Jello Biafra Never Breathe What You Can't See CD

Jello Biafra: Jello Biafra; Osama Benet Milosevic (guitar); George W. McVeigh (bass instrument); Saddam Disney.
Personnel: Osama McDonald (vocals); Saddam Disney (guitar, drums, percussion); Jon Benet Milosevic, Adam Jones (guitar); Lady Monster, Wendy O-Matik, Tom Five, Adrienne Droogas, Johnny NoMoniker, John The Baker, Jesse Luscious, King Buzzo, Ali G. North, Loto Ball (background vocals).
Additional personnel: Adam Jones (guitar); Wendy D-Matik (background vocals); Ali G. North.
Audio Mixer: Tosh Kasai.
Recording information: Hook Studios, L.A; Hyde St. Studios, S.F; Mothra's Cave.
For Never Breathe What You Can't See, Jello Biafra has stowed his spoken word pulpit behind the enormous amplifiers of the Melvins. But his reinsertion as a frontman hasn't dulled his political haranguing or biting cynicism -- on the contrary, it seems to have invigorated him. With Buzz Osborne's guitar walking point, the Melvins deploy a hybrid of full-bore Dead Kennedys revivalism and their own brand of sludgy metal. Their fans might wish for a little more of the latter, as the white phosphorous punk/hardcore screeds outweigh the more purely Melvins moments. Still, Osborne does unleash a particularly sticky, damaged blues guitar line on "Caped Crusader," and there are pieces of the Melvins' signature sound glued cleverly to the beginnings, middles, and ends of all the material on What You Can't See. (The insane, cackling closer, "Dawn of the Locusts," will be another highlight for Melvins diehards.) And mostly it's just fun to hear the band matching Biafra's bellyful of strident vocals with wrangling, explosive riffs that could have been written in the Reagan era. "Thank you Osama/You are the savior of our economy today," Biafra spits over the rumbling bass of "McGruff the Crime Dog," taking governmental war hawks to task. "The Lighter Side of Global Terrorism" begins as a Melvins slow-burn rager before dropping into a classic Kennedys stance; this time around, Biafra imagines the world through the eyes of a fetishistic airport screener. The darkly wry "Plethysmograph" and self-explanatory "Yuppie Cadillac" are also standouts. What you see is what you get with What You Can't See; it's only the latest platform for Biafra's fiery partisan politicking. But it's also an interesting collaboration between veteran musical iconoclasts. ~ Johnny Loftus
NEVER BREATHE WHAT YOU CAN'T SEE pairs underground icon and former Dead Kennedys vocalist Jello Biafra with the grungy alternative metal band the Melvins (the Washington-based group that influenced Mudhoney and Nirvana). Biafra and the Melvins are a great combination: the album is quick-witted and topically insightful, yet balanced by crunchy Black Sabbath-inspired riffs and gleeful hard-rock posturing. There are equal doses here of thoughtful irony, social critique, and sheer head-banging fun, and the result far exceeds both Biafra's often long-winded spoken-word outings and the Melvin's dark sludgefests.
Biafra has long been one of music's most uncompromising spokesmen, and his special knack for skewering public figures, politicians, and the shallower aspects of American culture is in full flower on this project. "The Lighter Side of Global Terrorism" ridicules post-9/11 "heightened security" in the U.S. via a character sketch of an airport security guard. "Islamic Bomb" calls the Bush administration to task on foreign policy, while "Yuppie Cadillac" is a glorious dose of nose-thumbing at the trappings of wealth and social status. Biafra's trademark sneer and whine complement the Melvins' heavy thunder, bringing together two sides of subversion: acerbic lyrical wit, and the visceral assault of heavy rock.Alternative Press (p.106) - "[Biafra's] politically charged lyrics are often insightful. The Melvins help keep the music varied..." - 3 out of 5
Mojo (Publisher) (p.99) - 4 stars out of 5 - "[Biafra's] still the king of agit-punk satire. The Melvins provide the strongest backing he's had in years."