DEVO

The human species was born of a combination of cannibalism and sexual desire. By eating their fellows’ brains to gain sexual energy, monkeys’ intelligence gradually developed. The mammal became human by developing tools to better kill and rape their contemporaries. This theory of evolution – a delusion that recalls the worst B movies’ scenarios – was supported in a most serious manner by Mister Oscar Kiss Maerth. His book (The Beginning Was The End) became a subject of mockery from DEVO’s future members, then still students at Kent State University (Ohio). On May 4, 1970, their guitarist attended a peaceful demonstration of students against the invasion of Cambodia by the United States. The police repression was extremely violent: sixty-seven gunshots were fired in only thirteen seconds that left four dead and nine youngsters injured. The incident and its consequences convinced the four students to give musical form to the “devolution” of the human species Oscar Kiss Maerth imagined, and later confirmed by the US government. Two years later, DEVO was born.

Yellow biohazard suits, flowerpot-shaped hats made to channel sexual energy into the voice: this pseudo-scientific technology recalls the Dadaism art movement which the Ohio band recycled in order to hold a mirror up to the violence of the 1970s. In 1976, Bowie and Iggy discovered them and convinced a record company to sign them. March 1977: their first single, “Mongoloid”, described a common employee who goes unnoticed, though he had “one chromosome too many”... With their cover of The Rolling Stones’ “Satisfaction”, the rock’n’roll and vibrant soul that laid into the original song became mechanical and wobbly. In a word: dehumanized. The irony of it all is to make people dance to “emotionless” music.

“Jocko Homo”, was another hit. It’s meant to be the manifesto of their theory on human devolution. “We’re pinheads now / We are not whole / We’re pinheads all.” That vision was fiercely opposed to the Catholicism that was rampant in the country. During a tour, DEVO performed as their own opening act, as a Christian band called “Dove” (an anagram of “Devo”). In 1980, the trick worked so well that they were invited to perform in a televangelism spoof film (Pray TV)! DEVO considers creating religious abstractions about our own existences nonsensical. We ignore the understanding of human life and it is this essential separation that means we need to bring ourselves together even closer. The harsh and cynical depiction of humankind is not just a nihilistic gesture. With a good serving of humor behind their mad scientist looks, delivering scathing words onto metronomic rhythms, there lies a rational and common sense-guided message, which opposes the violence and manipulation of the time.

Nowadays the band’s leader, Mark Mothersbaugh, composes music for video games. No doubt The Sims are just about as stupid as DEVO, but they are for certain way less dangerous!