Devo is an American new wave band from Akron, Ohio, formed in 1973. Their classic line-up consisted of two sets of brothers, the Mothersbaughs and the Casales, along with drummer Alan Myers.
While the band is best known for their 1980 single "Whip It," their only top 40 hit on the Billboard Hot 100, they continue to have a loyal following.
members: Mark Mothersbaugh, Gerald Casale, Bob Mothersbaugh, Jim Mothersbaugh, Bob Casale, Bob Lewis, Fred Weber, Alan Myers
formed in: Kent
labels: Warner Bros. Records
genres: art rock, new wave
Facts from Wikidata and Discogs, free to use.
The name Devo comes from the concept of "de-evolution" and the band's related idea that instead of continuing to evolve, mankind had begun to regress, as evidenced by the dysfunction and herd mentality of American society. In the late 1960s, this idea was developed as a joke by Kent State University art students Gerald Casale and Bob Lewis, who created a number of satirical art pieces in a devolution vein. At this time, Casale had also performed with the local band 15-60-75 (The Numbers Band). They met Mark Mothersbaugh around 1970, a talented keyboardist who had been playing with the band Flossy Bobbitt. Mothersbaugh brought a more humorous feel to the band, introducing them to material like the pamphlet "Jocko Homo Heavenbound", which...
Devo are pioneers of new wave, specifically the Akron Sound, which birthed bands like Tin Huey and the Waitresses. They are also among the only groups to span proto-punk, punk rock and post-punk, being influenced by the Ramones to speed up their dissonant art rock sound. As such, the band has also been described as art punk, and because of their fusion of rock with electronics, electronic rock and synth-punk. Despite this, and their sampling of unorthodox sounds like toys, space heaters, toasters, and other objects being influential to industrial, most of Devo's music in the 1970s was guitar-driven. However, they began toning down their punk attitude in favor of hookier art pop by their second album, Duty Now For The Future, as their...
Devo has sold almost 2 million records worldwide, with the gold-certified Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo! and platinum-certified Freedom of Choice accounting for most of this total. Despite the modest sales, many of the band's early work have been ranked among the best in their genres, with both albums in particular being included on "best of" lists from publications including Rolling Stone, Pitchfork, and Spin. The band was nominated for induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2018, 2021 and 2022, with John Patrick Gatta of Ultimate Classic Rock arguing them having one of the best debut albums, being equally an art project and a band, being sincere about de-evolution, managing to find mainstream success and having a huge...
The band is not only considered pioneers of new wave and punk rock, but alongside artists like Kraftwerk and Talking Heads, ushered in a new era of electronic music. On top of inspiring other artists within their genres, Devo was also a major influence on egg punk, an internet microgenre that was originally called devo-core, and electroclash, which Andy Gill of The Independent claimed they set the foundation for with their "mechanized swing" electropop. The band has influenced and/or been covered by artists such as Arcade Fire, Brainiac, Dave Grohl, Lady Gaga, LCD Soundsystem, Nine Inch Nails, Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Radiohead, Rage Against the Machine, Six Finger Satellite and Soundgarden.
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