DANDY FUN HOUSE PODCAST
The Story of DEVO! – Dandy Fun House episode 43
July 10, 2024
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listen to the podcast!
Akron, Ohio. 1973. Before new wave. Before punk rock. Two Kent State graduates, Gerald Casale and Bob Lewis found their destinies when they met up with a keyboardist from a band called Flossy Bobbitt. His name? Mark Mothersbaugh. Together they formed something entirely different. Releasing their mongoloid creation upon an unsuspecting wiggly world with spudniks designed to whip it at every turn.
In this episode of the Dandy Fun House, we venture to ask the eternal burning question… Are We Not Men? For THIS is the story of DEVO! Let’s step into the Fun House!
Hello and welcome to the Dandy Fun House Video Show, Podcast and Blog. This is where we whip up the very best in retro pop culture, toys and games and all the fun stuff! I’m your host Neil Dandy and in this episode, we’re going to carry out our Duty Now For The Future by bringing you the story of DEVO!
BUT FIRST! I must tell you about these awesome Dandy Fun House t-shirts! You can show your support for this show while spreading the word oh so stylishly and the design actually doesn’t look stupid! Just buy the front of the shirt and we’ll throw the back in free! But wait! There’s more! Order now and not only do you get two holes to crawl your body into and poke your neck out of but we’ll also include two more holes to stick your arms through! Now how much would you pay?
Just visit the Dandy Fun House website at www.dandyfunhouse.com and click on SHOP to order yours today! And while you’re there, be sure to check out our brand new NO ROBOTS! T-shirt! Tell Cyberdyne where to stick it! That website once again is www.dandyfunhouse.com . Order today!
Alright! DEVO! If you’re older like me, you probably remember this weird, punky, electronic band going as far back as their appearances on the original Saturday Night Live in the 70’s back when it was funny. If you’re a bit younger, you might be familiar with their 80’s hit WHIP IT.
Well… not only is DEVO still a creative force today, but they have quite the storied past that goes back farther than you might think!… MUCH FARTHER!
It’s the late 60’s and two Kent State University art students named Gerald Casale and Bob Lewis make an art project together reflecting the theory that mankind is not only NOT evolving, but actually DE-EVOLVING! Both of them were budding modern artists and also musicians. Casale was performing with a band called The Numbers Band. Around 1970, this band began fraternizing with another local band known as Flossy Bobbitt which featured a crazy but talented keyboardist; a one Mr. Mark Mothersbaugh.
The musicians began jamming around with each other and creating a more cutting-edge feel than what was around at that time during the height of hippie culture. They also discovered that they shared a love for satire. One day, Mark Mothersbaugh was sharing a pamphlet to the other musicians called “Jocko Homo Heavenbound” which featured the character of a winged devil named D-EVOLUTION. This pamphlet would later inspire the classic song “Jocko Homo” as well as the band name but we’re not quite there just yet.
Then May 4th, 1970 the infamous massacre at Kent State took place and the theory of De-Evolution became all too real and far too close to home for the guys. Gerald Casale was a witness to the event and personally saw two of his friends gunned down. His life changed in an instant. He stopped being a hippie and became angry. Very angry.
This newly-formed ensemble threw conventionality out the window experimenting with electronic sounds mixed with sensibilities of the burgeoning roots of what would soon become punk rock.
DEVO performed around the university over the next few years with various players coming and going. Sometimes as a 4-piece, other times as a larger unit and under the creative direction of Gerald Casale whom experimented heavily with the format of music videos. Devo created their first videos for the songs “Secret Agent Man” as well as their classic “Jocko Homo”.
In 1975 they eventually settled in with a solid lineup of five members that would last for the next ten years.
In 1976, a short film including the band called “The Truth About De-Evolution” was released by a director named Chuck Statler and gained some notoriety as well as winning a prize at the Ann Arbor Film Festival.
