Probably one of the most well-known hardcore punk bands, The Dead Kennedys formed in '78 from the San Francisco Bay Hardcore scene. Their music, something of a "fucked-up surf punk", always carried irreverent political and social commentary.

After various demos and EPs, their first album, Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables is simply a classic. Plastic Surgery Disasters is, in my opinion, one of the greatest social critiques ever written. Frankenchrist departed from the normal punk sound, but was still a solid effort. Their final effort, Bedtime for Democracy, is usually their least regarded, is nonetheless a strong album. Lyrically, their latter two albums were more direct and overt in their statements, which, to me, took away a bit of the band's charm.

After that album, the band broke up ('86)- in which there was a slew of bitter legal battles between the band members and the rights to their albums and songs.

Their most regarded member, Jello Biafra, has gone on to do a somewhat distinguished spoken-word career, as well as releasing a plethora "collaborative" albums with other bands, such as D.O.A., Ministry, and the Melvins (most of which, while not bad, pale in comparison to the passion and fury of the DK). While he's not exactly a... good singer, his nasaly style is VERY distinctive, and he puts forth much effort in his vocals.

Any other fans?

long time fan... i don't agree with their politics, but Jello is a great lyricist (and, uh, unique vocalist) - so they remain entertaining 20 years after I bought my first DK tape.

One great 'stunt' they pulled - o the "In God We Trust, Inc." cassette tape they left the second side completely blank, along with the note:

"Home taping is killing record industry profits. We left this side blank so you could help!"


Amusingly, I taped my copy of the Lard (sideproject with Al from Ministry) E.P. "The Power of Lard" ... at least the first two tracks.

Maybe its due to me being a fan of Ministry, but I always preferred Lard over the Dead Kennedys. Musially they were far better and Jello still delivered that unique vibe that made the Dead Kennedys albums so great. Of course, Im not trying to claim that the Dead Kennedys are a bad band, merely pointing out my personal preferences

nah mAN no worries..Lard is Badass though...Plastic Surgery disasters is my Favorite DK album...Shame the Band fucked Jello Over

DK's- one of the first punk bands I ever got into. Great stuff!

Great band with great Politicol Connotations, my friend is REALLY into them.
Also, has anyone ever heard any of Jello Biafra's Spoken word Albums.

yeah, i had the first 5 or so. saw him once... my head was going to explode afterwords. it was like a four hour lecture.

Love it, Jello has got to be the most intelligent human being in the entire universe, I love that cynical bastard.

Great band, Jello is a genius.

Really like this band, gotta be one of the best punk bands ever.

One of my favourite bands,hands down.they got an amzing vocal sound,crazy guitar.and one of the best things is their lyrics.they go deep most of the time.its either deep lyrics,or fun lyrics,and thats awsome.definetly not as deep as bands such as bad religion or anti-flag,but good enough for me.

Not really a fan, but from what I heard off 'Frankenchrist' , Goons Of Hazzard is a top song.

Used to be a really big fan like 4-5 years ago, and lately I've been really into them again. I love the use of sarcasm and satire in the lyrics. Plastic Surgery Disaster is without a doubt the best release. Every song can get stuck in your head, and if you know the lyrics it's even better

Yeah, there is a lot to sing along to in that album once you catch the ebb and flow. That is probably my favorite album of their's as well - "Bedtime for Democracy" being the other that really stands out.

Great Band with great lyrics full of sarcasm and irony!!

Best moments, for me, are "Fresh Fruits....." and "PLastic Surgery...."

I think the Dead Kennedys were pretty badass and I enjoyed them up until they broke up in 86...my favorite album was Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables all though all there albums were pretty good. I think they fuckin rock

Jello Biafra is AWESOME. he should run for president again.

Haha, gotta love DK. jello's voice is too good

jello's legally his name too, that's fuggin sweet.

Written by LeChron James on 28.09.2008 at 00:25

Jello Biafra is AWESOME. he should run for president again.

didn't he run for governor?

Written by Frankenchrist on 22.11.2008 at 16:45

Written by LeChron James on 28.09.2008 at 00:25

Jello Biafra is AWESOME. he should run for president again.

didn't he run for governor?

he ran for mayor of San Francisco then he was almost nominated as the green party's candidate.

Written by LeChron James on 22.11.2008 at 22:27

Written by Frankenchrist on 22.11.2008 at 16:45

Written by LeChron James on 28.09.2008 at 00:25

Jello Biafra is AWESOME. he should run for president again.

didn't he run for governor?

he ran for mayor of San Francisco then he was almost nominated as the green party's candidate.

ah.

Dead Kennedys got me into punk, and they're still one of my favorite bands. I've never heard a catchier song than kill the poor.
Kill kill kill kill kill the poor!
They've always had the best lyrics, and somehow managed to be completely sarcastic while still making a good point.

Probably my most played band of the year so far. The 'Fresh Fruits...' and 'Plastic Surgery Disasters' albums have been in near constant rotation ever since it started getting sunny here.

Written by Guest on 04.04.2011 at 14:31

Probably my most played band of the year so far. The 'Fresh Fruits...' and 'Plastic Surgery Disasters' albums have been in near constant rotation ever since it started getting sunny here.

Damn good albums IMO it is Frankenchrist that is there best album.

I agree with Agent. Frankenchrist is what occupies my most DK time closely follows by Plastic Surgery Disasters/In God.