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Plastic Surgery Disasters/In God We Trust, Inc.

Dead Kennedys - Plastic Surgery Disasters/In God We Trust, Inc. Audio CD

A fair review of the Dead Kennedys "Plastic Surgery Disasters/In God We Trust, Inc." Audio CD. Please note that the below review is the views of the authors, and authors only. You can get a complete list of all Dead Kennedys reviews here, or go back to the Dead Kennedys tabs.

Band: Dead Kennedys
Title: Plastic Surgery Disasters/In God We Trust, Inc.
Rating:

Release Date: 1990-03-14
Media: Audio CD

Tracks: 1: Advice from Christmas Past 2: Government Flu 3: Terminal Preppie 4: Trust Your Mechanic 5: Well Paid Scientist 6: Buzzbomb 7: Forest Fire 8: Halloween 9: Winnebago Warrior 10: Riot 11: Bleed for Me 12: I Am the Owl 13: Dead End 14: Moon Over Marin 15: Religious Vomit 16: Moral Majority 17: Hyperactive Child 18: Kepone Factory 19: Dog Bite 20: Nazi Punks Fuck Off 21: We've Got a Bigger Problem Now 22: Rawhide

Don't believe the hype--THIS is the definitive DK collection
It's a great album, for sure--but, for all its intensity, it only hints at the perfection the DK's would reach with Plastic Surgery Disasters and In God We Trust, Inc. Why people are so enamored with Fresh Fruit For Rotting Vegetables, I'll never know. . Darren Peligro's drums are the primary difference, catching up with the jazzy sensibility East Bay Ray's guitar always touched upon while kicking the tempo up a few BPM's--just listen to the roll that touches off "Buzzbomb" or the swinging hi-hats on the intro to "Government Flu. " Given a bit of leeway by the tighter rhythm section, Ray takes his chance to make his guitar more evocative than it had been (or would ever be), particularly on the surprisingly-poppy "Moon Over Marin" and the jazz-bo "We've Got a Bigger Problem Now. " Biafra, whose vocals have always been his make-or-break point, puts together his most solid combination of performance and lyricism on songs like "Forest Fire," "Bleed For Me" (eerily prophetic in the post-9/11/2001 world) and "Religious Vomit. "

Frankly, I think most "punks" find Fresh Fruit more appealing because the songs were more sing-along friendly--while that aspect of the DKs' songwriting is still present on this release, Jello Biafra's lyrics are more focused, and he comes into his own more as a vocalist (you can detect a slight Iggy Pop/Jim Morrison influence on Fresh Fruit), becoming unafraid of just outright spitting vitriol over the band's attack. In God We Trust, Inc. is, arguably, the more "hardcore" side, often eschewing melody in favor of speed and emotion; "Moral Majority," for instance, comes across as a delightful, articulate expression of outright disgust that smacks the listener in the face and then runs away.

Future DK releases suffered slightly from over-production (especially the tragically-flawed, criminally-underrated Bedtime For Democracy); Plastic Surgery Disasters is, easily, one of the best-sounding punk albums ever recorded, balancing the sound of Klaus Fluoride's bass and letting Peligro's drums frame the sound without drowning out Ray's guitar. Not to dismiss their debut, but these two albums (or one CD) constitute the pinnacle of the Dead Kennedys' discography.

Amazing Dead Kennedys album- one of the best
are truly classic punk albums. Plastic Surgery Disaster and In God we Trust Inc. The songs are meaningful, intelligent, and sometimes very frightening. But that just sums up DK in general. These guys are undesrcibably awesome, with pounding guitars courtesy of Ray and Klaus, remarkeble drumming, and of course Jello Biafra. He is the ultimate songwriter and his chilling voice fits well with the great punk tunes. 'Buzzbomb from Pasedena' has gotta be my favorite track on this cd, but its hard to choose a favorite with so many great songs. 'Government Flu' has great, head-banging music, 'Terminal Preppy' showcases Jello's songwriting talent, and 'Moral Majority' is just a good-hearted, pleasant little Christian song. They all rock though.

Awesome!!

In my opinion 'In God we Trust' is the greatest piece of Punk Vinyl ever. I'm gonna tackle this from a different angle.

I got this the day it came out and 20 years later it is still awesome and nothing comes close. Add on 'Plastic Surgery. . . . . . . ' and you have one hell of a CD.

Remember though, get the Alternative Tentacles version, not the money-grabbing re-issues.

Get this is you like green day
Especially on this cd. Apparently, your taste in music has to be askew to even go near these guys. The productions weird, but I love it. The lyrics are simply amazing. Everything from government conspiracies (Government Flu) to think about what you're really doing when you want anarchy (Riot), and to the hillarious (Forest Fire). Ray's guitar is so eerie, it somehow sadly beautiful. From that statement, you know I have no vocabulary. But my favorite is the bass. The lines get stuck in your head all day and you'll drive people crazy humming them. And you also get the In God We Trust, Inc. 12" ep free! Of all the cd's I have, this has to be my all-time favorite one. Order it now! If you don't like it, go sell it to zia's or something. What do I care.

a brilliiant album for the hardcore enthusist!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
at least in my opioin . well after hearing this again after some many years this still holds a place in the top 5 albums of all time. to start this is the second full length album buy the dks . with so much infomation and great sounds one can get overwhelmed . but this is to me the perfect album in the realm of punk that any one could hope for. to start with the goverment flu a song about the idea of being controlled and terminall preppe about going to school to make a mark on basiclly the real world witch is basically a parode of itself. the list goes on as far as the great songs on this 2 set disc. the best songs are of course riot witch to this day still makes you really fell what it would be like to be in one. and of course i am an owl witch makes you relize that big brother is watching you all the time. and bleed for me about the sacrafice of being in the system. to much to say about these great albums with a bonus of having in god we trust on the same disc just blows me away even more. so buy this for your collection and you may think its the best 2 albums of all time . but if you dont it just may mean you have been brainwashed buy what you think punk music is and all about,these are not for the passing time punk but for the ones of us who belive about why music like this is real and carry our little dreams of true punk with us the rest of our life.

You can see a complete list of all Dead Kennedys discography, or go back to the Dead Kennedys tabs. There is also a good guide on how to read guitar tabs here.