This gave DEVO some much-needed publicity and also caught the attention of avant garde rock star David Bowie who befriended the band and ultimately helped negotiate a recording contract with Warner Music Group. And in 1977 they released their first single with Warner called “Mongoloid”. A 45 rpm record with “Jocko Homo” as the b-side. They followed up this release with their cover of “Satisfaction” by the Rolling Stones.
Come 1978, DEVO finally released their first full-length album. “Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo!” produced by Brian Eno and proceeded to gain national exposure with an appearance on Saturday Night Live, (when it used to be funny), performing Satisfaction and “Jocko Homo”.
In the following year, 1979 DEVO release the album DUTY NOW FOR THE FUTURE featuring the song “Blockhead” as well as a cover of Johnny Rivers’ “Secret Agent Man”
Devo toured extensively in support of the album and actually opened for themselves on many dates pretending to be a Christian soft rock band called “Dove (the Band of Love). ” They would appear the following year as Dove the band of love in the 1980 televangelism parody film, Pray TV.
THEN CAME THE 80s!
When the 80s rolled around, DEVO had lain the groundwork to put themselves in the right place at the right time with the right quirky look and the right back catalog of videos and songs to take full advantage of the juggernaut that commanded the airwaves, MTV. (yes kids, MTV had music back when they used to be watchable).
DEVO made a new album with songs that were catchier and more radio-friendly but still very much DEVO. The album? Freedom of Choice. The lead single? Whip It. The video featuring crazy red flower pot hats on the band (which instantly became synonymous with the group) and Mark Mothersbaugh using a bullwhip on everything in sight (including whipping a cigarette out of a model’s mouth) was a breakthrough hit for the band and catapulted them into new wave rock star status worldwide. The album also featured two other “medium hits”, Girl U Want and the title track Freedom of Choice.
While they continued touring and releasing music and exploring deeper levels of creativity, they never did have another hit quite as big as Whip It.
The Freedom of Choice tour tore relentlessly through Japan, the UK, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Canada and of course the United States.
The following year in 1981, DEVO hit down under in a big way releasing a live EP in Australia called DEV-O Live which became a huge hit in Ozzyland landing them at the top of the Australian charts for 3 weeks solid.
For you young-uns who don’t know what an EP is, it’s a 12″ vinyl record with usually just a couple of songs per side. EP stands for “Extended Play” which meant longer than a 7″ 45rpm record but still not quite a full album.
DEVO continued to enjoy success in Australia for many years to come with live TV appearances, lots of radio support and their videos staying in heavy rotation. Australia in the 80’s simply could not get enough DEVO!
DEVO also released a song around this time which was recorded during the sessions for the album Freedom of Choice but never made the final cut, Working In A Coal Mine. They submitted it for the soundtrack of the movie HEAVY METAL but Warner Brothers ultimately rejected it, so they released it as an independent single in the run-up to their next album: NEW TRADITIONALISTS.
1981 also found the band becoming the backing band for Hollywood choreographer-turned-actress-turned-pop-artist, Toni Basil (you know that song “Oh Mickey You’re So Fine, You’re so fine you blow my mind…” Yeah, her.)
And in 1982 DEVO released the album “Oh No It’s DEVO” with limited success and also contributed two songs to the Dan Aykroyd movie, Doctor Detroit.
1984: DEVO put out an absolute flop of an album (commercially speaking) called SHOUT which featured a cover of Jimi Hendrix’s “Are You Experienced.” I personally loved the song and the video featuring the band wearing inflatable outfits and floating in the air with a psychedelic theme permeating throughout (with the DEVO twist of course!). But unfortunately the album tanked hard and their label wasn’t in the mood, so Warner bought out the remainder of their recording contract and DEVO was out on the street with flower pot hats in hand.
This led to long-time member Alan Myers also deciding that he had his fill of whipping it and exited the group citing lack of creative fulfillment. Lack of creative fulfillment? In the band DEVO?
