Posted on June 16, 2010 - by Post Punk

Devo: Punk/New Wave/Cult?

New Wave wonders, Devo, are back after 20 years with their ninth studio album, “Something For Everybody”. Aptly named, it’s a powerful, punk-infused electronic remix of material chosen by Devo fans themselves and produced by an intriguing selection of artists. An album that holds at its centre “the vapid absurdity of so much contemporary speech” and the subversive antagonisms of some very angry young men. Cracking open a past of Chrissie Hynde and Brian Eno, Distorted’s Ayisha Khan gave Devo co-founder and lead singer Mark Mothersbaugh a call whilst he was in London.

Ayisha: Hi Mark. How are you finding London?

Mark: Oh it’s great. I love London.

Ayisha: You’re currently preparing for the release of your new album, “Something for Everybody”. How does it feel to have a new album out after 20 long years? How come it’s been so long in the making?

Mark: You know, it’s like after we finished our last record, “Smooth Noodle Maps”, it was with a record company called Enigma who had gone bankrupt at the time. And so everything was so kind of depressing, you know, to be in that situation. When I got offered to score music for ‘Pee-Wee’s Playhouse’, it just seemed like so much more fun, you know, and I could write an album-worth of music in one week and then I could watch it on Saturday morning TV the same week. So it was kind of instant gratification. I got to do that every week. And so I really got into the idea of scoring for film and TV, and it took me that way for a long time.

You know we weren’t really in a rush to do this record. We were kind of intrigued by the disintegration of the record industry, and it made us feel like hopeful (laughs). It made us feel that maybe things could be different to the last time we were making records. We thought, you know, well there’s a window of opportunity for the record business to change its business plan. And so, that kind of what lured us back in it.

Ayisha: And how did you pick the producers for the album? There were all sorts of rumours flying around like LCD Soundsystem were going to do it but then James Murphy couldn’t fit it in.

Mark: There were a lot of people besides James Murphy who we had talked to. And, you know, we were playing in Japan, a year and a half ago, and we were in a festival where we were playing between Justice and Fat Boy Slim, and both of those guys, they were interested in working with us. So, you know, we talked to a lot of different people. At one point, I scored a movie about three years ago and Snoop Dogg was an actor in the film, and we almost did a song together for that movie. So there were a lot of people that we had talked to who had all voiced an interest in working with us. And then, you know, when we started passing out songs, it turned out that you end up working with who’s available, who’s got time to do it, you know, things like that. And in the process we met Greg Kursten, and we really enjoyed his mixes a lot. We really liked the way that he re-mixed our tracks; we thought he brought a lot to our table, and that’s why he ended up mixing the majority of the songs on the record.

Ayisha: Can you tell me about the tracks on the album? Was there any material that you had initially written, that had got scrapped during the duration of this new album production at all?

Mark: There are quite a few tracks that didn’t get on the album. We actually did something that was half serious and half

Devo - Something For Everybody

fun, but definitely was a good portion serious and we took it seriously. We let focus groups determine what songs we were going to put on the record. We put together focus groups both on the internet and in different locations where we were performing and we let people vote on what songs they liked the best. So these are the 12 songs. Actually out of those, there’s two songs that the record company kind of pushed for, and they wanted to have their say in the record. And so they squeezed a couple on, but most of the tracks were picked by focus groups and then there is a version of the album that is 100% focus groups that will also be available.

Ayisha: So what originally affected your decision to go about using that that method of focus groups to produce the new album?

Mark: Just ‘cause, well a lot of things happened at the same time and one thing that became notably different is, when we started on this record, Devo had a different place in the world. First time around, we were very protective about our aesthetic and about who we were. We felt people really didn’t understand; we felt our record company didn’t understand us, and we felt like critics didn’t understand what we were taking about. So we were very protective about everything. And this time around, it’s kind of like, we’d ask people if they believed in devolution and just about everybody says, yeah, they understand what we’re talking about now, because they’ve seen it happen and everything in the world around us is happening faster than ever. And at one time we were kind of ahead of our time, you know. When we were younger we were definitely pioneers. And now we’re more in our time, there’s all sorts of people doing really amazing music, and they’re doing all sorts of electronic things, and it’s not the same as it used to be. You know, in our first review in Rolling Stone magazine, they were saying something like, “There’s two songs that don’t even have guitar and one that doesn’t have a real drum kit, and you call this rock no roll?!” And I remember the LA Times feeling like, “Why are they showing videos at their concert? What is that about?! If I wanted to see lights and flashers I’d go to a pinball arcade.” Or something like that. It’s like now and then. We were kind of before MTV.

