![]() Jerry's brother Bob Casale joined as an additional guitarist, and Jim left the band, to be replaced by Alan Myers. The first incarnation of Devo was formed in earnest in 1972, with Casale (bass), Mark Mothersbaugh (vocals), and Mark's brothers Bob (lead guitar) and Jim, who played homemade electronic drums. The whole concept was treated as an elaborate joke until the bandmembers witnessed the infamous National Guard killings of student protesters at the university suddenly there seemed to be a legitimate point to be made. ![]() The trio adapted the theory to fit their view of American society as a rigid, dichotomized instrument of repression ensuring that its members behaved like clones, marching through life with mechanical, assembly-line precision and no tolerance for ambiguity. Their de-evolution theory was deepened with the aid of a book entitled The Beginning Was the End: Knowledge Can Be Eaten, which held that humankind had evolved from mutant, brain-eating apes. ![]() ![]() With their friend Bob Lewis, who joined an early version of Devo and later became their manager, they developed their own philosophy of "de-evolution" - the idea that instead of evolving, humankind has actually regressed, as evidenced by the dysfunction and herd mentality of American society. Musicians Gerald Casale and Mark Mothersbaugh were both art school students at Kent State University at the outset of the 1970s. 2010's Something for Everybody marked their return to new music, and they continued touring into the next decade. Through various reunions and re-formations, they continued to develop creatively into the 21st century, composing music for soundtracks and commercials, publishing a video game, and even collaborating with Disney to create a child-led version of the band called DEV2.0. Although their success waned throughout the rest of the '80s, Devo's legacy over the coming decades grew into that of a highly influential cult band with legions of followers. ![]() Their jerky, robotic rhythms, bizarre uniforms, and focus on technology were like nothing else on the pop landscape, though some of their campier elements caused some critics to unfairly dismiss them as a novelty group. Taking their name from their own philosophy of "de-evolution," the Akron, Ohio-based group merged dark social satire and offbeat humor with highly stylized visuals, briefly breaking through to the mainstream with 1980's Freedom of Choice and its smash single "Whip It," whose accompanying video was made a staple by the fledgling MTV network. One of new wave's most innovative bands, Devo bubbled up from the Midwestern underground of the 1970s with a marvelously obtuse, self-designed vision that they were able to successfully convey to a large audience. ![]()
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