Three years later in 1987 DEVO bring in former Sparks drummer David Kendrick to replace Alan Myers and proceed to re-record the bulk of their most popular songs as easy listening muzak which they released on cassette to their fan club (club DEVO) and later as a CD entitled E-Z Listening Disc which they would play as house music prior to their concerts. However, their most notable project of 1987 would be recording the soundtrack for the horror film Slaughterhouse Rock starring Toni Basil which was released in 1988.
DEVO also signed a new recording contract in 1988 with Enigma Records releasing the album Total Devo and set out on a brand new world tour with hopes running high. But unfortunately the album did not do well.
In 1990 DEVO take yet another shot at glory with a new album called “Smooth Noodle Maps.” This would prove to be their absolute worst-selling album of all time. The attempted tour to support SMOOTH NOODLE MAPS also fell apart as their record label, Enigma filed for bankruptcy and ticket sales were practically nonexistent. The tour was canceled midway through and DEVO sadly devolved themselves into non-existence and disbanded.
Mark Mothersbaugh would later be interviewed about the breakup to which he replied that time they did our their final tour in Europe, and were watching This Is Spinal Tap on the bus and said, ‘Oh my God, that’s our life.’ and said to themselves ‘Things have to change.’ So the agreement was made that they wouldn’t do live shows anymore.”
Following the breakup of DEVO, Mark Mothersbaugh established a music production house along with the two Bobs from DEVO to form Mutato Musika. This production company enjoyed a great deal of success creating the soundtracks for such popular shows as Pee Wee’s Playhouse, the Nickelodeon cartoon Rugrats and countless other television and film scores. Mark did the composing and his brother Bob was the chief audio engineer.
Gerald Casale meanwhile dove headfirst into his love of video production, creating videos for bands like Rush, Soundgarden and the Foo Fighters as well as television commercials.
While DEVO was no longer officially a band, they did reunite in 1995 to re-record their classic song “Girl U Want” for the terrible movie Tank Girl. (Sorry. I’ve tried to watch that tank wreck of a flick a few times but just couldn’t make it past the first 15 minutes. I mean it’s bad.)
But what’s NOT bad is the fact that coming back together led to talk of performing live and in 1996 DEVO returned to the stage at the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah. From there, they proceeded to perform in the rotating mystery slot at Lollapalooza and also recorded a cover of the song “Head Like A Hole” by Nine Inch Nails which was used in the movie Supercop. DEVO was back!
They had such a warm welcome from their Lollapalooza Mystery Slot that they were invited back for 1997, but this time as headliners.
As the internet became more ubiquitous throughout the 90’s, DEVO found themselves and their music reaching an entirely new generation of fans and in 2001, a fan convention focusing on all things DEVO (including a 5k footrace) was launched in Cleveland, Ohio and continues to this day.
By the mid 2000’s DEVO’s music began finding it’s way into television commercials for the likes of Swiffer (using the song Whip It) as well as Target utilizing what is probably DEVO’s 2nd most recognizable song, Beautiful World. DEVO also toured extensively throughout this time.
Mark Mothersbaugh in an interview discussed how being older and deciding to tour again after several years off the road didn’t come without it’s challenges. After being a studio producer for that long, he and the band discovered they had some physical challenges performing the way they used to and decided they weren’t willing to bring the fans less than their best, so hit the gym they did and the group whipped themselves back into shape in order to be able to bounce around, invade the audience the audience and perform at the levels they once did.
Their newfound dedication ultimately led to a reunion in 2009 with their former record label Warner Music for re-releases of their classic albums, Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo! and Freedom of Choice followed by a tour playing both albums in their entirety.
This reunion with Warner continued and in 2010 DEVO released their first full-length album in 20 years “Something For Everybody” and also became the recipients of the very first Moog Innovator Award at Moogfest 2010 in Asheville, North Carolina. (For those of you who don’t know what Moog is, it’s a brand of keyboard synthesizers which revolutionized music during the 60s and 70s bringing electronic sounds into our modern culture.)
