Jello Biafra, one time vocalist with seminal punksters Dead Kennedys and founder of Alternative Tentacles Records, has become known for his political activism and protection of free speech. He has overcome several law suits against fundamentalist Christian group the PMRC and more recently his old band, as well as running for Mayor of San Francisco. Through a wide range of media research, Jello is able to expose his victims with webs of profound conspiracy Bill Hicks would have been proud of. Since starting spoken word in 1986, Jello remains opinionated and indignant towards his critics.

It was a nervous prospect then, when I arranged an interview with Jello, via his promoter. If I was at the venue for 5pm, there was a possibility he would speak to me before the show. However, by 7:30pm, all hope had vanished when he had not yet arrived. I did not even know if I was on the guest list, as the promoter was transporting him to the show.

By this time, I had been chatting to a short cockney bloke named Lee, and wondering why the hell he was here. Was this guy the support act? As his background emerged, I began to hope not. He was a man of dubious association. Accolades included drumming responsibilities for D:Ream and currently the Lighthouse Family. 'I know it sounds funny, but I used to be into punk', he remarked. Priceless. He planned to get some CDs signed, then drive down to his second home in Lincoln, by means of a new MG (punk or what?). That's where I was going. 'Any chance of a lift?' I asked. 'Yeah, course', came the retort. Sweet, I thought. If I can't get Jello, I'm sure to get a funny interview out of this imbecile.

The audience is set half an hour later when Jello takes the stage, wearing sunglasses and a trench coat. 'We are now in a state of Martial Law,' he begins. 'All constitutional rights have been suspended. Shut up.' His trademark bellow echoes around the all-seated venue.

He launches into scathing attacks on President Bush, aka King George the second, a man more intent on watching baseball than solving world problems. As Jello propels Bush's quotes from funny to downright absurd proportions. "I know how important it is to put food on your family" and "I know what I believe and I believe what I believe is right", it is clear Jello has not lost his edge in exposing the puppetry of American politics.

The rhetoric turns towards the events of 11 September. Material here is very similar to Biafra's latest release, 'The Big Ka-Boom', as he discusses media coverage, political links and international hostilities. There is more of an emphasis here on British press reporting contrasted with the overblown coverage found on US media, such as CNN. For instance, the silent tumbling of the twin towers, despite the noise registering on the Richter scale in New York.

After riffing extensively on world issues, such as the Star Wars defence network, Dick Cheney and sham 'Time' magazine cover stories, so comes the issue of the Dead Kennedys lawsuit. The other three members were prepared to lie under oath because Jello would not allow them to put 'Holiday in Cambodia' on a 'Nike' advert. They won $170,000 in damages and denied Jello the rights to songs that he had written. When asked if he has a message for the band, when they come to the UK to do a "comeback" tour, Jello replies, 'How do you sleep at night?'

Jello's set was going from strength to strength, so I was bemused to find Lee the pop drummer had slipped out of the audience while I was at the toilet. I would not have cared, but I had lent him a plastic wallet for his CDs and bought him a pint. It had also thwarted any chance of a lift home. Oh well, pop sellouts obviously can't take the heat in Biafra's kitchen.

The show steamrolls on complete with hilarious interpretations of Bob Dole, Tony Blair, George Bush (Snr) and Jello's old geometry teacher, the latter making even more of a hash of the English language than George W. Bush. The Sheffield crowd is generally receptive with regular heckles, such as the Irish man, who insists on declaring how brilliant trains are. Jello remains well humoured throughout and despite suffering from a bad cough, he lasts the whole show without taking a single sip of water.

The two and a half-hour set winds up with Jello pleading with the audience to keep our collective bullshit detector tweaked. He urges us to formulate ideas and prepare for the takeover. Finally, he takes off his shoe and asks for donations for the Alternative Tentacles Legal Defence Fund.

Jello's style has been referred to as condescending. However, despite preaching to the converted over the madness of King George II and the lunacy of censorship, Jello continues to inform and enlighten in the most astute of fashions. As a counter culture reader, Jello is able not only to outline the incestuous nature of business and politics, but also to present them in a calm and concise way.

When asked how he saw his role, Jello replied, 'I'm just tossing ideas about here- I don't have magic answers. I'm putting pieces in my own mosaic.' Or as one website puts it, "speaking out of turn as a lifestyle". It's a shame Lighthouse Family Lee didn't stick around, Jello's words might have caused him to remember his roots and stop being such a sellout.

Jello Biafra. He may rant and rave, but he sure talks a lot of sense.

10/10