The 1982 Listening Post - Dead Kennedys - Plastic Surgery Disasters

 Reviewed by Allen Lulu

Released: November 1982 Dead Kennedys Plastic Surgery Disasters Genre: Punk Rating: 5 out of 5 Highlights: Terminal Preppie Well Paid Scientist Buzzbomb Halloween Riot Moon Over Marin On the Frankenchrist review I wrote about how my friend had this record. He bought it on the same day that I bought the 12 inch maxi single of “Beat My Goes” by Adam and the Ants. We loaned each to each other and I have no idea what we were thinking because he lived in Connecticut and I lived in New Jersey. In any case, this was in my possession for months. And I played the shit out of it. The one thing about Jello and the rest is that they were … funny. Sardonic, yes. Caustic, absolutely. But they had a real snide sense of humor. And they had command of the English language. On “Government Flu”, they sing that the “Government flu, flew through you.” And, while they understood the adulation of John Belushi among the upwardly mobile prep set, I still loved the song in spite of my love for John. And not being a prep in any shape or form. Anyway, I’m not going to write a memoir, although I could about this album. I was late to the DK game. In God We Trust, Inc was my first foray and it was a doozy. A focused, acerbic, angry, sarcastic EP that would eventually be bundled with this. So I was prepared for the relentless freight train of Side One. One blistering punk screed after another, attacking suburbans who vacation in mobile homes, bloated yuppies who love gross out humor, a cynical attack on the auto mechanic industry, the golden handcuffs of corporate scientists, the whole thing is comprehensive and intelligent in the same way that most punk wasn’t. But that’s because the band was actually good. Surf punk good. Disciples of The Beach Boys on so much Red Bull they would fall apart if they weren’t all in perfect sync. Take that break on “Buzzbom” where everything stops and Jello blurts, “Buzzbomb cornered at the 7-11.” That’s the entire ethos of every song I’ve ever written. It can be found on that break. The retro-garage fake out that is the intro to “Forest Fire” actually portends what will come on Side Two. Which is … wider. More … like a punk Opus. “Riot” is a breathless anthem for, well, a riot. And it’s … 5 minutes long and it totally works. When Jello whispers “Shit!” At the end of that cinematic guitar break, you feel it. You feel the character he is singing as and about. And then, they all run out of energy cuz the riot is over. It’s a masterwork. And it follows with more paranoia and horror than they had ever achieved before. Side Two ends with the closest they ever came to matching the radio friendly pop craft of “Kill the Poor” on the sad reflection on ocean pollution, “Moon Over Marin”. It’s truly bizarre to hear Jello approximate a melody, but, it works. It’s a masterpiece.