Sadly in 2014 tragedy strikes and founding member Bob Casale dies of heart failure at the age of 61. DEVO honors him by embarking on a 10 city tour as a quartet to raise funds to support his family.
5 years later in 2021: Toymaker Funko honors DEVO releasing two different versions of DEVO Funko Pops highlighting the looks from their videos Whip It and also Satisfaction. Shortly thereafter, merchandising continued with an official DEVO branded Vodka through the Trust Me Vodka Brand.
2022: DEVO are nominated for the third time for induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. But like their 2018 and 2021 nominations, are ultimately not chosen. I’ll just say it and everybody knows it. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is little more than a pathetic joke. It’s a handful of guys sitting around a table deciding who gets in and who stays out. Their personal political and musical preferences taint the process every step of the way and the whole world wrings their hands about it every single year. It’s just sad and half the acts that get inducted have absolutely nothing to do with rock and roll while so many actual deserving rock artists are completely passed over. Hopefully now that the idiot from Rolling Stone Magazine, Jann Wenner is no longer on the board some things will change for the better and groups like DEVO, Journey, Foreigner, Iron Maiden (there is literally an ocean of people at every single Iron Maiden concert!) and dare I say Ted Nugent will receive their long overdue honors. But I’m not holding my breath nor do I actually care that much. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame has in my opinion, squandered any and all shreds of credibility it may have once had over the years and it’s cost them their relevance. WHY AM I EVEN TALKING ABOUT THEM RIGHT NOW!? THEY JUST DON’T MATTER! Rant over.
In 2023 DEVO toured in celebration of 50 years and in 2024 a Documentary Film about DEVO simply titled “DEVO” premiered at the Sundance Film Festival. Also another film entitled 50 Years of DEVO Premiered at the Marquis Theather in Park City, Utah on January 22, 2024 followed by a live performance of the band themselves
This year was also marked with a special box set release on Rhino Records: DEVO
50 YEARS OF DE-EVOLUTION: 1973-2023 featuring 4 LPs on clear vinyl with the labels spelling out DEVO when you line all the records up. An absolute must for any rabid fan!
And speaking of fans, if you would like to check out the official DEVO FAN CLUB, Club DEVO, you can find it at
http://www.clubdevo.com/devo-home/ at least that’s where I ultimately found it. I tried to go simply to clubdevo.com but the website was under renovation at the time. This is also the official DEVO website.
And speaking of official, DEVO has capped their 50 years with an announcement that they have officially retired from touring. Will there be any future creative output from the band? Maybe we’ll see some answers once the website is finished with it’s renovations. Only the spuds can tell.
And if YOU couldn’t already tell, THAT’S the story of DEVO!
And if you’d like to help me afford that nifty Rhino Records box set I’ve had my eye on, please consider supporting future productions of the Dandy Fun House by heading over to our website at http://www.dandyfunhouse.com and clicking the link that says PATRONAGE!
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are we not men?
Neil Dandy is the creator of The Dandy Fun House and the alter-ego of Neil Smith, the Big Cheese at Neil Smith Entertainment, musician, Emcee and Author. Aren’t you impressed?
listen to the podcast!
Akron, Ohio. 1973. Before new wave. Before punk rock. Two Kent State graduates, Gerald Casale and Bob Lewis found their destinies when they met up with a keyboardist from a band called Flossy Bobbitt. His name? Mark Mothersbaugh. Together they formed something entirely different. Releasing their mongoloid creation upon an unsuspecting wiggly world with spudniks designed to whip it at every turn.
In this episode of the Dandy Fun House, we venture to ask the eternal burning question… Are We Not Men? For THIS is the story of DEVO! Let’s step into the Fun House!
