The Toy Box: Devo

Showing posts with label Devo. Show all posts

Retro Spins: Devo - Total Devo

Four years had passed since the previous Devo album, Shout (1984). Since then, the band had lost their recording deal, drummer Alan Myers had quit, and lead vocalist, Mark Mothersbaugh occupied his time recording music for the show, Pee-Wee's Playhouse, and the score to the 1987film, Revenge Of The Nerds II: Nerds In Paradise. The latter he brought in long time Devo collaborator, and friend, Gerald Casale.

This would also lead to a formal Devo collaboration for the song, Itsy Bitsy Teeny Weeny Yellow Polka Dot Bikini, which would play at the beginning of the film. Sadly, no soundtrack would ever be released for the film, leading to a lot of great music seemingly being lost to time.

In 1987, Devo would also sign a two-record deal with Enigma Records, who would also revisit Mothersbaugh's 1985 solo album, Muzik for Insomniaks, expanding it for a two CD re-release. As for Devo, the Casale brothers, Gerald, and Bob, would pick up the pieces with the Mothersbaugh brothers, Mark, and Bob, bringing in form Sparks drummer, David Kendrick, to fill the role of Myers.

Their first project would be for the 1988 film, Slaughterhouse Rock, starring Toni Basil. Not unexpected, the film would bomb in theaters but become a cult classic horror film on VHS and DVD. Much like Nerds, there would be no formal soundtrack release.

Devo would then set their sights on a comeback album, 1988's Total Devo. This unfortunately would not pan out, with the album charting far worse than any of their others to date. Further, it would receive overall poor critical reviews. Despite this, the band headed out on a world tour, and released the live album, Now It Can Be Told: Devo At The Palace in 1989.

But let's pause there and actually play through today's Retro Spins.

Believe it or not, Total Devo starts out on a really solid note. I was really digging Baby Doll, Disco Dancer, Some Things Never Change, and Plain Truth. However, by song five, everything seemingly did a 180, and tanked. Probably the biggest offender to come was the horrible cover of Otis Blackwell's Don't Be Cruel, originally performed by Elvis Presley. It just doesn't hold a candle to the classic version.

This lull does unfortunately overshadow everything else, and I really only got into one more track, I'd Cry If You Died. That was definitely disappointing considering how well everything started off.

There are some specifics to note with this album. Those being that the original vinyl version didn't include the song, Sexi Luv, while the cassette version featured an extended version of Some Things Never Change. Both would be included on the CD version, with the latter being included as a bonus track at the end, while also featuring the shorter vinyl version in its normal slotted position.

Devo released their second, and final album on Enigma, Smooth Noodle Maps in 1990. The album would fail to chart and be considered another failure. In 1991, the label, who were already struggling financially, would fold, and all of its assets be sold off to EMI. As a result, the band would once again find themselves without a recording contract.

Undeterred, the guys would make an appearance in the film, The Spirit of '76, released in 1990, and release a series of demo compilations entitled, Hardcore Devo: Volume One (1990) and Hardcore Devo: Volume Two (1991) through Rykodisc. However, it would be on a bus while watching This Is Spinal Tap, that the band would confer in each other that what they were seeing on the screen had essentially become their lives. They'd agree that things needed to change, resulting in them agreeing to no longer tour. Their final show was in March of 1991, and upon completion they disbanded.

In 1996, Devo filled one of the "mystery guest" spots at Lollapalooza and made an appearance at the Sundance Film Festival. They'd also take part in the creation of the Inscape adventure game, Adventures of the Smart Patrol. While the game would perform poorly, Devo's popular comeback was not. The guys began headlining tours again, which eventually brought them full circle back to Warner Bros. for 2010's Something for Everybody, their final studio album to date.

While the album performed decently, it wasn't the successful comeback that everyone expected. At least not on the studio album side. Touring, Devo continued to make waves and grew even further with the creation of the annual convention, DEVOtional.

2005 brought them back to their hit, Whip It, which they re-recorded to fill a Swiffer ad. I mean, sometimes you just gotta get paid, even though they would later say they regretted the decision.

Disney would then make them an offer to create Devo 2.0, a series of re-recorded song, with vocals and performances provided by children. It would be released in 2026 on a two CD / DVD combo and become a bit of an irony for the band, who would state the required changes to lyrics was ultimately the complete opposite of what their songs were originally intended as.