Ayisha: Yeah exactly, I’ve got some questions about that. But first I wanted to ask about the New Wave culture in the USA. And when you were talking about the place guitars had and how synths took over a lot of the tracks. Can you tell me about the arrival of the synthesiser in the music industry at all?

Mark: Okay, well in the early days, to me I feel like what we were doing that was different was we were trying to find a sonic vocabulary for our time; we were trying to find a sonic vocabulary to match what we saw on TV and what we heard and what we read about in the newspaper and what we saw going on in the world. And you know I was listening to electronic music and I thought synthesisers kind of helped bring things more up to date. And I remember one particular synthesiser solo I heard, more than anything else, (which) really shocked me and inspired me, and that was a song by Roxy Music, called ‘Editions of You.’ But in it, Brian Eno plays a synth solo, where he doesn’t use a keyboard; he’s using a joystick or something. But I was so impressed with that, you know, the way his solo sounded, it made me want to find my own version of what that sound would be, what the Devo version (would be). And I knew it meant not playing the keyboard, ‘cause what he played was kind of the most liquid, and the most interesting )solo). I think maybe the best of all time; it still holds up. Probably the first synth solo that was performed on a pop song without using a keyboard.

Ayisha: Back in the 80s, why were you becoming more recognised as a live band as opposed to a recorded one?

Mark: We played a ton of gigs. We wanted people to hear us.

Ayisha: No, but was this to do with this whole thing about record companies back in the 80s? What was the situation with recording music using record companies?

Mark: Well it was different, you know, because record companies had, for decades, come up with a business model that they were very proud of and stuck in, you know, because it had been very successful for them. And it didn’t really involve a lot of forethought. It was very simple; it was the only game out there. So pretty much record companies could put out anything they wanted and they could sell it, you know. And so it’s like we got lectured when we came in and started talking about wanting to do merchandise lines, or wanting to do a feature film, or to do a TV show, or to do a book. They didn’t care about any of that, they said, “Look, just do anything you want, just do one more ‘Whip It’, just do a ‘Whip It.’ That’s all you have to do.” And they really didn’t want to hear about marketing ideas.

Ayisha: And you talk about how you predicted MTV five years before it happened. How large were the discrepancies between your expectations and the reality of it when it aired?

Mark: Oh well it was totally different. I mean, when we were first imagining sound and vision, when we first found out about laserdiscs, we realised art was ready to change, and pop culture was ready to change from a band that just made music to artists who were visually orientated. Sonically and visually. And we thought that meant that all of the rock ‘n’ roll bands would die. And we thought that there would be newer artists, younger artists, who would be working in both visuals and audio simultaneously. But we were proven wrong by MTV, because what happened instead was that once record companies realised that (for example) Rod Stewart doesn’t know how to shoot a video, you know, he had no concept for a video, or Lover Boy or Van Halen, or any of those bands, when they realised that those guys weren’t going to be making videos, they weren’t going to let their big money-makers get left in the dust. So they hired production companies and directors to write a story to go along with these songs. And so the whole MTV idea of music artists hiring a commercial art director to write a story to go along with their song became the model that everyone followed.

Ayisha: If you were starting Devo again from scratch today, without all that record company stuff in an age now where there are so many other mediums (YouTube etc), would you do anything different with regards to that?

Mark: Of course. I think it’s very interesting to be a young band right now. I mean, on one level, if you’re getting into it to get rich then good luck. If you’re getting into it to be a rock star, good luck, But if you’re getting into music because you’re an artist and you love making music, or you love making visual and sonic art, and audio art, now’s a great time. I mean the technology is more powerful than what The Beatles and The Rolling Stones had when they were making their albums. You can have it in your bedroom with you, you know, on a laptop, or just in some gear that you got from the store. You can buy visual recording equipment for your iphone that is more powerful than Abbey Road was back in the day, and that’s very empowering. And then the same for putting the music out. Anyone can put together a website and make their music available without having all the hassle of getting a record company involved.

Ayisha: What other projects are you working on at the moment (TV/film scoring)? Also I’ve heard the news about you starring in a guest role in an upcoming 100th episode of Futurama. Can you tell me what you are doing aside Devo and the new album?

Mark: I’m an actor on a TV show called ‘Yo Gabba Gabba!’ It’s a kid’s show, and I’m the art teacher. So probably about every other episode, I come on and I draw a picture and I go “Hmmm, what’s missing?” And then I draw one last piece of an elephant or a potato on a skateboard, and then I shrink and get into the picture and it becomes animated and I’m skateboarding with a potato or something. I do that, but I still do films; I have a feature coming out I think in September called ‘Ramona and Beezus’, and it’s based on a series of young girls’ books from about 15 years ago, called ‘Ramona the Pest’. And, you know, I’m always doing film and TV stuff.

Ayisha: Was there anything in the works about a Devo movie at all?