Hello and welcome to the Dandy Fun House Video Show, Podcast and Blog. This is where we whip up the very best in retro pop culture, toys and games and all the fun stuff! I’m your host Neil Dandy and in this episode, we’re going to carry out our Duty Now For The Future by bringing you the story of DEVO!
BUT FIRST! I must tell you about these awesome Dandy Fun House t-shirts! You can show your support for this show while spreading the word oh so stylishly and the design actually doesn’t look stupid! Just buy the front of the shirt and we’ll throw the back in free! But wait! There’s more! Order now and not only do you get two holes to crawl your body into and poke your neck out of but we’ll also include two more holes to stick your arms through! Now how much would you pay?
Just visit the Dandy Fun House website at www.dandyfunhouse.com and click on SHOP to order yours today! And while you’re there, be sure to check out our brand new NO ROBOTS! T-shirt! Tell Cyberdyne where to stick it! That website once again is www.dandyfunhouse.com . Order today!
Alright! DEVO! If you’re older like me, you probably remember this weird, punky, electronic band going as far back as their appearances on the original Saturday Night Live in the 70’s back when it was funny. If you’re a bit younger, you might be familiar with their 80’s hit WHIP IT.
Well… not only is DEVO still a creative force today, but they have quite the storied past that goes back farther than you might think!… MUCH FARTHER!
It’s the late 60’s and two Kent State University art students named Gerald Casale and Bob Lewis make an art project together reflecting the theory that mankind is not only NOT evolving, but actually DE-EVOLVING! Both of them were budding modern artists and also musicians. Casale was performing with a band called The Numbers Band. Around 1970, this band began fraternizing with another local band known as Flossy Bobbitt which featured a crazy but talented keyboardist; a one Mr. Mark Mothersbaugh.
The musicians began jamming around with each other and creating a more cutting-edge feel than what was around at that time during the height of hippie culture. They also discovered that they shared a love for satire. One day, Mark Mothersbaugh was sharing a pamphlet to the other musicians called “Jocko Homo Heavenbound” which featured the character of a winged devil named D-EVOLUTION. This pamphlet would later inspire the classic song “Jocko Homo” as well as the band name but we’re not quite there just yet.
Then May 4th, 1970 the infamous massacre at Kent State took place and the theory of De-Evolution became all too real and far too close to home for the guys. Gerald Casale was a witness to the event and personally saw two of his friends gunned down. His life changed in an instant. He stopped being a hippie and became angry. Very angry.
Bob Casale
Bob Mothersbaugh
Alan Lewis
Funneling his anger into artistic expression, this historical event would ultimately become the inspiration for the official coming together of this group of musicians to form a band with the underlying theme highlighting the regression of mankind. In 1973, they made it official with Gerald Casale recruiting his brother Bob and Mark Mothersbaugh with HIS brother Bob while also adding in Alan Myers, Rod Reisman and Fred Weber to round out the group. Thus SEXTET DEVO (as they were originally called) was born. Exactly when the name was shortened to simply “DEVO” is up for debate but from all the information I’ve been able to gather, it happened rather quickly during the formative years of the band.
This newly-formed ensemble threw conventionality out the window experimenting with electronic sounds mixed with sensibilities of the burgeoning roots of what would soon become punk rock.
DEVO performed around the university over the next few years with various players coming and going. Sometimes as a 4-piece, other times as a larger unit and under the creative direction of Gerald Casale whom experimented heavily with the format of music videos. Devo created their first videos for the songs “Secret Agent Man” as well as their classic “Jocko Homo”.
In 1975 they eventually settled in with a solid lineup of five members that would last for the next ten years.
Director, Chuck Statler
In 1976, a short film including the band called “The Truth About De-Evolution” was released by a director named Chuck Statler and gained some notoriety as well as winning a prize at the Ann Arbor Film Festival.
