CASEY PHILLIPS: Given the 20 years since the band’s last studio release, “Smooth Noodle Maps,” people could certainly be forgiven for thinking Devo was defunct. Yet like a volcano that’s dormant but not quite extinct, the electronic frontiersmen have finally showed renewed signs of life with “Something for Everybody.”
They’ve emerged from their two-decade silence with a sound that’s undeniably Devo yet somehow manages to sound strikingly current. It’s rife with their trademark quirky electronic trappings and “I am a singing robot” vocals of Mark Mothersbaugh, but it still slots in perfectly on my electro-rock playlist beside Uber-modern bands like LCD Soundsystem and Dragonette.
I did not expect that. It’s kind of like discovering your grandfather invented the iPod.
BARRY COURTER: Who knew flower-pot hats would come back into style? Devo was way ahead of the curve back in the day. Some could argue they were a one-band trend, in fact. I was a big fan, and few songs could fill a high-school dance floor like “Whip It,” but I have to admit I am as surprised as you that they would release a new CD and that it would be very listenable. They’ve actually been around all these years occasionally touring and re-recording songs.
Mothersbaugh has for the last 25 years or so been doing soundtrack work for television (including kids’ shows “Rugrats,” “Beakman’s World,” and “Clifford the Big Red Dog”) and film, and it shows on “Something for Everybody.” It may well explain why this sounds so current. Even though it was highly produced, early Devo had a raw feel to it for me. This is very polished. Still quirky but slick. And danceable.
CASEY: In keeping with their “de-evolution” philosophy, several of the dozen tracks, including “Don’t Shoot (I’m a Man),” “Sumthin'” and “Human Rocket,” point out humanity’s fundamental tendency to make stupid and self-destructive decisions.
Sometimes, this commentary felt a little out of place, but then again, Nena did it with “99 Red Balloons,” and karaoke halls were never the same again, so it has been known to work. If editorial content in your dance music bothers you, do what I did: Shut off the analytical part of your brain and ride the wave of imminently danceable melodies until the track changes. Also, do yourself a favor and just skip the weirdness of “Cameo.” Mothersbaugh’s freakishly deep vocal modulations will just give you nightmares.
BARRY: I’m proficent at shutting off the analytical part of my brain, so no worries there. The odd, and cool, thing about this record is that it is not much of a departure at all from early Devo. Longtime fans will like it, and new ones should also.