Year: 1980.
Country:
Dead Kennedys discography rank: 1 (out of 9 listed on BEA)
1980 rank: 5
1980s rank: 49
Overall rank: 365
Average rating: 80/100 (from 770 votes).
Tracks:
1. Kill The Poor
2. Forward To Death
3. When Ya Get Drafted
4. Let's Lynch The Landlord
5. Drug Me
6. Your Emotions
7. Chemical Warfare
8. California Über Alles
9. I Kill Children
10. Stealing People's Mail
11. Funland At The Beach
12. Ill In The Head
13. Holiday In Cambodia
14. Viva Las Vegas
indicates a top-rated track.
Top voted comments:
"While Dead Kennedys get lauded for their incisive lyrics (rightfully so) the musicianship and tunes on this album are simple, aggressive, and cutting. Appropriate for the music. For me, they are as influential as the Sex Pistols or the Ramones."
- junodog4 (Rating: 80/100)
________________________________________________________
"This album is one of the best punk albums ever made if not the best. The lyrics are controversial, sometimes too much (I Kill Children), but I generally like them especially on tracks like California Uber Alles and Holiday In Cambodia - two of the best on the album, where they are accompanied by amazing guitar work.
I would also like to highlight When Ya Get Drafted, Let's Lynch The Landlord, Drug Me, Chemical Warfare and Viva Las Vegas."
- mv3k (Rating: 90/100)
________________________________________________________
About album of the day: The BestEverAlbums.com album of the day is the album appearing most prominently in member charts in the previous 24 hours. If an album, or artist, has previously been selected within a x day period, the next highest album is picked instead (and so on) to ensure a bit of variety. A full history of album of the day can be viewed here. _________________ Bluesky · Facebook · Spotify · X
A masterpiece and among the most perfect albums ever made, utterly relentless with never a dull second.
Biafra, an angry, homicidal, anarchist clown, lays waste to politicians, heads of state, those in charge, etc, satirically impersonating them as raving and violent lunatics with no conscious in one of the blackest comedies in the history of music.
The guitars are de tuned to the sound of fury/wreckage/carnage, twisting and agitated distortion and scraping metal, played with ecstatic phrasing and gusto, that is as if he is performing electro shocks or frantic violence in unison to his crazed, feverish voice that is practically vibrating and giddy in a tizzy of uncontrollable vices and homicidal mania. When the rhythm charges into the excursion and forward momentum of driving or into surf music it becomes the scene of a howling clownish lunatic raging through the streets in vehicular assault or perhaps even surfing through the city on the crest of a wave of wreckage and flailing bodies in his wake.
Among the greatest punk albums of all time (all punk genres/subgenres)
1. Y - The Pop Group (1979)
2. Suicide - Suicide (1977)
3. Zen Arcade - Husker Du (1984)
4. The Modern Dance - Pere Ubu (1977)
5. From Her to Eternity - Nick Cave (1984)
6. Cosmic Interception - Von Lmo (1994)
7. Fresh Fruit For Rotting Vegetables - Dead Kennedy's (1980)
8. Kick Out the Jams - MC5 (1969)
9. Marquee Moon - Television (1977)
10. Fontanelle - Babes In Toyland (1992)
11. Metal Box - Public Image, Ltd (1979)
12. Double Nickels on the Dime - Minutemen (1984)
13. Mother of all Saints - Thinking Fellers Union (1992)
14. Radio Ethiopia - Patti Smith (1976)
15. Fire of Love - Gun Club (1981)
16. The Art of Walking - Pere Ubu (1980)
17. God - Rip, Rig & Panic (1981)
18. Repeater - Fugazi (1990)
19. New York Dolls - New York Dolls (1973)
20. Flowers of Romance - Public Image Ltd (1980)
21. A-Z - Colin Newman (1980)
22. Fun House - The Stooges (1970)
23. For How Much Longer Do We Tolerate Mass Murder? - The Pop Group (1980) [2016 reissue that replaces track #3 with "We Are All Prostitutes"]
24. New Day Rising - Husker Du (1985)
25. The Agony is the Ecstacy - Lydia Lunch (1981) [EP; One 17-min track, first released on a split-LP in 1982 with The Birthday Party's "Drunk on the Pope's Blood" EP] _________________ Best Classical Best Films Best Paintings
This is going to sound like yet another one of those "I was into these dudes before anybody" posts, but when I first heard this album I was really disappointed because they'd re-recorded their first two singles, "Holiday in Cambodia" and "California Uber Alles," and I didn't like the new versions at all — they'd cut out most of the low end, the vocals were flatter (with no reverb or anything), and the guitars were less distinct too. I still think it sounds terrible in comparison, though I agree that it's an all-time top-ten punk album.
DommeDamianImperfect, sensitive Aspie with a melody addictionProfile Spire City
A masterpiece and among the most perfect albums ever made, utterly relentless with never a dull second.