This gave DEVO some much-needed publicity and also caught the attention of avant garde rock star David Bowie who befriended the band and ultimately helped negotiate a recording contract with Warner Music Group. And in 1977 they released their first single with Warner called “Mongoloid”. A 45 rpm record with “Jocko Homo” as the b-side. They followed up this release with their cover of “Satisfaction” by the Rolling Stones.
Come 1978, DEVO finally released their first full-length album. “Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo!” produced by Brian Eno and proceeded to gain national exposure with an appearance on Saturday Night Live, (when it used to be funny), performing Satisfaction and “Jocko Homo”.
In the following year, 1979 DEVO release the album DUTY NOW FOR THE FUTURE featuring the song “Blockhead” as well as a cover of Johnny Rivers’ “Secret Agent Man”
Devo toured extensively in support of the album and actually opened for themselves on many dates pretending to be a Christian soft rock band called “Dove (the Band of Love). ” They would appear the following year as Dove the band of love in the 1980 televangelism parody film, Pray TV.
THEN CAME THE 80s!
When the 80s rolled around, DEVO had lain the groundwork to put themselves in the right place at the right time with the right quirky look and the right back catalog of videos and songs to take full advantage of the juggernaut that commanded the airwaves, MTV. (yes kids, MTV had music back when they used to be watchable).
DEVO made a new album with songs that were catchier and more radio-friendly but still very much DEVO. The album? Freedom of Choice. The lead single? Whip It. The video featuring crazy red flower pot hats on the band (which instantly became synonymous with the group) and Mark Mothersbaugh using a bullwhip on everything in sight (including whipping a cigarette out of a model’s mouth) was a breakthrough hit for the band and catapulted them into new wave rock star status worldwide. The album also featured two other “medium hits”, Girl U Want and the title track Freedom of Choice.
While they continued touring and releasing music and exploring deeper levels of creativity, they never did have another hit quite as big as Whip It.
The Freedom of Choice tour tore relentlessly through Japan, the UK, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Canada and of course the United States.
The following year in 1981, DEVO hit down under in a big way releasing a live EP in Australia called DEV-O Live which became a huge hit in Ozzyland landing them at the top of the Australian charts for 3 weeks solid.
For you young-uns who don’t know what an EP is, it’s a 12″ vinyl record with usually just a couple of songs per side. EP stands for “Extended Play” which meant longer than a 7″ 45rpm record but still not quite a full album.
DEVO continued to enjoy success in Australia for many years to come with live TV appearances, lots of radio support and their videos staying in heavy rotation. Australia in the 80’s simply could not get enough DEVO!
DEVO also released a song around this time which was recorded during the sessions for the album Freedom of Choice but never made the final cut, Working In A Coal Mine. They submitted it for the soundtrack of the movie HEAVY METAL but Warner Brothers ultimately rejected it, so they released it as an independent single in the run-up to their next album: NEW TRADITIONALISTS.
1981 also found the band becoming the backing band for Hollywood choreographer-turned-actress-turned-pop-artist, Toni Basil (you know that song “Oh Mickey You’re So Fine, You’re so fine you blow my mind…” Yeah, her.)
And in 1982 DEVO released the album “Oh No It’s DEVO” with limited success and also contributed two songs to the Dan Aykroyd movie, Doctor Detroit.
1984: DEVO put out an absolute flop of an album (commercially speaking) called SHOUT which featured a cover of Jimi Hendrix’s “Are You Experienced.” I personally loved the song and the video featuring the band wearing inflatable outfits and floating in the air with a psychedelic theme permeating throughout (with the DEVO twist of course!). But unfortunately the album tanked hard and their label wasn’t in the mood, so Warner bought out the remainder of their recording contract and DEVO was out on the street with flower pot hats in hand.
Alan Meyers
This led to long-time member Alan Myers also deciding that he had his fill of whipping it and exited the group citing lack of creative fulfillment. Lack of creative fulfillment? In the band DEVO?
