Frankenchrist

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Frankenchrist

Studio album by the Dead Kennedys
Released	October 1985
Recorded	Hyde St. Studios, May & July 1985
Genre	Hardcore punk, Psychedelic rock, Synthesizer rock
Length	45:12
Label	Alternative Tentacles
Producer(s)	Jello Biafra
All Music Guide link
the Dead Kennedys chronology
A Skateboard Party (1983)	Frankenchrist (1985)	Bedtime for Democracy (1986)

Frankenchrist was the third album released by the Dead Kennedys in 1985 on Alternative Tentacles.

The album was a subject of great controversy because of a poster inserted in the original record sleeve. The poster, H. R. Giger's Landscape #XX, or Penis Landscape, was a painting depicting rows of penises in sexual intercourse. The band was brought to trial for distributing harmful matter to minors, and though they eventually won the case, Biafra's Alternative Tentacles was driven almost to bankruptcy. Only through the support of fans was the label able to stay alive. Biafra came out as a champion of free speech, and was one of the most active opponents of the PMRC.

The songs here focus on the more nightmarish, psychedelic, hard-rocking side of the Kennedys' musical personality. The spaghetti western fascination is also noticeable in the horn parts and in East Bay Ray's atmospheric guitar work. Frankenchrist is not, however, generally considered to be one of their best releases, which may have something to do with the relative lack of traditionally 'hardcore' material (Most of the songs are slower and longer than the majority of other Dead Kennedys songs). "M.T.V. − Get off the Air" is notable for its pointed slam of the music establishment and "Stars and Stripes of Corruption" for its detailed layout of Jello Biafra's political philosophies. On the original vinyl version, Side A was tracks 1-5 and Side B was tracks 6-10.