Biafra, an angry, homicidal, anarchist clown, lays waste to politicians, heads of state, those in charge, etc, satirically impersonating them as raving and violent lunatics with no conscious in one of the blackest comedies in the history of music.
The guitars are de tuned to the sound of fury/wreckage/carnage, twisting and agitated distortion and scraping metal, played with ecstatic phrasing and gusto, that is as if he is performing electro shocks or frantic violence in unison to his crazed, feverish voice that is practically vibrating and giddy in a tizzy of uncontrollable vices and homicidal mania. When the rhythm charges into the excursion and forward momentum of driving or into surf music it becomes the scene of a howling clownish lunatic raging through the streets in vehicular assault or perhaps even surfing through the city on the crest of a wave of wreckage and flailing bodies in his wake.
Among the greatest punk albums of all time (all punk genres/subgenres)
1. Y - The Pop Group (1979)
2. Suicide - Suicide (1977)
3. Zen Arcade - Husker Du (1984)
4. The Modern Dance - Pere Ubu (1977)
5. From Her to Eternity - Nick Cave (1984)
6. Cosmic Interception - Von Lmo (1994)
7. Fresh Fruit For Rotting Vegetables - Dead Kennedy's (1980)
8. Kick Out the Jams - MC5 (1969)
9. Marquee Moon - Television (1977)
10. Fontanelle - Babes In Toyland (1992)
11. Metal Box - Public Image, Ltd (1979)
12. Double Nickels on the Dime - Minutemen (1984)
13. Mother of all Saints - Thinking Fellers Union (1992)
14. Radio Ethiopia - Patti Smith (1976)
15. Fire of Love - Gun Club (1981)
16. The Art of Walking - Pere Ubu (1980)
17. God - Rip, Rig & Panic (1981)
18. Repeater - Fugazi (1990)
19. New York Dolls - New York Dolls (1973)
20. Flowers of Romance - Public Image Ltd (1980)
21. A-Z - Colin Newman (1980)
22. Fun House - The Stooges (1970)
23. For How Much Longer Do We Tolerate Mass Murder? - The Pop Group (1980) [2016 reissue that replaces track #3 with "We Are All Prostitutes"]
24. New Day Rising - Husker Du (1985)
25. The Agony is the Ecstacy - Lydia Lunch (1981) [EP; One 17-min track, first released on a split-LP in 1982 with The Birthday Party's "Drunk on the Pope's Blood" EP]
Great one yeah. I agree. On your list, I would place Zen Arcade at #1, Suicide s/t at #2, and this at #3 (so this is still the number one straightforward punk rock album ever, competing with Never Mind The Bollocks). Wanna the most enjoyable, visceral, ageless punk experiences in history. So captivating of the punk spirit. Every song is quite the banger, but songs that could be considered my all time favorite include Kill The Poor, Chemical Warfare, and Holiday In Cambodia. Here's my description from when the album was on my Top 100:
Take a shot every time I say “punk”
I love punk. I love what it stands for: I love punk views, I love punk culture, and I love love love the music. But I don't know if there is a punk-album I am loving enough to get into my chart... Well, Fresh Fruit For Rotten Vegetables kicks those words back in my mouth, 'cause gosh this album is bad ass! babyBlueSedan I heard you out. I bought the 33 1/3 book for punk band Dead Kennedys’ flaming debut. I haven’t finished the book, hell I’m not even past the first chapter yet it’s already clear to me why this punk classic stands tall among 95% of punk albums, at least released in the same era. Fresh Fruit For Rotten Vegetables is an album of punk bangers. It makes me ready for a maniacal protest and anarchy in the flesh. The humor and lyrical violence makes it outstanding in its field. Some of these tracks are impure thoughts and riots in music form.
What I prefer about Dead Kennedys to other hardcore punk bands, or just punk bands in general (like Black Flag, and even later on Rage Against The Machine) is that it’s never over-exaggerated or semi-inauthentic, as much as it is genuine with a spark of creativity as icing on the cake. Jello’s vibrato is integrity fulfillment. “Kill kill kill kill kill the poor” man he sounds like he’s having fun, mimicking the higher status quo of the industry; a metaphor of the poor gets poorer (or mocking capitalist big wigs treatment of lower class citizens and music fans who only choose to listen to a catchy chorus and nothing else - shacke9). And the “Drug! Meeeee” is…something else to say the least. Two of the punk genre’s greatest hooks (and that is something). The satire comes into play as they close out the record with Viva Las Vegas, but in a sarcastic manner - sort of pissing on upper class idols, like they pissed on the lower class problems. And the way it’s carried out is in pure punk style and philosophy; embrace the ugliness. Other highlights of this punk-fest counts Chemical Warfare, that contains an amazing - no, 2 amazing - breakdowns (former sounds like self-irony, latter is chaos), and the drumming gets more shine. And the ridiculous Stealing People’s Mail, but ridiculous in a cool, pessimistic, humorous, punk way. Fresh Fruit For Rotten Vegetables is the punk musical documentary of the San Fransisco chaos in the late 70’s.
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