David Kendrick
Three years later in 1987 DEVO bring in former Sparks drummer David Kendrick to replace Alan Myers and proceed to re-record the bulk of their most popular songs as easy listening muzak which they released on cassette to their fan club (club DEVO) and later as a CD entitled E-Z Listening Disc which they would play as house music prior to their concerts. However, their most notable project of 1987 would be recording the soundtrack for the horror film Slaughterhouse Rock starring Toni Basil which was released in 1988.
DEVO also signed a new recording contract in 1988 with Enigma Records releasing the album Total Devo and set out on a brand new world tour with hopes running high. But unfortunately the album did not do well.
In 1990 DEVO take yet another shot at glory with a new album called “Smooth Noodle Maps.” This would prove to be their absolute worst-selling album of all time. The attempted tour to support SMOOTH NOODLE MAPS also fell apart as their record label, Enigma filed for bankruptcy and ticket sales were practically nonexistent. The tour was canceled midway through and DEVO sadly devolved themselves into non-existence and disbanded.
Mark Mothersbaugh would later be interviewed about the breakup to which he replied that time they did our their final tour in Europe, and were watching This Is Spinal Tap on the bus and said, ‘Oh my God, that’s our life.’ and said to themselves ‘Things have to change.’ So the agreement was made that they wouldn’t do live shows anymore.”
Following the breakup of DEVO, Mark Mothersbaugh established a music production house along with the two Bobs from DEVO to form Mutato Musika. This production company enjoyed a great deal of success creating the soundtracks for such popular shows as Pee Wee’s Playhouse, the Nickelodeon cartoon Rugrats and countless other television and film scores. Mark did the composing and his brother Bob was the chief audio engineer.
Gerald Casale meanwhile dove headfirst into his love of video production, creating videos for bands like Rush, Soundgarden and the Foo Fighters as well as television commercials.
While DEVO was no longer officially a band, they did reunite in 1995 to re-record their classic song “Girl U Want” for the terrible movie Tank Girl. (Sorry. I’ve tried to watch that tank wreck of a flick a few times but just couldn’t make it past the first 15 minutes. I mean it’s bad.)
But what’s NOT bad is the fact that coming back together led to talk of performing live and in 1996 DEVO returned to the stage at the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah. From there, they proceeded to perform in the rotating mystery slot at Lollapalooza and also recorded a cover of the song “Head Like A Hole” by Nine Inch Nails which was used in the movie Supercop. DEVO was back!
They had such a warm welcome from their Lollapalooza Mystery Slot that they were invited back for 1997, but this time as headliners.
As the internet became more ubiquitous throughout the 90’s, DEVO found themselves and their music reaching an entirely new generation of fans and in 2001, a fan convention focusing on all things DEVO (including a 5k footrace) was launched in Cleveland, Ohio and continues to this day.
By the mid 2000’s DEVO’s music began finding it’s way into television commercials for the likes of Swiffer (using the song Whip It) as well as Target utilizing what is probably DEVO’s 2nd most recognizable song, Beautiful World. DEVO also toured extensively throughout this time.
Mark Mothersbaugh in an interview discussed how being older and deciding to tour again after several years off the road didn’t come without it’s challenges. After being a studio producer for that long, he and the band discovered they had some physical challenges performing the way they used to and decided they weren’t willing to bring the fans less than their best, so hit the gym they did and the group whipped themselves back into shape in order to be able to bounce around, invade the audience the audience and perform at the levels they once did.
Their newfound dedication ultimately led to a reunion in 2009 with their former record label Warner Music for re-releases of their classic albums, Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo! and Freedom of Choice followed by a tour playing both albums in their entirety.
This reunion with Warner continued and in 2010 DEVO released their first full-length album in 20 years “Something For Everybody” and also became the recipients of the very first Moog Innovator Award at Moogfest 2010 in Asheville, North Carolina. (For those of you who don’t know what Moog is, it’s a brand of keyboard synthesizers which revolutionized music during the 60s and 70s bringing electronic sounds into our modern culture.)
