One of new wave's most innovative and successful bands, Devo was also
perhaps one of its most misunderstood. Formed in Akron, OH, in 1972 by Kent
State art students Jerry Casale and Mark Mothersbaugh, Devo took its name from
their concept of "de-evolution" - the idea that instead of evolving, mankind
has actually regressed, as evidenced by the dysfunction and herd mentality of
American society. Their music echoed this view of society as rigid, repressive,
and mechanical, with appropriate touches - jerky, robotic rhythms. Devo became
a cult sensation, helped in part by their concurrent emphasis on highly
stylized visuals, and briefly broke through to the mainstream with the smash
single "Whip It," whose accompanying video was made a staple by the fledgling
MTV network. After a series of largely uninteresting albums, the band called it
quits early in the '90s, and Casale and Mothersbaugh concentrated on other
projects.
Devo's big break came with its score for the short film The Truth About
De-Evolution, which won a prize at the 1976 Ann Arbor Film Festival; when the
film was seen by David Bowie and Iggy Pop, they were impressed enough to secure
the group a contract with Warner Bros.
Recorded under the auspices of pioneering producer Brian Eno, Q: Are We Not
Men? A: We Are Devo! was seen as a call to arms by some and became an
underground hit. Others found Devo's sound, imagery, and material threatening;
Rolling Stone, for example, called the group fascists. But such criticism
missed the point: Devo dramatized conformity, emotional repression, and
dehumanization in order to attack them, not to pay tribute to them.
While 1979's Duty Now for the Future was another strong effort, the band
broke through to the mainstream with 1980's Freedom of Choice, which contained
the gold-selling single "Whip It" and represented a peak in their sometimes
erratic songwriting. 1981's New Traditionalists was darker and more serious,
not what the public wanted from a band widely perceived as a novelty act, and
Devo somehow seemed to be running out of new ideas.
As the '0s wore on, Devo found itself relegated to cult status and critical
indifference, not at all helped by the lower quality of albums like 1984's
Shout and 1988's Total Devo. With the band's shift toward electronic drums,
Alan Myers had departed in 1986, to be replaced by ex-Sparks and Gleaming
Spires drummer David Kendrick. Devo recorded another album of new material,
Smooth Noodle Maps, in 1990, after which its members began to concentrate on
other projects. Mark Mothersbaugh moved into composing for commercials and
soundtracks, writing theme music for MTV's Liquid Television, Nickelodeon's
Rugrats, Pee-Wee's Playhouse, and the Jonathan Winters sitcom Davis Rules. He
also played keyboards with the Rolling Stones, programmed synthesizers for
Sheena Easton, and sang backup with Debbie Harry. Buoyed by this success,
Mothersbaugh opened a profitable production company called Mutato Muzika, which
employed his fellow Devo bandmates. Jerry Casale, meanwhile, who directed most
of the band's videos, directed video clips for the Foo Fighters' "I'll Stick
Around" and Soundgarden's "Blow Up the Outside World." No reunions were
expected, but as Devo's legend grew and other bands acknowledged their
influence (Nirvana covered "Turnaround," while "Girl U Want" has been recorded
by Soundgarden, Superchunk, and even Robert Palmer), their minimalistic
electro-pop was finally given new exposure on six dates of the 1996
Lollapalooza tour, to enthusiastic fan response.
The following year, Devo released a CD-ROM game (The Adventures of the
Smart Patrol) and accompanying music soundtrack, in addition to playing
selected dates on the Lollapalooza tour. 2000 saw the release of a pair of
double-disc Devo anthologies: the first was the half-hits/half-rarities
Pioneers Who Got Scalped: The Anthology (on Rhino), while the second was the
limited-edition mail-order release Recombo DNA (on Rhino's Handmade label), the
latter of which was comprised solely of previously unreleased demos. In 2001,
the Mothersbaugh and Casale brothers reunited under the name the Wipeouters for
a one-off surf release, P Twaaang. Expectedly, there was no supporting tour, as
the bandmembers returned back to their full-time jobs at Mutato Muzika.
