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Dead Kennedys
last updated 2026-09-11 11:26
Dead Kennedys
Plays on LTZ: (historical total not available beyond this vault's episode folders)
Tracks played
Nazi Punks Fuck Off — played 2026-03-12
Research
Dead Kennedys — Nazi Punks Fuck Off
Played: 2026-03-12 (TikTok)
Released as a 7-inch single in November 1981 on Alternative Tentacles, with 'Moral Majority' on the B-side; the EP version followed in December 1981. The single included a free crossed-out swastika armband, a symbol later adopted by the Anti-Racist Action movement. Recorded in a single live take at San Francisco's Mobius Studio on 22 August 1981. Vocalist Jello Biafra has said the initial premise was simply about violence at punk shows: 'You violent people at shows are acting like a bunch of Nazis.' The song evolved into an explicit anti-fascist anthem as neo-Nazi skinheads began attending and disrupting DK shows. The EP was the first Dead Kennedys release with drummer D.H. Peligro and is sarcastically credited to producer 'Norm,' later revealed to be the studio engineer's cat.
TikTok angle: 1981 — neo-Nazis began showing up at San Francisco punk shows as fans, not outsiders; the Dead Kennedys' response still feels necessary 45 years later.
Dead Kennedys
Origin: San Francisco, California, USA · formed 1978 · active (touring, without Jello Biafra since 1986)
Members: Jello Biafra (vocals, until 1986), East Bay Ray (guitar), Klaus Flouride (bass), Ted "Bruce Slesinger" (drums, original), D.H. Peligro (drums, from 1981); 6025 (secondary guitar, briefly in 1978)
Genre: Hardcore punk
Discography:
Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables (1980) — Cherry Red/Alternative Tentacles
In God We Trust, Inc. (1981, EP) — Alternative Tentacles — includes "Nazi Punks Fuck Off"
Plastic Surgery Disasters (1982) — Alternative Tentacles
Frankenchrist (1985) — Alternative Tentacles
Bedtime for Democracy (1986) — Alternative Tentacles
Facts:
Formed after guitarist East Bay Ray placed a newspaper ad for bandmates in 1978.
Were among the first American hardcore bands to make a significant impact in the UK punk scene.
Jello Biafra ran for Mayor of San Francisco in 1979, finishing fourth in a crowded field.