Dead Kennedys - The Early Years [2001]

Customer Reviews:

Rough and ready.......2004-03-05

At first I found myself being a little disappointed in this DVD as it was so short (only 30mins) but very quickly got over that when I saw how good it actually is.
The DVD features fantastic live versions of some of their most essential songs from 'Fresh Fruit' and the early singles. The picture and sound quality is a little dubious on occasion, but surely that's what punk is all about!
The live versions of 'Kill The Poor', 'Insight', 'Let's Lynch The Landlord' etc are powerful passionate as the record versions and the absolute highlights are the versions of 'Holiday In Cambodia' and 'Bleed For Me' filmed in the studio. These are almost worth the price of the DVD alone.
The film of Jello Biafra's election campaign is a brief amusement that adds to the character of the band and their music, and allows Biafra to let off more political steam.
The only real disappointment is the closing track 'Viva Las Vegas' on which the sound and picture quality is appalling and the film keeps cutting to the titles so you can't see the band. Still, that shouldn't detract from the fact that this is an essential purchase for any Dead Kennedy's fan. The only improvements that I could suggest would be better extras (the only extras being short biographys and subtitles). For example in the 'Jello For Mayor' a clip of the band playing a song not features on the DVD is shown. It's a shame it couldn't be included on the DVD too. Never mind though, just go buy it.

A shame that more footage of better quality isn't available.......2003-10-11

The Dead Kennedys were rivalled only by The Ramones as the foremost punk group to come out of the USA during the movement's heyday in the late 70s and early 80s. Therefore it's a shame that there is such a paucity of live footage available of the group at its height, and that what little there is in existence is of such variable quality.

On the plus side, as someone who saw the DK's in person in the San Francisco Bay Area back in the day, I can attest that the performances on this video (mainly from gigs in San Francisco and Berkeley, but also including a couple of "in-studio" performances) accurately capture what their shows were like. A mixture of menace and hilarity and over the top, slightly uncomfortable theatrics from Biafra.

On the minus side, the video and the sound for the live performances were obviously done by amateurs and this is reflected in the quality of both, which ranges from poor-to-fair. Then again this, too, is reflective of the DIY ethos of the punk movement. People were doing things for themselves and using the resources they had in order to create art, rather than relying on big money and old pros from the big record companies who might have come up with a more polished and professional product. It's just a shame this couldn't be a little bit better quality-wise than it actually is.

Viva the Dead Kennedys in all their late 70s and early 80s glory! As long as you're not expecting great sound and video quality, this is a decent document of what they were like back in the day.

A welcome addition to a DK collection.......2002-06-02

Excellent material for Dead Kennedys fans, especially considering the sparsity of visual material available of the band. The DK's disliked the whole video media thing, which means that there is little now available for fans. This is a shame considering the energetic, theatrical nature of the bands performances, and this DVD conveys that aspect well. At times very humerous - the Ronald Reagan clip prior to Bleed for Me being the best example - the DVD is guaranteed to bring a smile to the face of anyone who is familar with the DK's or Jello Biafra's material. Although the touted "Hilarious footage of Biafra's mayoral election campaign" is rather more limited than expected, and there being little additional material on the DVD apart from the songs, the product still represents value for money for keen DK enthusiasts. The perfomances here are typical of bands at an early stage of development and capture that 'rawness' which devotee's often love. Entitled "Dead Kennedys - The Early Years" hopefully there will be further releases to follow which will show the bands performances mature and become more polished.

Customer Reviews:

Sports Cars TV - Marque of a Legend review.......2007-09-07

www.SportsCars.TV is an internet television channel dedicated to bringing programmes about Sports & Classic cars and any other motorsport. Material not normally available anywhere else!

Featuring some of the greatest drivers in motorsport history. Including John Surtees, Stirling Moss, Jackie Ickx and Derek Bell. An insight into them and their great Le Mans 24 hours winning cars.

Customer Reviews:

excellent and unusual.......2007-09-03

I saw this film at the British Film Festival in Dinard, France. I'm not normally in to these types of films, but I was totally immersed in the story of this young girl who has imaginary friends who become a powerful and all-embracing part of her life...... It's not spooky or wierd but delicate and moving. An unusual film which I would recommend to everyone.
I've been waiting for this for two years; I hope it'll be avavibale in a European format soon.

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