Galactic

We Love 'em Tonight (Live at Tipitina's)
Volcano
(www.galacticfunk.com)

Like fellow funkmeisters Medeski, Martin, and Wood, Galactic ties down the groove, splashes some gasoline over it, and sets the damn thing on fire. On We Love 'em Tonight (Live at Tipitina's), they prove just how awesome a tight live band can be.

From the tension-filled climax of “Crazyhorse Mongoose” to the harmonica-driven “Bobski/Jeffe 2000,” Galactic churns out nasty jams suitable for serious booty shaking. Although the band keeps it chugging when singer Theryl DeClouet joins in, the best moments come when they stretch out instrumentally.

The group's funky take on Black Sabbath's classic “Sweet Leaf” (a tribute to the substance that keeps water-pipe makers in business and many a dorm room eternally hazy) verges on the unreal. Get out the eyedrops and Chunky Monkey. (For more on Galactic, see “Bring on the Funk” in the August 2001 issue.)
Rating (out of 5): 4

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Dead Kennedys

Mutiny on the Bay
Manifesto
(www.manifesto.com)

While Jello Biafra and the rest of the ex — Dead Kennedys squabble over royalties, countless bubblegum “punk” groups hawk watered-down versions of the long-defunct group's chain-saw riffs and politically charged lyrics. The situation begs the question: is Mutiny on the Bay, the band's first authorized live album, a beacon of light in a world of cookie-cutter punk or simply a shameless grab for cash?

Culled from live tapes recorded between 1982 and 1986, this manic album spits vitriol and righteous anger from the very first tune, a supercharged “Police Truck.” Guitarist East Bay Ray fuels the machine with walls of noise and warped rockabilly riffs, and Biafra's rants on “California Über Alles” and “MTV Get off the Air” still sound remarkably fresh so many years after the fact.

A cynic might suspect that Mutiny on the Bay is just now seeing the light of day to pay off a lawyer or two. With music this incendiary, however, who cares?
Rating (out of 5): 4.5

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