DEVO: Duty Now For The Future (ROCK): review / opinion to read on Music Waves

Barely a month after the release of his manifesto "Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo!", Devo was sent back to the studio by Warner Brothers. Marked by an iconoclastic cover of The Rolling Stones, the Ohio band's album had surprised by its amusing audacity. However, some of the songs were no laughing matter, and behind the slogans about devolution lay a rather dark reflection on humanity. Ken Scott, producer of David Bowie's "The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars", among other works, took over from Brian Eno to coach the band. The Americans were harsh with him (all the more so as the producer had not invited them to attend the final mix), accusing him of trying to soften a sound they would have preferred to be more aggressive, closer to live conditions (most of the tracks had already been played live for several years).

Some of the tracks on "Duty Now For The Future" follow in the footsteps of the previous album, such as the frenetic "Clockout", the amusing "Pink Pussycat" and "Wiggly World". On these, guitars dominate the proceedings and keyboards are used as detonating sound effects. Mark Mothersbaugh's vocals are as delirious as ever, at times sounding almost cartoonish. This is no mere copy-and-paste, however, as the band is not averse to using what they've learned to take off in another direction: the most ambitious track, the follow-up 'Smart Patrol/DNA', even sees Bob Casale take center stage on guitar. The cover of Johnny Rivers' 'Secret Agent Man', more obscure than 'Satisfaction', sees Bob Mothersbaugh replace his brother behind the microphone. His voice is whiny and plaintive, but perfectly suited to the song's theme (an ingenue who imagines himself saving America by performing obscure, secret tasks for the CIA).

However, there's a noticeable fracture in the album, with other tracks swapping their garage/punk/rock 'n' roll garb for a still-incipient new wave. The role of keyboards is no longer incidental, and the two Casale brothers happily take them over alongside Mark. The solemn anthem 'Devo Corporate Anthem', which opens the album, is an electronic instrumental reminiscent of the work of Wendy Carlos. The dark dimension already present in 'Mongoloid' is accentuated here, using heavy, anxiety-inducing rhythms ('Blockhead', 'SIB') and the vocals are colder and more distant. In contrast to this darkness, 'The Day My Baby Give Me A Surprise' is a success dominated by Alan Myers' metronomic mastery, Bob's buzzing guitar, the Casale brothers' frenetic keyboards and Mark's committed verses leading to a colorful, minimalist chorus.

The lyrics scrupulously follow the specifications set by the band. Between the lines is a caustic critique of the boring, standardized and repetitive American way of life ('Clockout', 'Blockhead'), but this remains at the mercy of a scathing backlash on 'Strange Pursuit', 'Red-Eye Express' or the pounding 'Triumph Of The Will'.

At the dawn of 1979, Devo had already felt the winds of the synthetic 80's turning. "Duty Now For The Future" was still torn between the sounds of the previous album and the emergence of the synthesizers that would dominate subsequent albums. The album reached number 73 on the Billboard charts, and was better received on the other side of the Atlantic (number 49). It's worth noting that 1979 saw Devo swap his yellow jumpsuits for white suits (featuring Science Boy, the band's new logo) and 3D glasses. - Official website

DEVO

DUTY NOW FOR THE FUTURE

WARNER

ROCK