Warner Bros. and Devo announced a re-release of Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo! and Freedom of Choice in 2009 and continue to work with the label until 2012. This was driven by the creation of their own website, where to this day they sell their own merchandise, including Devo wearable gear and unreleased music. They also continue to actively tour and release periodic singles. They're currently performing a series of shows across the USA, which will wrap up in October.

With that, I've checked off Devo from my collection of albums which needed a listening session. Tomorrow, I'm off to something "new", but at this point, I haven't actually landed on what that will be. I guess we'll all find out tomorrow.

Click "HERE" to go back to the home page. For more posts related to this one, please click the labels below.

Disclaimer: They Toy Box does not endorse or contribute to piracy. Retro Spins posts are intended for educational and entertainment purposes only. None of the music discussed here is available for sale, downloading or distribution.

Retro Spins: Devo - Shout

As the 80's progressed, Devo attempted to stay relevant among a sea of other massive acts. This brought them to a change in musical style with their 1984 album, Shout. While the transition in musical style had begun somewhat with their previously released, Oh, No! It's Devo (1982), this new record would see a further embrace of synthesizers, and less reliance on drummer, Alan Myers. Shout, instead, utilized the popular Fairlight CMI digital sampling synthesizer. Those of you familiar with the Purple Rain era of Prince And The Revolution will easily pick up on its unique drum sound.

However, fans of Devo were not looking for Prince, and the end result was an album which was poorly received. Further not embraced was the music video for the Jimi Hendrex cover, Are You Experienced? The band would controversially depict a white Hendrix, played by Randy Hansen, emerging from a coffin in the video, drawing criticism as tasteless and disrespectful. Of this, Gerald Casale would later state that it was the lawyers who now run Hendrix estate who simply didn't understand the video and thought they were making fun of the iconic guitarist. He would further elaborate stating, "That's like saying Whip It makes fun of cowboys. This is so stupid it's unbelievable."

Devo ended up not touring in support of Shout, which perhaps hurt album sales further. Its release continued the decline of the band's overall popularity, lacking any charting singles, and as a whole peaking worse than previous records.

The musical shift is very noticeable from the start. Gone are the very clear and previously present drums of Myers, and in its place a more recognizable 80's pop sound. Depending on your tastes, that could be a good or bad thing.

Personally, I thought it was a good evolution for the band, and one which felt inevitable as the decade progressed. By 1986, new wave was declining, and tastes were shifting towards the emerging glam metal, alternative rock, and dance-pop. Devo was gravitating naturally to the latter as the only genre they would have really fit into at the time.

Much like its predecessor, it takes a couple tracks for the album to really pick up momentum, but this does begin to happen (for me) starting with Don't Rescue Me, and continuing with The Fourth Dimension, and C'Mon. Though things do seem to decline a bit from there. Not necessarily to "bad" territory, but definitely more forgettable. Towards the tail end I also enjoyed Please Please.

The album closes with Are You Experienced. First and foremost, I have to preface, I don't know the original from Hendrix and company. As such, I can't compare it. What I will say is that as a standalone track, it's not very good. Honestly, I don't see a problem with the music video either.

With repeated decline in sales from album to album, and minimal hits which didn't leave lasting marks, not to mention the noted controversy from their video and lack of touring, Warner Bros. made the decision to part ways with Devo in 1984. From the band's perspective, the label didn't understand their avant garde artistic style, and instead kept pushing for pop hits to replicate the success of Whip It. Despite this, the band would return to the label in 2010, but we'll go into that more tomorrow.

Feeling his role as a drummer had been diminished by the overuse of synthesizers, Alan Myers opted to leave Devo in 1986. Gerald Casale would beg him to stay, but these pleas fell on deaf ears. Myers ultimately left the music business behind upon his departure, moving into construction and running his own electrical contracting business in the Los Angeles area.

Following all of this, Mark Mothersbaugh would turn his attention to composing for the TV show Pee-wee's Playhouse. Additionally, he would release the solo album, Musik for Insomniaks through Tra Project. As for the Devo, they would take an extended hiatus until 1988's Total Devo. It was their final album for the 80's, and where I'll pick up tomorrow.

