Word: devoe
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...particular, FM stations seem to have decided that the best cut from Are We Not Men? is the group's sterile rendition of "Satisfaction." What was a fevered shout of desperate frustration in the hands of Mick Jagger et al becomes a mechanical exercise under Devo's influence. The song itself de-evolves--it loses the anger and humanity of the lead vocals, the power of the rhythm guitar, the pulse of the heavy drum beat; it becomes lobotomized. Devo probably intended all this when they recorded "Satisfaction" this way--but that doesn't make the track any less dull...
...expected that the hype should focus on the strangest, most saleable aspects of a group like Devo. Unfortunately, in this case the result exaggerates Devo's worst side--the monotony and formulization that creeps into some of their songs that are less inspired than "Jocko Homo...
...DEVO...
...whole thing would be laughable if Devo didn't sound so sincere. In their psychotic way, they do, unlike so many of the already-stereotyped razor-and-chain punks. But the system that governs the way popular music gets distributed in America has already latched onto the most unpleasant, alienated side of Devo in a futile and self-defeating shot at record sales through novelty. The band's appearance on NBC's Saturday Night Live only gave the folks in Peoria a superficial look at Devo, and probably left them shaking their heads at the decadence of today's wasted...
...process, they'll be missing a lot of music that's powerful and unique. Aside from the infectious "Jocko Homo," Devo's album includes one song, "Mongoloid," that's a fine punk-influenced rocker, and another, "Space Junk," that's in the grand David Bowie tradition of futuristic disaster songs...