Jello Biafra & The Guantanamo School Of Medicine, The Audacity of Hype

"The band's twin guitar attack retains some of the space-punk overtones and spy-music-on-meth chaos of Dead Kennedys while adding a healthy dose of Detroit style proto-punk, flavored with Weiss' industrial excursions into metal percussion.

Topically, the album explores how our forced Iraqnophobia and Homeland Insecurity continues to feed lawlessness at the top ("The Terror Of Tiny Town") vs. a runaway police state and class war towards the bottom ("Three Strikes," "Electronic Plantation" (originally done by the No WTO Combo, Jello's one-off collaboration with Krist Novelselic (Nirvana) & Kim Thayil (Soundgarden). "Clean As A Thistle" becomes more timely every day as "Family Values" blowhards from Sanford to Berlusconi get caught in sinful trysts, while album closer "I Won't Give Up" offers an age of Obama anthem on how change comes from agitation from below, not from glamour and sound bites from the top.

Thirty years on, Jello Biafra has made an album that solidifies and expands his uncompromising vision and updates it for the new century, with a powerhouse band that promises to be a terrifying live machine!"

- altsounds

"It would seem as if hanging around extreme musicians such as Napalm Death has finally rubbed off on political thorn/punk rock legend Jello Biafra. Where much of his work over the past decade has been relegated to commentary CDs and the occasional forgettable song that could never dream of living up to his storied career, that tide is about to shift with Audacity Of Hype. Yes, this is outright hype but for once with an otherwise untouchable artist such as this ― who do you know that ever pans a Biafra outing? ― it's entirely justified. Energised, spirited and rather aggressive, the album boasts a guttural rock'n'roll basis reminiscent of classic Dead Kennedys tunes such as "California Uber Alles" and "Too Drunk To Fuck" without ever trying to be that. It's clearly just the same inspiration barging forth. Even Biafra sounds possessed, pointed and not annoying for the first time in ages. Grinding and expedient, intelligent and furious, this album spells good times for Jello Biafra and the Guantanamo School of Medicine."

- Exclaim

"The artwork is unreal on this. I was sent the CD and I probably spent at least half an hour reading through all of the insert notes, and marveling over the drawings which parody Shepard Fairey's "Hope" drawing of the President. Due to the instantly recognizable style of Biafra's vocals, it's hard not to compare this to the DEAD KENNEDYs, and that's fine since we all could probably use a jolt of acerbic surf punk with gnashing percussion and the political fervor, fight, and intellect that has been swept aside for so long."

- Pastepunk

"Biafra's extremely unique musical vocabulary is firing on all cylinders here, and his backing band, the Guantanamo School Of Medicine (most notably featuring Billy Gould of Faith No More) blasts through nine songs with an intensity that is nonexistent on a lot of newer hardcore-punk records, making songs like "Clean As A Thistle" highly enjoyable, regardless of the outdated lyrical content. When Biafra tackles current issues on the anti-consumerist "Strength Thru Shopping" and the cow-punk/metal anthem "I Won't Give Up", he occasionally spits out couplets like, "We stopped Vietnam, got civil rights and new deals 'cause we kept a blowtorch up their ass," that make the listener feel genuinely empowered and ready to rise up and fight the hypocrisy that lies ahead of us."

- Alternative Press

"Meet brand new rock band Jello Biafra and the Guantanamo School of Medicine. OK, so they're not "new" in terms of needing introductions - you may have heard of this Biafra guy before - but "The Audacity of Hype" is the group's debut full-length. Despite his dabbling with other bands over the years, such as the Melvins, this is the first project that Biafra's helmed solo. And, let's be honest, whenever someone considered to be a legend of sorts makes a return, there's always some well deserved trepidation. Why ruin the image, the memory and the music of a great band with a new attempt? It goes without saying that the Dead Kennedys will be the ruler by which this new project is measured.

With all that said, Biafra's band - Ralph Spight, Kimo Ball, Jon Weiss and Billy Gould - really make this album. Their high energy rock is believable and not merely a background for Biafra's vocals. Biting guitar riffs with the edge of Dick Dale on steroids make it pretty difficult to forget the Dead Kennedys. Amped up and ready to go, tracks like "Clean As A Thistle" tear by before "Three Strikes" takes on a raging Western gunslinger sound.

Any caution with which you approach "The Audacity of Hype" is, luckily, unnecessary. Sure, it's partly same story/different day and, sure, it's no Dead Kennedys, but who said it would be? Biafra and company churn out a record that sounds tight, packs a punch and delivers the kicking attitude you've come to expect from the outspoken frontman. Also, brownie points should be award for Shepard Fairey's contribution of the album cover."

- Plugin Music