Bob Casale
Sadly in 2014 tragedy strikes and founding member Bob Casale dies of heart failure at the age of 61. DEVO honors him by embarking on a 10 city tour as a quartet to raise funds to support his family.
5 years later in 2021: Toymaker Funko honors DEVO releasing two different versions of DEVO Funko Pops highlighting the looks from their videos Whip It and also Satisfaction. Shortly thereafter, merchandising continued with an official DEVO branded Vodka through the Trust Me Vodka Brand.
2022: DEVO are nominated for the third time for induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. But like their 2018 and 2021 nominations, are ultimately not chosen. I’ll just say it and everybody knows it. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is little more than a pathetic joke. It’s a handful of guys sitting around a table deciding who gets in and who stays out. Their personal political and musical preferences taint the process every step of the way and the whole world wrings their hands about it every single year. It’s just sad and half the acts that get inducted have absolutely nothing to do with rock and roll while so many actual deserving rock artists are completely passed over. Hopefully now that the idiot from Rolling Stone Magazine, Jann Wenner is no longer on the board some things will change for the better and groups like DEVO, Journey, Foreigner, Iron Maiden (there is literally an ocean of people at every single Iron Maiden concert!) and dare I say Ted Nugent will receive their long overdue honors. But I’m not holding my breath nor do I actually care that much. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame has in my opinion, squandered any and all shreds of credibility it may have once had over the years and it’s cost them their relevance. WHY AM I EVEN TALKING ABOUT THEM RIGHT NOW!? THEY JUST DON’T MATTER! Rant over.
In 2023 DEVO toured in celebration of 50 years and in 2024 a Documentary Film about DEVO simply titled “DEVO” premiered at the Sundance Film Festival. Also another film entitled 50 Years of DEVO Premiered at the Marquis Theather in Park City, Utah on January 22, 2024 followed by a live performance of the band themselves
This year was also marked with a special box set release on Rhino Records: DEVO
50 YEARS OF DE-EVOLUTION: 1973-2023 featuring 4 LPs on clear vinyl with the labels spelling out DEVO when you line all the records up. An absolute must for any rabid fan!
And speaking of fans, if you would like to check out the official DEVO FAN CLUB, Club DEVO, you can find it at
http://www.clubdevo.com/devo-home/ at least that’s where I ultimately found it. I tried to go simply to clubdevo.com but the website was under renovation at the time. This is also the official DEVO website.
And speaking of official, DEVO has capped their 50 years with an announcement that they have officially retired from touring. Will there be any future creative output from the band? Maybe we’ll see some answers once the website is finished with it’s renovations. Only the spuds can tell.
And if YOU couldn’t already tell, THAT’S the story of DEVO!
And if you’d like to help me afford that nifty Rhino Records box set I’ve had my eye on, please consider supporting future productions of the Dandy Fun House by heading over to our website at http://www.dandyfunhouse.com and clicking the link that says PATRONAGE!
Supporters gain access to exclusive bonus features
and
Super Supporters get those same features plus I’ll mail you a special Dandy Mystery Package from right here at the Dandy Fun House Studios IF you pricier your mailing address!
Or just go to the website and buy a t-shirt!
Podcast listeners can support via the donation button on their listening app of choice if the app supports it. Just look for a button with a dollar sign on it.
And 5 star reviews wherever you can leave them help the show reach a wider audience and get our undying gratitude and it just makes us feel good!
And on that note, thanks for hanging out here at the Dandy Fun House and come back real soon right here where everything is always FUN AND DANDY!
are we not men?
Neil Dandy is the creator of The Dandy Fun House and the alter-ego of Neil Smith, the Big Cheese at Neil Smith Entertainment, musician, Emcee and Author. Aren’t you impressed?
Murfreesboro, Tennessee, USA
Retro Pop Culture! Toys and Games! All The Fun Stuff!
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