Mark: Oh, Devovision, Devo film? Well, you know, it’s like, we wanna do a feature. You know the whole reason we signed with Richard Branson back in 1979 was because he promised us that he would help us start a film company…he lied. He took our publishing but he didn’t give us the film company. We’ve never done a Devo movie (laughs), we’ve just done our shorts, but it could happen.

Ayisha: How would you rate your music career against your unbridled success in TV, commercials and films? Were there any pitfalls to your commercial music production career at all?

Mark: Of course. I didn’t study music scoring at school; I tried to learn on the job.

Ayisha: Was there quite a big gap with that and what you were doing before with Devo?

Mark: Yeah, it was very different. You know, but in a way, to me I still feel like its like branches on the tree because I feel like when I was a young man, Devo was my first artistic statement and everything that I’ve been doing since then is kind of mutations on a theme. I feel it all goes back to the same place, and it all starts with Devo back in Akron, Ohio.

Ayisha: Could you tell me about the scene in those early days – I know there was another band that you had called The Wipeouters. I recently interviewed Cheetah Chrome and I was trying to gather an idea about the music scene back then in Ohio.

Mark: Well, we just had little bands. Bob Casale was in a band called The Wipeouters, Mothersbaugh had a band called The Jitters, and Gerry Casale was in a band called 15-60-75. I had a band called Flossy Bobbitt, which was kinda like a prog-rock, experimental music band. We all played in bands. I was actually in a band with Chrissie Hynde. Her first band that she was ever in was called Sat. Sun. Mat.  It stood for Saturday, Sunday Matinee. And we played I think one time (laughs); we played one gig and the band broke up. So we all kind of learned our instruments playing in bands. There was no scene; there was not a good scene. I mean all those bands that I was telling you about didn’t play original music. You couldn’t get hired playing original music; you had to play top 40 and cover tunes.

Ayisha: Are there any foreseeable plans for you coming to do a tour in the UK at all after this album is released? And if you did tour here, what would be the stage-makeup for that, I mean with like visual theatrics? Would it be similar to your recent appearance at The Winter Olympics?

Mark: It would be pretty similar to that but I think we’re pretty much booked through the summer in the States, so I don’t think we’ll make it here ‘til the fall. But that’s already kind of in the planning; we’re already talking to promoters about that.

Ayisha: In your opinion, what was the most socially in-depth album that you put out over the band’s history?

Mark: Well, you know, I think what Devo is about to me, it’s still the first album (that) is the one that (was important). It was the big statement, and it’s kinda like I said: everything after that we’re talking about the same thing. And we’re maybe doing a better job when we get to other albums, but the first one to me is the one that I’m sure (resonates). Other band members too, it probably resonates with them quite a bit because that’s like, we were angry young men and we were making our statement. So I still love that album. I like all the albums, but I like that one the best.

Ayisha: I’ve got a trivia question – where did the energy dome design originate from?

Mark: We designed it ourselves, but I think we were influenced; we saw something like it in a comic book, on a space alien and it made us laugh. But I think, you know, probably it came from studying the Bauhaus movement when we were in school. I love the geometry of Bauhaus. I love the Ballet Mécanique, and that’s really it. The Italian Futurists; the Russian Suprematists, that believed in man over nature. And the German Bauhaus movement. I think those were early influences. They were at the core of the artistic influences for Devo.

Ayisha: I’m going back again to when you first started out, when you said, “subversion is the only form of change” as opposed to mob mentality.  What did you mean by ‘subversion’?

Mark: I think putting vitamin-enriched lyrics inside dance beats would be an example. Songs on the first, most basic level, they’re a good dance song; they’re just a quirky pop song. And then you give them lyrics and if you listen to them or pay attention, there’s something to think about. And Devo lyrics that are the best, and the Devo message (that) is best for the time (was that) we were anti-stupidity, pro-information and pro-positive mutation.

Ayisha: And also with your other projects, you did Devo 2.0 – that also had a kind of message in it too. Are you trying to get your message through with other mediums?

Mark: Yeah to kids; kids look at Devo 2.0 when they’re young, and then they get older and they find out about Devo 1.0.

Ayisha: One last question. There was a quote I read from the DJ at the WKH Auditorium…

Mark: Oh no.

Ayisha: Yeah it was in 1975. He said, “This isn’t music. These guys are making fun of music.” Do you feel, looking back on that now, that those words have a kind of ironic ring of truth to them? After all that was the idea, to ridicule absurdity in order to make sense of a senseless world. Do you find it quite funny that he said that?

Mark: Yeah. I think (the fact) that we were getting those people to stop meant that we were doing something right.

Devo’s first album in 20 years “Something For Everybody” is available now.