The band released their first album in 20 years, Something for Everybody on June 15, 2010.
Their style has been variously classified as punk, industrial and rock, but are most often considered to be the 70s/early 80s New Wave band that ushered in the synth pop of the 1980s, along with other acts such as Gary Numan and The B-52s.
Devo's music and stage show mingle kitsch science fiction themes, deadpan surrealist humor, and mordantly satirical social commentary, often dealing with the concept of De-Evolution, in sometimes-discordant pop songs that often feature unusual synthetic instrumentation and time signatures.
Their work has proved hugely influential on subsequent popular music, particularly New Wave, alternative and grunge music, they created some memorable music videos popular in the early days of MTV.
The name "Devo" comes from the concept of Devolution (also referred to by the band as de-evolution). This idea was developed as a joke by Kent State University art students Gerald Casale and Bob Lewis as early as the late 1960s. Casale and Lewis created a number of art pieces in the vein of Devolution. At this time, Casale had also performed with the local band 15-60-75. They met Mark Mothersbaugh around 1970, who introduced them to the pamphlet Jocko Homo Heavenbound, which would later inspire the song Jocko Homo
The pivotal moment for the formation of Devo was the Kent State shootings of May 4, 1970. Casale knew two of the murdered students, and even saw one student, Allison Krause, with exit wounds from the M1 Garand rifle. At this moment, Casale claims he changed the idea of Devolution into a serious concept.
The first form of Devo was the Sextet Devo which performed at the 1973 Kent State performing arts festival. It included Casale, Lewis and Mothersbaugh, as well as Gerald's brother Bob Casale on guitar, and friends Rod Reisman and Fred Weber on drums and vocals, respectively. This performance was filmed and a part was included on the home video The Complete Truth About De-evolution. This lineup only performed once. Devo returned to perform in the Student Governance Center (featured prominently in the film) at the 1974 Creative Arts Festival with a line-up including the Casale brothers, Bob Lewis, Mark Mothersbaugh, and Jim Mothersbaugh on drums.
Devo later formed as a quartet focusing around Mark Mothersbaugh and Gerald Casale. They recruited Mark's brothers Bob Mothersbaugh and Jim Mothersbaugh. Bob played electric guitar, and Jim provided percussion using a set of homemade electronic drums. This lineup of Devo lasted until 1976 when Jim left the band. The lineup was occasionally fluid, and Bob Lewis would sometimes play guitar during this period. In concert, Devo would often perform in the guise of theatrical characters, such as Booji Boy, and The Chinaman. Live concerts from this period were often confrontational, and would remain so until 1977. A recording of an early Devo performance from 1975 with the quartet lineup appears on DEVO Live: The Mongoloid Years, ending with the promoters unplugging Devo's equipment.
Following Jim Motherbaugh's departure, Bob Mothersbaugh found a new drummer in Alan Myers, who played a conventional, acoustic drum set with mechanical precision. Casale re-recruited his brother Bob Casale, and the popular line-up of Devo was formed. It would endure for nearly ten years.
Devo embarked on a Euro-Tour 2007 on June 16th in Barcelona. They also performed concerts in Brighton, London, Manchester and Glasgow. More information about it can be found here.
In May 2020 Devo re-opened their online store where face masks with logo designs and an infamous Energy Dome with the attacheable protective shield can be pre-ordered to help their fans protect themselves from Covid-19.
Plain Truth
Devo Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Except a couple of people
Wasting lots of time
Worrying about the future
Forever asking why
Some people go on living
While others die before their time
Yet there's never been a reason
If only just because
Its much too big a fight
Like the painter who is way ahead
Or worse still far behind
You only punch yourself out
When you start swinging blind
These are the things too often gone unsaid
These are the things that keep
You better off than dead
These are the things that keep running through your head
These are the things too often gone unsaid
Who are you and who am I
Except a couple of people
With nothing else to do
But follow vain obsessions
Making gestures towards the truth
While trying to ignore it
When its convenient to
The symbols we believe in
Sometimes turn inside out
Reshaping each dimension
Were so sure about
Dreams get so frustrated
Fantasies turn pranks
A simple ounce of common sense
Is money in the bank.
