While the most obvious flaw of Devo's Duty Now for the Future is that the material simply isn't as good as on their debut, their second album also captures the group in the midst of a significant stylistic shift. On their first album, for all their herky-jerky rhythms and electronic accents, Devo were pretty much a standard guitars/bass/drums rock band, albeit one with more than their share of eccentricities. Duty Now for the Future found them bringing the keyboards that were used as punctuation on their earlier material into the forefront, adding a new level of irony to their "little minds through big technology" philosophy. While Devo would later learn to use electronics with confidence and wit, they were still learning how to integrate them into their sound on Duty Now, and the results lacked the strength and coherence of their debut. Of course, it also helped that the first album had better songs; the two instrumentals on side one are merely filler, "Pink Pussycat" and "Clockout" are jokes that just aren't funny, and "Triumph of the Will" embraces fascism as a satirical target without bothering to make it sound as if they disapprove. But "Secret Agent Man" is a wittier devolved cover than "Satisfaction," the band rarely sounded as cheerfully creepy as on "The Day My Baby Gave Me a Surprize," and the side two rave up, "Smart Patrol/Mr. DNA" is superbly potent (for all their progressive trappings, Devo were formalists enough to know you make a big rock move near the end of side two.) Duty Now for the Future is hardly a bad album, but it isn't as strong as what Devo had already brought to the table -- or would offer later on.
Hey MOG Spuds! Its time to suit up and get ready to go to war! No! Not guns n blood war! REAL WAR = BAD!! MP3/YouTube video wars!! Being a longtime fan of 80s New Wave music I thought it would be fun to get all the Moggin fans of that weird and fun era together for a rapid fire shoot em up. For my first shot I've chosen DEVO and a Live 1980 Target Video performance: This Live 1980 Concert perfo...
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for any D-E-V-O fans out there, "Weird America has a video interview with Mark Mothersbaugh":http://www.weirdamerica.com/2006/11/15/weird-america-with-mark-mothersbaugh/ where he talks about the connection of the origin of Devo with the Kent State shootings as well as other things. These guys were one of the most subversive bands ever, and Mothersbaugh has continued to do interesting things sin...
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I've said it before, but it bears saying again. It's crazy what will remind you of a beloved song or artist that you haven't heard or recalled in ages. You'll hear a tune in the oddest place, and, suddenly, it's a favorite again.One night last week, I was with my pal Wes, within the ornate, Deco-Azteco confines of the Mayan Theater in downtown Los Angeles. We were there because we simply had to...
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I find this all to entirely amusing...Here is the link (below) as all these listed below are links to actual news stories...http://www.numberwatch.co.uk/warmlist.htmA complete list of things caused by global warming!Acne, agricultural land increase, Afghan poppies destroyed, Africa devastated, African aid threatened, Africa in conflict, aggressive weeds, air pressure changes, Alaska reshaped, ...
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Sadly, unfunny is the new black in the comedy world. The Onion's AV Club recently ran an article describing the decidedly hit-and-miss Andy Samberg as "an emissary from a bold new comedy world... [where] the superstars of tomorrow made their names and reputations by making silly homemade videos, then releasing them online rather than playing open-mic nights or doing Second City." Yeah, it sou...
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Hey MOG Spuds! Its time to suit up and get ready to go to war! No! Not guns n blood war! REAL WAR = BAD!! MP3/YouTube video wars!! Being a longtime fan of 80s New Wave music I thought it would be fun to get all the Moggin fans of that weird and fun era together for a rapid fire shoot em up. For my first shot I've chosen DEVO and a Live 1980 Target Video performance: This Live 1980 Concert perfo...
More >
OK, I'm dating myself here, but it's truly sad that all Devo will be remembered for are "Whip It" and their cover of "Satisfaction". They produced some amazing music and visuals, none of which were better than 1979's "Duty Now For The Future". On this record, their sound had a perfect mix of cheap guitars and plastic synths, the whole record is a twisted, melting, mutated sing along. "Duty Now"...
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for any D-E-V-O fans out there, "Weird America has a video interview with Mark Mothersbaugh":http://www.weirdamerica.com/2006/11/15/weird-america-with-mark-mothersbaugh/ where he talks about the connection of the origin of Devo with the Kent State shootings as well as other things. These guys were one of the most subversive bands ever, and Mothersbaugh has continued to do interesting things sin...
More >
| Title | Lyrics | Buy |
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| 1 Devo Corporate Anthem |
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| 2 Clockout |
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| 3 Timing X |
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| 4 Wiggly World |
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| 5 Blockhead |
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| 6 Strange Pursuits |
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| 7 S.I.B. (Swelling Itching Brain) |
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| 8 Triumph of the Will |
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| 9 The Day My Baby Gave Me a Surprize |
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| 10 Pink Pussycat |
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| 11 Secret Agent Man |
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| 12 Smart Patrol/Mr. DNA |
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| 13 Red-Eye Express |
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Click to purchase…
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 "Duty Now for the Future")