Click "HERE" to go back to the home page. For more posts related to this one, please click the labels below.

Retro Spins: Devo - Oh, No! It's Devo

With the backing of David Bowie and Iggy Pop, which garnered them their original recording deal with Warner Bros. to the massive single, Whip It, Devo exploded on the 80's new wave scene, ushering in the era of synth pop. Among them were the likes of The Human League, Gary Numan, Kraftwerk, and to an extent, even Italian producer Giorgio Moroder.

The title, Oh, No! It's Devo, would come from word of mouth getting to the band that whenever they released something new, that was the response people often gave. As for the music itself on the album, this was conceived from the public's general consensus that the band were either fascists or clowns. As a result, when they set to the task of writing, they set out to answer the question, "what would a record sound like by fascist clowns?"

A unique aspect to the original vinyl pressings was the die-cut stand on the back of the jacket. Popping this out allowed the record to be displayed like a photograph in a frame. Schticks aside, the album didn't perform as well as its predecessors and would seemingly be the beginning of a steady decline for them.

The album would further come under scrutiny for the song, I Desire, for its lyrics taken directly from the letter John Hinkley Jr. sent to Jody Foster prior to his attempted assassination of Ronald Regan. Though the band obtained the approval from Foster to use the words, the FBI warned against doing so.

The opening track, Time Out For Fun, and the final, Deep Sleep, definitely feel like the groundwork for what Weird Al Yankovic's Dare To Be Stupid was based on. It kind of make me just want to listen to that.

It took the album about four tracks before things started to stand out for me, starting with Peek-A-Boo, and continuing through That's Good, Patterns, Big Mess, and Speed Racer. If you think the latter is about the cartoon, that wouldn't be the right assessment, but nonetheless, it's a very quirky tune.

Overall, it delivers the expected listening experience from a Devo album. New wave synth pop with lyrics that don't necessarily make much sense.

The band would tour extensively between 1982 and 1983 and even contributed two new songs to the soundtrack for the film, Doctor Detroit, the appropriately titled, Theme From Doctor Detroit, and Luv-Luv. This was followed by a music video for the theme song.

From there, they returned to the studio to record what would become 1984's Shout, their final record for Warner Bros. until 2010. It would also be their last with drummer Alan Myers. We'll pick up there tomorrow.

Click "HERE" to go back to the home page. For more posts related to this one, please click the labels below.

Retro Spins: Devo - New Traditionalists

It's interesting how something as simple as a pamphlet can inspire the inception of an entire band. Jocko Homo Heavenbound which included a winged devil illustration called, "D-EVOLUTION". However, it was this very thing found by Mark Mothersbaugh, who showed it to Gerald Casale and Bob Lewis, that would start to kick things off. That same pamphlet would later inspire the Devo tune, Jocko Homo.

The first iteration of Sextet Devo featured Casale, Lewis, Mothersbaugh, brother Bob Casale, Rod Reisman and Fred Weber. Though this lineup would only perform together once in 1973. Someone had the foresight to film the event, and it's actually been released on Devo's The Complete Truth About De-Evolution (1993).

The lineup would continue as the Casale brothers, Bob Lewis, Mark Mothersbaugh, and his brothers Jim and Bob Mothersbaugh. Though in 1974, Lewis would step down as a member and actually take on the role as band manager. They'd record music videos for Secret Agent Man and Jocko Homo and stay together until Jim's departure in 1975. He'd be replaced by Alan Myers. The core members were now in place; Gerald Casale, Mark Mothersbaugh, Bob Mothersbaugh, Bob Caslae, and Alan Meyers.

Fame would start to come with the 1976 Chuck Statler directed film, The Truth About De-Evolution. After it won first place at the Ann Arbor Film Festival, David Bowie would take a direct interest in the band. Bowie would make it his mission to get them signed with Warner Bros. Shortly thereafter, they were asked by Neil Young to participate in his film, Human Highway. Filming would begin in 1978, and not wrap up until 1981, with it eventually being released in 1982. Devo would play nuclear garbage men and provide Mark Mothersbaugh with his first opportunity to score a soundtrack.

