Customer Reviews

High Priest of Harmful Matter

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This album details Jello's account of his 1986/1987 trial where he was charged with "distribution of harmful matter to minors" because his band, Dead Kennedys, enclosed a poster by Swiss surrealist artist H.R. Giger, famous for creating the aliens and movie set in the movie Alien and Aliens.

Also on this album is a talk on censorship, exposing efforts to censor speech in all areas, but focusing on music.

Jello Biafra has four spoken word albums out as of this date (6/97). Also look for:

No More Cocoons
I Blow Minds For a Living
Beyond the Valley of the Gift Police
END

Anyone who is interested in censorship and music and can listen with an open mind would enjoy these CD's.

Jello biafra (formerly of the dead kennedies and lard) uses spoken word to infoem college students of goings on with the goverment/undehandedness he uses a no holds barred scarcasim that will awaken any good american to the goverment tragedy today

When the subject of "High Priest" comes up amongst my friends who know what it is, the only thing that comes into my mind is the wonderful courtroom story and namesake of the album.

Jello tells the tale of his battle against censorship, all over a portrait of decaying sexual organs by H.R. Gieger, which had been inserted into the Dead Kennedys album entitled "Frankenchrist".

This is truly my favorite Biafra album, if only for the second CD. It's incredibly entertaining, and well worth your money.

Listen to Jello Biafra's account of what Tipper Gore's thought police did to him over his use of a surrealist painting on one of his album covers. The Gores may look blandly innocent and environmentally-conscious, but they have a Religious Right agenda when it comes to education. Biafra outlines the history of fundamentalism's attempt to control our access to information and creative expression, ending with "Tales from the Trial" about his own experiences in court as a result of the Parents Music Resource Center's censorship campaign.

Jello Biafra is in outstanding form on the three spoken word pieces which find him delivering pointed commentary on his First Amendment trial surrounding "Work 219," death squads and Ollie North, and government censorship in the media, music and politics.

The bizarre comedy in "Tales From The Trial" is solid, but the connecting of the dots in "Talk on Censorship" is the chilling highlight. A laughing audience member during "Intro - Love American Death Squad Style" makes Biafra briefly angry - he was discussing the sordid work by death squad members - but actually gets him particularly focused on powerfully delivering the sickening details.

Though released in 1989, the nearly 97 minutes has uncanny timeliness, since Biafra has a grasp on the game of puppeteers and puppets on the national/international chessboard.