Two weeks ago, I reported on the controversy surrounding Jello Biafra and his plan to bring his band The Guantanamo School of Medicine to Tel Aviv for a concert. Supporters of the academic and cultural boycott of Israel seem to have prevailed, as the former Dead Kennedys frontman announced that the show now will not happen:

Jello Biafra and the Guantanamo School of Medicine are not going through with the July 2 date in Tel Aviv.

This does not mean I or anyone else in the band are endorsing or joining lockstep with the boycott of all things Israel….

The toll and stress on the band members and myself has been huge, both logistically and as a matter of conscience. I can’t drag anyone any further into rough waters without being better prepared than some of us thought we were. A responsible leader does not go, ‘Hey, check out the storm at the top of Mount Everest. Let’s go up anyway just in case we don’t die.’ Some members are angry with me for this decision, let alone how long it took me. I don’t blame them.

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No stranger to controversy, hardcore punk icon Jello Biafra seems to have once again caused a bit of a stir, though not in a way that he’d otherwise like. His band The Guantanamo School of Medicine recently announced a short tour which includes a July 2nd gig in Israel at Tel Aviv’s Barby Club. Shortly thereafter, an organization called the Palestinian Solidarity Campaign contacted Biafra, urging him not to play the show and to support the academic/cultural boycott of that country. Last week, he published his response letter to the organization, commenting that “the decision to play in Tel Aviv was not taken lightly” and expressing his interest in using the trip to learn more about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Fans as well as those with opinions on the cultural boycott took the debate to the band’s Facebook page, leading Biafra to release a statement:

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Steven Blush’s American Hardcore: A Tribal History is one of the great rock n’ roll history books. And now it’s bigger. Originally published in 2001, the Feral House book nails the golden age of old-school hardcore, from the movement’s inception to the watershed year 1986. The book inspired a documentary, the 2006 film American Hardcore. The movie is a must-see that has inspired as much griping and controversy as the book.

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A couple months ago, I came across a concert listing online that the Dead Kennedys were playing a show in New York City. Fully aware of the band’s tumultuous and litigious history, as well as from my conversation with him earlier in the year, I knew that verbose, charismatic frontman Jello Biafra was not going to (be permitted to) participate. On that basis alone, I saw little reason beyond perverse curiosity to actually go see this any more than I’d want to see The New Cars. Now, according to esteemed Boston indie newspaper The Phoenix, bassist Klaus Flouride isn’t even participating. So it’s co-founder East Bay Ray, D.H. Peligro, and two guys nobody gives a crap about, banking on DK’s name recognition to con some kids and unawares into shelling out hard earned money for glorified karaoke.

Anyway, tour dates are below if you’re interested in being completely underwhelmed. I’ll stick with Jello’s current band, the Guantanamo School of Medicine, who happen to have some Western Canada shows coming up.

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From left to right: Weatherman, Mullin, and Dean. Pic courtesy C.O.C.

C.O.C. is not only one of the best bands to come out of the old-school 1980s hardcore movement; technically, it’s at least five of the best groups to emerge from the scene. Over 28 years, every release – and later, every other album – has found the veterans with a new lineup and an all-new sound.

The band launched in North Carolina in 1982 as Corrosion of Conformity. In its first incarnation, the band played crusty, heavy, speedy hardcore. In 1984, the Eye for an Eye LP introduced the punk world to the group’s spiky skull mascot, one of the great extreme-music icons.

The lineup and sound reshuffled by 1985’s Animosity LP. The crossover disc was released on Metal Blade imprint Death Records, where they held their own against labelmates D.R.I. and the Ugly Americans. (The latter band featured singer Simon “Simon Bob Sinister” Bob, who would step as vocalist for C.O.C.’s 1987 Technocracy EP.)

