Starship: The Next Generation : Paul Kantner Thinks His Newest Lineup Harks Back to the Spirit of the Jefferson Airplane

Perhaps more than any group, the Jefferson Airplane epitomized the spirit of revolutionary politics in rock music of the late ‘60s. The group pointed fingers, named names, called for an overthrow of the system, but did so with wit, intelligence and razor-sharp sarcasm rather than easy sloganeering.

The group’s legacy was tainted in subsequent years by various mutated versions of Jefferson Starship--perhaps reaching its nadir with the 1985 hit, “We Built This City.”

Singer-songwriter-guitarist Paul Kantner, the most outspoken of the group, left Starship before the release of that single, for which he roundly lambasted his former band mates.

Now, Kantner has reunited with Jefferson Starship, and together they have released a live album, “Deep Space / Virgin Sky,” that is more in keeping with the band’s earlier efforts.

“What I did in Jefferson Airplane was carried over into Jefferson Starship,” Kantner said by phone recently. “I always hated to see bands like the Platters going around with one or two original members when it’s really a hack band. So when Jefferson Airplane finished, I don’t think anyone really wanted to carry on with that name.”

The current Starship lineup includes Kantner and two fellow Airplane cohorts--vocalist Marty Balin and bassist Jack Casady--along with vocalist Darby Gould, keyboardist Tim Gorman, guitarist Mark Aguilar and drummer Prairie Prince. The latest model of the band lands tonight at the Galaxy Concert Theatre in Santa Ana.

“Deep Space / Virgin Sky” (Intersound Records) is being released this week. In sound and spirit, it harks back to the group’s early days. Recorded live at the House of Blues in Los Angeles, the album is the most politically charged effort since the groundbreaking Airplane album of 1969, “Volunteers.”

With some exceptional new material and performances of such Airplane standards as “Somebody to Love” and “White Rabbit” (featuring Grace Slick as guest vocalist), “Deep Space / Virgin Sky” should rekindle fond memories for older fans. It also may surprise those who thought these musicians went to pasture long ago.

Kantner seems as proud of the album as anything he’s done in years, although he tempers his enthusiasm with a general disdain for recorded music.

“I’ve never liked any of our albums,” he said. “For me, it’s like squashing a three-dimensional object into a two-dimensional place. Even our best albums have been lacking, for me. I’m really a child of the live experience.

“But what’s worked here has worked really well here in a record context. I’m really happy with the new stuff we’re doing. It’s well-done, it’s heartfelt, and the musicians present themselves great.”

*

The album also demonstrates that Kantner, 53, hasn’t retreated one step from his views in the face of Republican victories at the polls in recent years. The Kantner-penned “Shadowlands” (about a female serial killer who targets only Republicans), “I’m on Fire,” and “The Light,” along with Rob Brezhny’s “Dark Ages,” comprise the meat of the album, thematically as well as musically.

While avowedly liberal, Kantner was never one to subscribe to the utopian optimism espoused by many “hippie” bands of the ‘60s; nor did he share the self-righteousness of many of the era’s leftist radicals of the era.

Rather, his is an apocalyptic vision, which crosses over with his long-held fascination for science fiction.

“Chaos is what’s going on right now,” he said. “It’s healthy. It needs cleansing. It like forest fires--it’s nature’s way of urban renewal. Our political system is in tatters. . . . Watching politicians trying to fix it is like putting a finger in the dike, and another hole pops up over there.

“They’re trying to control everything and they haven’t got a prayer. Politics, as we know it, is over, and what comes next is totally unpredictable. I recommend polishing up your surfboard and getting ready to ride the next big wave that comes crashing in, whatever it may be.”

*

Kantner is on a roll, having already written a batch of new music since the recording of “Deep Space.” His latest material delves even further into his futuristic visions. One extended piece, called “Beyond Millennium” was written for a theatrical treatment, but Jefferson Starship has been incorporating it into the live shows on the current tour.

“It gets right down to it and talks about the concept of [procreation] in zero gravity,” he said. “And if you want to get evolutionary, down to the concept of children growing up in space and becoming a new creature, not subject to the laws of gravity, atmosphere and the weight of the planet.”

Clearly, Kantner is more intent on looking ahead than behind; therefore, he doesn’t recall the Airplane’s glory days in the ‘60s with any trace of nostalgia and is impatient with those who do.

“I really don’t have any time for that. There’s too much going on in the future,” he said. “They don’t want to put us in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame? Like I care. . . . I really don’t think of myself as a museum piece just yet.”

* Jefferson Starship, Nine Days Wonder and Insight perform tonight at the Galaxy Concert Theatre, 3503 S. Harbor Blvd., Santa Ana. 8 p.m. $18.50. (714) 957-0600.