The Witzard Premiere: 80HRTZ's Dead Kennedys "California Über Alles" Remix Feat. Scratches from Shortrock (@80HRTZ & @Shortrock_1200s)

Dead Kennedys were a controversial San Francisco, California-based Punk/Hardcore, who were originally active from 1978-86; within said 8-year span, Dead Kennedys self-released four albums and an EP on their own independent record label, Alternative Tentacles. Dead Kennedys critically-acclaimed and widely praised releases include Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables, In God We Trust, Inc. EP, Plastic Surgery Disasters, Frankenchrist, and finally, 1986's Bedtime for Democracy. Dead Kennedys abruptly disbanded—arguably, at the height of their "fame"—in December of 1986, prior to their career-spanning 1987 compilation, Give Me Convenience OR Give Me Death. However, following a 15-year period of inactivity, Dead Kennedys re-formed in 2001 following a number of legal disputes, royalties lawsuits, and disputes between members. Unlike the recently re-formed Original Misfits with Glenn Danzig, this is, unfortunately, not the original incarnation of Dead Kennedys. As of 2019, Dead Kennedys' current line-up includes long-time guitarist East Bay Ray, drummer D.H. Peligro, and bassist Klaus Flouride, as well as their latest frontman, Ron "Skip" Greer. It appears as though Dead Kennedys' original frontman and co-founder Jello Biafra currently has no immediate plans to reunite with his former bandmates; since DK's initial 1986 split, Biafra has either recorded music or shared the stage with everyone from Eazy-E/N.W.A. affiliate The D.O.C. to The Melvins and has self-released multiple spoken word albums.


Last year, we, here at The Witzard, proudly premiered 80HRTZ's remix of The Misfits' "ASTRO ZOMBIES" Feat. DJ Halo right before Halloween. If you ask us, it was a great success and since then, 80HRTZ and I have been toying with the idea of debuting additional Punk/Hip-Hop remixes right here on our platform. So, without further ado, the next installment in 80HRTZ's Punk/Hardcore remix series is, obviously, Dead Kennedys' 1979 Alternative Tentacles 7-inch single, "California Über Alles." I can personally remember first hearing "California Über Alles" on Give Me Convenience OR Give Me Death around, maybe, 15-16 during my earliest exposure to Punk Rock through the lens of early 2000's Pop-Punk. However, I'll readily admit, Jello Biafra's frantic jittery delivery on "California Über Alles" is still deeply chilling and a bit unsettling, to this day! Oddly enough, both 80HRTZ & Shortrock grew up listening to Dead Kennedys/Jello Biafra, as well. Thematically, 80HRTZ's "California Über Alles" Remix is similar to our previously premiered "ASTRO ZOMBIES" Remix: a Hip-Hop-leaning remix of an old school Punk/Hardcore stand-out. Although, this time around, he has recruited Shortrock. A self-proclaimed "turntablist/scratch musician," Shortrock has released records with Aaron Romero & Vic Grimes, BRZOWSKI, Chino XL, Guilty Simpson, k-the-i??? Keith Murray, Pastense, Uncommon Nasa, and countless others. Shortrock currently serves as the in-house DJ for Uncommon Records, Strange Media, empty space collective, and Icy Palms Records. The Witzard proudly presents 80HRTZ's Dead Kennedys "California Über Alles" Remix Feat. Shortrock?!!!??! Below, you'll see 80HRTZ & Shortrock have both provided additional commentary on their personal relationships to Dead Kennedys.


"When I was 10, I started skateboarding. That's how I was introduced to Punk Rock. When I was in the 6th grade, my friends and I wanted to start a Punk Rock band after hearing Dead Kennedys' Give Me Convenience OR Give Me Death. We were too young to truly comprehend the lyrics, but we tried to emulate Jello [Biafra] when we wrote songs. We had a toy drum set, a Casio keyboard, and a Hitachi boombox radio, which served as our PA [system], as well as had this weird feature that picked up some strange radio frequencies that sounded crazy. So, we incorporated that into our songs. I think, we had three songs. If I look hard enough, I think, I might still have a lyric sheet somewhere... but that's how far back my love for DK goes. When I decided to do The Misfits Remix, I discovered the "California Über Alles" acapella track and immediately decided I was going to take it on, as well. It was a much trickier task with the tempo change in the middle, but it was super-fun to make!"

- 80HRTZ (@80HRTZ)


"So, when I was 9-years-old, I got my first skate shop sponsor and everyone else who was sponsored by the shop was 16 to, like, 21. I was a straight-up Hip-Hop kid and would always have my boombox, if I was at a park or no pig spot. Always bumping Public Enemey, 3rd Bass, Boogie Down [Productions], etc. So, one day at one of the shops safe spots, one of the kids, who was much older, wanted to listen to "his music" and put in a tape. And even at nine, I was a pissed off "F**k The World" kid due to crazy sh*t that happened and then, I started listening. I heard a high pitch chorus ranting "KILL THE POOR!" and was instantly intrigued. So, as summer passed, these older Punk kids I skated with were partying, drinking, shooting dope, and playing Dead Kennedys... I was hooked! It was music I didn't know existed that gave me the same feel of the social awareness of the Hip-Hop I was listening to! Fast-forward to 2006: I'm 25 and already a established turntablist doing SXSW's Mush Records Showcase with k-the-i??? and Bigg Jus (Company Flow.)

So, before k-the-i??? and myself flew to Austin, we made a few demos for specific artists that we knew were gonna be there. Long story short, running from our showcase to anticon's to Def Jux's, I got to the Alternative Tentacles showcase... it was over! But I spotted Jello Biafra shaking hands and whatnot, so I went to talk to him explaining how I became a fan and why I was there and gave him our demo, where I used cuts from his spoken word records. He bugged out and said, "I haven't heard anyone use my records since Ice-T [Afrika Islam] used one!" So, we had all our info in these demos and he thanked me and went on our ways. So, like six months later, he called and left a message on answering machine, which my sister Deleted after I heard it. He said he really enjoyed it and our conversation at SXSW, but he was really busy with many projects coming out. So, I never got to call him back and pretty soon after, my solo 45 came out... sooooo, yeah, that's the most I've ever f***in' typed... and thanks to 80HRTZ, I got to pay tribute and had a dope time doing it... ENJOY, MUTHAHF***AHS!!!"

- Shortrock (@shortrock1200)