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If you haven’t read Part One of my interview with Melvins frontman Buzz Osborne, you might want to check it out before you go any further. In this second and final installment of that conversation, King Buzzo pulls no punches. See below to learn his thoughts on grunge, crabcore, and why he’d rather open for Madonna than ever play Ozzfest again.

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Alright, so Vince is back Tuesday, which means the balance between light and dark should be restored here at the MetalSucks Mansion. What Vince doesn’t know is that I had Higgins make some… adjustments to Vince’s wing. Let’s just say I wouldn’t be sitting on the shitter when ya flush it, Vinnie. BWA-HA-HA!!!

Here’s what we did while Vince has been away:

• We spoke to the legendary Jello Biafra and DevilDriver’s Dez Fafara.
• God Forbid’s Doc Coyle broke down the breakdown, The Austerity Program’s Justin Foley ruminated some more on the format wars, andVertebrae33′s Rod Githens analyzed the best album covers of 2009.
• We checked out new releases by Six Feet Under, Valkyrja, Brainstorm, Trapped Under Ice and Sons of Azrael.
• Our staff chose some albums that will fuck your face off in 2010.
• The line-up for Mayhem Fest 2010 got the kids all riled up.
• Dave Mustaine and Kerry King <3 T.G.I.Friday’s.

Have a good weekend, everybody!!!

-AR

Jello Biafra is one of the very few people living today who can honestly be called a musical pioneer. The importance of the Dead Kennedys cannot be overstated, and as that hardcore punk act’s frontman and voice, Jello’s words continue to influence generations of people worldwide dissatisfied with the status quo, whether that apply to the music scene or the socio-political climate. Fortunately, he continues to rail against the crimes inflicted by governments and corporations in his own unique way, whether it be through bitingly witty spoken word performances or those from his new band, The Guantanamo School of Medicine. Yet after all of these years, Jello still prides himself on not stagnating or repeating himself. In his own words:

One thing we’ve gone out of our way to do with [The Guantanamo School of Medicine] and what I do in general, I’m kinda proud that no two music albums of mine have ever sounded alike. Not even the Lard albums or the two I did with the Melvins, let alone Dead Kennedys. There’s so much punk and so much metal that gets put into these little genres and sounds so much like other bands that you wonder, “what’s the point?” This is like drawing in a coloring book instead of making a picture from your imagination as a kid. Part of what that comes from is drawing my sources and my ideas from other parts of music besides punk, including even that weird tiki cocktail lounge music from the Fifties… You wanna put a unique stamp on your band, you’ve gotta draw from forces outside your favorite kind of music. I didn’t even realize until years later that when I’d hide out at my parents’ place in Colorado to write songs and plan out the next Dead Kennedys album that I was listening to almost no punk whatsoever when I was doing it.

Below, check out more from my interview with Jello.

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We loved the last tour blog that Bison B.C.’s Dan And did for us so much, we’re only all-too-happy to present another! Below, please enjoy part 2; you can read part 1 here.

Sep 28 ’09 (Albuquerque NM @ Launch Pad)

The first thing that struck me about this venue was the framed posters that line the walls… Melvins, High on Fire, Fu Manchu… some killer bands have been through here over the years. I was also struck by how nice and clean Albuquerque seemed. I would later find out that the town is ranked in the top five for violent crimes in the US. Okay then, never mind.

Played with a rad band called Roñoso. Weirdest guitar tone ever but it totally worked in their crust-saw sound. Kylesa sounds fucking huge tonight. Their (hilarious) sound guy Dave is working the system like it owes him money… and it probably does.

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I can’t say I’ve followed everything that Jello Biafra’s done post-Dead Kennedys, but I was quite excited when I heard that Faith No More bassist Billy Gould is part of his new band The Guantanamo School of Medicine. Those familiar with Jello’s two collaborative albums with the Melvins (2004′s Never Breathe What You Can’t See and 2005′s Sieg Howdy) will find the new songs streaming at the band’s MySpace page familiar in style: punky, quirky, and political.

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