Jello Biafra and the Guantanamo School of Medicine – Enhanced Methods of Questioning

It’s at least arguable that Jello Biafra’s done some of his best work post-Dead Kennedys. I recently repurchased Bedtime For Democracy, the band’s last full-length before breaking up in 1985, and maybe it was just me, but it sounded like a pretty tepid affair. They’d succumbed to a lot of the punk trappings of the day – it sounds like they tried to be a hardcore band on that album, rather than a caustic, smart-as-shit punk band. It sounds forced and awkward, something that the Dead Kennedys – and Biafra specifically – were absolutely miles away from on their better material.

Twenty-five years into a post-Dead Kennedys breakup and the man’s stayed busy. A plethora of spoken word albums and tours, legal battle after legal battle, years of infighting among other punk icons. But among it all, he’s still lent his pipes to some musical outing or another and goddamn, even if many of them came across as nothing more than one-off projects, some of them were great: Tumor Circus – with dudes from Steel Pole Bathtub – released the acerbic, jarring Meathook Up My Rectum 7”, and the top-notch Last Scream of The Missing Neighbors LP with D.O.A. There’s also been stuff withNoMeansNo, The Melvins, Lard and even Mojo Nixon.

Now the nice thing about Advanced Methods of Questioning is that it appears to less a collaboration and more, you know, a band: this is their 2nd album. And yeah, it’s a pretty solid listen. Biafra’s familiar warble is as snotty as ever, and his lyrics continue to dismantle and provoke. The Gauntanamo School of Medicine (I’m skeptical of calling them his backing band) is made up of Faith No More andVictims Family members, among others, and there’s some solid swagger in the handful of songs here. Couched between the almost DK-esque surf moments in “Dot Com Monte Carlo” and the meanderingStooges-inspired last tune, “Miracle Penis Highway,” the songs have some muscle to them and the recording quality is solid. Whether it’s San Francisco’s continuing gentrification or issues concerning returning soldiers’ rights to mental health care (and the societal repercussions should they not get it), Biafra’s still using his (sometimes hamhanded) wit to stir the pot. Technically an EP, Methods Of Questioning feelslike an LP – there’s a solidity here that escapes many other bands over a span of twice as many songs.

It’s a substantial effort that may not turn many new heads, but will definitely please longtime fans of the man’s work. And definite bonus points for the sprawlingly loose, meandering and autobiographical bonus track. Solid work.