The song "Plain Truth" by Devo is a reflection on the human condition from a philosophical perspective. It grapples with the age-old questions of identity, purpose, and mortality. The first stanza highlights the futility of worrying about the future and trying to make sense of the discrepancies between people's life spans. The idea that "whatever is is right" suggests a resignation to the fact that life is unpredictable and irrational. The tone of resignation is further emphasized by the comparison to a painter who is either too advanced or too backward. The image of punching oneself out while swinging blindly is a metaphor for the pointless struggle against the inevitable.
Line by Line Meaning
Who are you and who am I
A questioning of individual identity
Except a couple of people
Acknowledgement of common human experience
Wasting lots of time
Recognition of the limits of human existence
Worrying about the future
Acknowledgement of anxiety about the unknown
Forever asking why
Questioning of the purpose of life
Some people go on living
Observation of unequal distribution of life opportunities
While others die before their time
Acknowledgement of the randomness of life
Yet there's never been a reason
Admission of the lack of clarity in human existence
Whatever is is right
Acceptance of the present moment as reality
If only just because
Recognition of the futility of fighting reality
Its much too big a fight
Encouragement to accept things as they are
Like the painter who is way ahead
Comparison of human experience to artistic expression
Or worse still far behind
Acknowledgement of the possibility of being misguided
You only punch yourself out
Admonition against unproductive efforts
When you start swinging blind
Unwise attempts at changing reality are counterproductive
These are the things too often gone unsaid
Acknowledgement of the unspoken struggles of human existence
These are the things that keep
Recognition of the things that sustain human beings
You better off than dead
Acknowledgement of the value of life
These are the things that keep running through your head
Recognition of the pervasive nature of existential questions
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: GERALD V. CASALE, MARK ALLEN MOTHERSBAUGH
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
captainarcher2
I still have this album. It was one of the best works of DEVO and Plain Truth was indeed the best Track of the album ! And "That's The Plain Truth."
Gaston Doumerc
I still have this album, and like to revisit it from time to time. I was working in a records store in the late 1980s, making my way through college, and convinced my store manager to add Total Devo to our playlist. Her initial reaction was less than enthusiastic, and she told me point blank Devo’s relevance had long since passed. Music had changed by the end of the decade. What was in style at the time was glam metal, boy bands, and power pop and that’s what she wanted played on our PA system. Eventually, she relented and allowed it. Over time, customers would hear the music and ask who it was. We told them, and their response was always the same: “This is Devo?”
I think this album is the final maturation of Devo as a band. It has a wistfulness to it, focusing on life without their usual acerbic wit. It’ll never be as iconic is their early work, but still a great listen.
BluebellsofEngland
arguably my favourite off this one, melancholic in a way the way this song sounds with the lyrics i feel is about being the everyday hero/the underdog and how people are often the ones people remember most over the popular folks which in my opinion reflects how Devo was always seen as a joke band compared to their contemporaries much like Oingo Boingo but always seem to be one who gets the recognition far after their time eg. Devo responsible for new wave's success
Gadfly
There's what sounds like a mutated gunshot sound in the drums.
This is one of my favorite Devo songs, even though I dislike bits of it. I particularly like the next to last verse:
"Who am and who are you, except a couple of people with nothing else to do but follow vain obsessions, making gestures towards the truth, while trying to ignore it when it's convenient to? These symbols we believe in sometimes turn inside out, reshaping each dimension we're sure about. Dreams get so frustrated. Fantasies turn pranks. A simple ounce of common sense is money in the bank."
Jerome McDanger
Probably my favorite track of this album. Sure, it's not Devo's finest LP, but it has it's moments, this being on of em
🜲Butterknives🜲
This is from 1990!
Storm Lavway
88 smooth noodle maps was 90
Moonlacer
Album definitely sounds like something you wouldn’t find in the 80s, sounds more like 2000s music
Lex Loofah
Any Spud know which chicks add their voices to this unique potato?
UPG Music & Gaming
Credits for backing vocals are Great Greta and Nan Vernon. Thanks for listening.