I See Seaweed live . It has been too long I need a large loud dose of The Drones......and some Jello for desert.
if Jello was doing a speaking tour, i'd go again. not interested in having my ear drums blown out while standing around in a crowded room.
his speaking tour had more substance and content than the song lyrics, anyway.
despite being an old sell-out (in fact i was too young for punk to be anything but sneering at my parents while wearing ripped jeans) i still consider his ideas of 'monkey wrenching' the system.
"Punks not dead it's just grown man boobs"
Had a good chuckle at this comment on YouTube, a live version of one of his new songs with Jello running around on stage shirtless. And indeed, the former DK's frontman did have hefty man boobs. Hope he's lost 'em by the time they get to Australia, or at least he keeps his shirt on.
Used to love his spoken word tours but happy to have my ear drums blown out while Jello indulges in the psychodrama, as he used to call it, of live performance.
Ill b there. The guy is funny as fuck. Some of his best ever work i reckon was with the melvins not so long ago. And let's all be honest here. Never has there been a greater band than the melvins. Don't deny it people. Don't make me hate you.
Got my tix too Bonza, looking forward to it. And I'll abstain from ranking The Melvins thank you very much. I need the love.
Just returned from Cuba been reading Castros reflection on Obama, buddy ended up in emergency one night needing stitches to the chin, would love nothing more than to be home seeing The Guantanamo School of Medicine smoking a cohiba beheke 52. Nice reverse harvest moon tonight where I am looking out.
Jello's. finest hour had to be "Full Metal Jack Off" with DOA. Sorry Bonza but I cannot tolerate dissent on this. My black van's a mobile oven now.....
It’s ok gents. It’s not you it’s me. stu/idiot/bb. i like the cut of your cloth. I have just youtubed that DOA/Jello & I gotta say it fkn rocks. I'm a pretender you see. a bit younger (only slight) than ya's id say.. but i am a massive fan of JB’s work ( behind the melvins of course. jesus do I have to keep reminding you!! ) I have just lost 2 hours on youtube pissing myself at YT comments on Jello vids. Youtube comments = probably the funniest thing to ever come from the interweb. ;0 take care lads..
You're excused Bonza. And BB, Jello's finest hour is most def Plastic Surgery Disasters. I know I'm going against the grain on this one. Most people, when citing the DK's early work, say Fresh Fruit and it's hard to argue against.
But argue I will.
Unlike Fresh Fruit you can actually hear Jello's lyrics and the record comes (came?) with a lyric sheet. Jello is stretching the 3 minute punk template but not as far as the later 10 minute verbosity of Chickenshit Conformist and Triumph of the Swill which is when he really should've started his spoken word career - the music became a pale background and the band suffered.
The music has gotta be the vehicle and East Bay Ray was shooting off amphetamine-fuelled slack key Hawaiian riffs (Want a connection between the DK's and surf? Listen to how many songs use 50s-era 'surf music' riffs. Slow down Too Drunk To Fuck and you've got Dick Dale with a potty mouth), Klaus Fluoride was stepping up as bassist; the intro and riff on Forest Fire is something every bassist should aspire too, and fuck, the whole first side pumps with Jello targeting govt, health care companies, suburban conformity, Well Paid Scientists (!), and in Buzzbomb a dead ahead punk anthem.
Second side contrasts with Riot, which is the closest to a punk opera I've heard - if Wagner was born 150 years later! - and ends with Moon Over Marin, where Jello shows he's got a sentimental side, albeit tempered by dystopian visions.
Case presented: Plastic Surgery Disasters.
Aaah Stu, we are arguing degrees of perfection but I stand by Full Metal Jack Off. This is not just Jello's finest moment, this is the ne plus ultra of 20th century music. Drugs, the CIA, contraband weapons, political corruption, class war, genocide, middle class complacency, Nazism, our pathetic, exploitative, degenerate culture nailed to the wall, all to a soundtrack that makes Wagner sound like Andre Rieu. This is a musical Guernica, this is Animal Farm and 1984 rolled into one. Restraint? Who needs it? Bombast? Way to go. And feel the contempt. Feel the seething rage. Is there a greater power than righteous anger? Not since HST thoroughly dissected Nixon, have political figures been so precisely and perfectly exposed as shallow, narcissistic pieces of faecal material, deserving of nothing more than a historical flush.
You mention opera. Listen to this vocal performance. Not only does he jump a whole octave but he hits the high notes with greater volume and control. Screw the three tenors, this is serious shit. And then there is the band. This is the beat to a millisecond. That simple throbbing bass and the multi tracked guitar matching the intensity of Jello's vocal. I've known musicians who just downed tools after hearing this. What was the point? Whatever they aspired to had already been done.
Hire a rehearsal room, plug it in to to some serious amplification, adjust to just below pain threshold and let it rip. Cocaine? Amphetamines? Who needs them? This is a rush!
"Dylan was a poet and his music was always backdrop". How could you tell it was poetry? I could never understand a single thing the mumbler ever said or attempted to sing.
Hey Bonza not sure you came across this YT video
And DOA have just finished there farewell tour