In 1977, Devo released their first single, Mongoloid backed with Jocko Homo. This was followed by a cover of the Rolling Stone's (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction. This was followed by the EP, B Stiff, released on Stiff Records. This was followed by another EP, Mechanical Man (1978), which contained so many demo versions that people initially thought it was a bootleg.

By this point, both David Bowie and Iggy Pop were pushing Warner to sign the band, and eventually they acquiesced. While Bowie initially agreed to produce their debut, previous commitments required him to back out. Brian Eno was brought in to fill the roll, and the end result was 1978's Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo!

An appearance on Saturday Night Live would garner them national attention, and riding this wave, delivered their sophomore album, Duty Now for the Future (1979). Though not as successful as its predecessor, it did allow the band to tour Japan, as well as appear at Don Kirshner's Rock Concert that same year.

As part of their act, the guys embraced the Church of the SubGenius, a parody religion. Under this guise, they would perform as the band, Dove, serving as their own opening act as a joke. Dove would then appear in the 1980 televangelism spoof film Pray TV.

1980's Freedom Of Choice would serve as the band's breakthrough album with its hit, Whip It. This not only put them on radio airwaves but become a staple on MTV during its early years. Additionally, their boom in popularity allowed them the opportunity for a massive tour of Japan, UK, Germany, Canada, France, Italy, and Netherlands, in addition of course to the USA. Multiple television appearances also followed. The EP DEV-O Live kicked off 1981 for them, and was followed by their next album, New Traditionalists, which is where we start things off today.

My first exposure to this one was the song, Race Of Doom, which randomly came across my shuffle list one day. It immediately got my attention, as was added to my regular rotation. As such, I was kind of looking forward to today's Retro Spin, anxious to see what more would come from it.

It certainly delivered a synth pop and new wave filled listening experience, and an enjoyable one at that. I also found some other noteworthy tracks, which included, Jerkin' Back 'N' Forth, and Through Being Cool. The latter was a bit of a shock for me, because I initially recognized it. No, not from hearing it on the radio, but instead in the animated film, Heavy Metal.

Along with the single, Working In The Coal Mine, which was recorded during the Freedom Of Choice sessions, Devo contributed Through Being Cool, which plays during the bar scene, with an animated band performing it. While Working In The Coal Mine appears on the soundtrack, and plays during the end credits of the film, Through Being Cool was not included on the record.

From there, Devo worked with Toni Basil as her backing band to record her debut, Word Of Mouth. The album would also feature Basil covering three songs from Devo, Be Stiff, Space Girls, and You Gotta Problem. Of course, most notable from that would be the smash hit, Mickey.

Not ready for a rest, they returned to the studio to record 1982's Oh, No! It's Devo. This is where we'll pick up tomorrow.

Click "HERE" to go back to the home page. For more posts related to this one, please click the labels below.

Retro Spins: Devo - Freedom Of Choice

Back in my day, Devo's Whip It was required listening. Unfortunately, it relatively stopped there, and as a result, one would be forgiven to classify the band as a one hit wonder. Even being a staple of the era, the reality is that the song only reached number fourteen on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1980. Its relevance perhaps came more so from its music video, which was among the earliest played on the station.

From there, they had two other minor Billboard hits. The first was the cover version of Working In The Coal Mine, which peaked at number forty-three in 1981. While it was recorded during the Freedom Of Choice sessions, it would not be included on the album. Instead, it was contributed to the animated film, Heavy Metal, and its subsequent soundtrack. Ironically, it would be another soundtrack contribution which would be their third and final charting hit when the Theme From Doctor Detroit landed at fifty-nine in 1983 on the Billboard.

Personally, my knowledge of the band was limited to just Whip It and Working In The Coal Mine for the longest time. For the longest time, the only albums in my collection were 1980's Freedom Of Choice, and the Heavy Metal soundtrack. However, while out shopping at a used CD store in 2022 for my birthday, I came across, Oh No, It's Devo, which I decided to pick up. It definitely wasn't an album I wanted per se, but rather, grabbed because it was there, and from a band I knew.

Returning to the same used CD store in January 2023, I found their 1978 debut, Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo!, and followed this up with a purchase on ebay for a compilation album I'd had on my want list, but never pulled the trigger on, 2000's Pioneers Who Got Scalped: The Anthology. Though I typically steer clear of greatest hits, I wanted this one specifically for the inclusion of the cover, Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polka Dot Bikini, used in the 1987 film, Revenge Of The Nerds II: Nerds In Paradise. The film itself never received a soundtrack release.

It was at this same time that I also came across 1981's New Traditionalist, and for whatever reason, I also grabbed it for my collection. However, it wouldn't be until May of 2026, when deciding which Retro Spins to tackle next that I decided to look into their remaining two album, 1984's Shout, and 1988's Total Devo. It was at this point why I remembered that Devo was a slow band to be added to my collection; most of their albums are so freaking expensive.

This does at least make sense, as CD releases were relatively few and far between. With exception of Japanese releases, legit or otherwise, options in the USA were mostly limited to the 1996 Infinite Zero Archive series, or 2005 Collectibles releases. Mind you, not every album was released during these periods. Yes, there are anomalies in there, such as Freedom Of Choice which saw a wider CD release, due in part to Whip It, and Total Devo, which was released during the boom of CD popularity. But for the most part, the majority of their earlier work is quite rare outside of vinyl and cassettes.

Devo was a new wave and synth pop bad through and through, and this is exactly what I expected to get from today's Retro Spin. Yes, they do incorporate lead, rhythm and bass guitars into the tracks, but these are utilized sparsely. Mainly, you're getting keyboards and drums.

Ever present are those quirky lyrics the band became known for. In retrospect of listening to Weird Al Yankovic's Dare To Be Stupid, the song, which parodies liberally from the guys, it's actually not far off from how their lyrics come off. I do, however, favor the latter to Devo.

With an understanding of what I was going to be getting, it was easier to mentally wrap my mind around everything. Tracks like Snowball, Freedom Of Choice, and That's Pep delivered catchy hooks, and along with Whip It, stood out as the superior tracks. Overall, while I'm not necessarily sold on the band, I am intrigued enough to continue on. With four more to go, I suppose that's a good mindset to have.

Click "HERE" to go back to the home page. For more posts related to this one, please click the labels below.

Book Of Boba Fett

So I haven't gotten a chance to actually sit down and watching the first episode yet, but I must admit that the poster released recently intrigues me.

I don't know who's idea at Disney it was to team up everyone's favorite bounty hunter with DEVO, but man am I pumped for that! I dig the futuristic helmet they gave the band. It feels like Star Wars, but it's also clearly a throwback to their patented style hats.

Great job, Disney! Maybe there's hope for you after all.

Are we not hunters? We are DEVO! D-E-V-O!!!!!!

Click "HERE" to go back to the home page. For more posts related to this one, please click the labels below.

Devo (NECA)

Devo
NECA
2005

Good grief. Who would have thought that tracking down a Devo figure would not only prove to be incredibly difficult, but also expensive?

Today we visit another NECA music based line, and if you couldn't deduce at this point that it is Devo...Well, it's Devo.

Many people of course know of Devo for their 1980 chart topper Whip It, which was featured on their third album, Freedom of Choice. Unfortunately for the band, not many people know them for any other songs beyond that with the exception of Working In A Coal Mine - Which was included as a 7 inch bonus single in their 1981 New Traditionalists album, and later used in the film Heavy Metal, released that same year.

Though many would consider the band a one hit wonder, the fact is that much like so many "odd" bands of the 80's, they have a strong cult following. Devo has released nine studio albums since 1978, with their latest being 2010's Something for Everybody.

In 2005, NECA produced a unique Devo figure that featured five heads - One for each band member. One could of course buy five figures to ensure a head for each member was always attached to the body - and of course have twenty additional heads in the process. Or, you could purchase the (below) five pack which featured one of each member, body and all. The added perk to going this route was the inclusion of an autographed mini poster.

Of course if you missed the boat on getting these when they were initially released you're not going to find yourself in a very good spot. These days the single packed figure will cost you upwards of $60.00 with the five pack ranging between $150.00 and $200.00. Do any of you see these prices a problem? If so, then you must whip it!

If you'd rather skip on the plastic, and see the real deal, Devo has you covered. The band still tours, and yes, they even continue to wear the yellow jump suits and red energy dome hats.

Click "HERE" to go back to the home page. For more posts related to this one, please click the labels below.