Oh, No! It's Devo

Oh, No! It's Devo
Studio album by
Devo
ReleasedOctober 27, 1982 (1982-10-27)[1]
RecordedMay–September 1982
StudioCherokee (Hollywood)
Genre
Length32:14
LabelWarner Bros.
ProducerRoy Thomas Baker
Devo chronology
New Traditionalists
(1981) 		Oh, No! It's Devo
(1982) 		Shout
(1984)
Singles from Oh No, It's Devo
  1. "Peek-a-Boo!"
    Released: September 22, 1982
  2. "That's Good"
    Released: November 24, 1982

Oh, No! It's Devo is the fifth studio album by American new wave band Devo, released in 1982 by Warner Bros. Records. The album was recorded over a period of four months, between May and September 1982, at Cherokee Studios in Hollywood, Los Angeles, and was produced by Roy Thomas Baker.

Background

Oh, No! It's Devo features an even greater reliance on programmed synthesizers and drum machines than its predecessor, New Traditionalists (1981). DJ Pangburn of Reverb.com noted that these elements, "combined with the minimal use of guitars, gives the record a metronomic, roboticized feel."[2]

According to a 1982 interview with lead vocalist Mark Mothersbaugh, the album was titled Oh, No! It's Devo because "there are many people out there who, when they hear we're around again or have one more album coming out, that is their reaction."[3] In later interviews, Devo's co-founder and bass guitarist Gerald Casale stated that the album was born out of critical reviews in which the band were alternately described as both "fascists" and "clowns".[4] In response, the band decided to make an album that would answer the question, "what would a record sound like by fascist clowns?"[5]

Composition

"Peek-a-Boo!", based on a "scary" sequencer line from Mark Mothersbaugh, featured lyrics inspired by Casale's former college philosophy professor, who had taught about Carl Jung's theories on the duality of human nature.[6] "Big Mess" was inspired by letters sent to a game show host by someone using the name "Cowboy Kim".[7] "I Desire" brought the band controversy, as the lyrics were taken directly from a poem written by John Hinckley Jr., who had attempted to assassinate U.S. President Ronald Reagan in an effort to impress actress Jodie Foster.[8] The band had first read the poem in the National Enquirer and thought it was "pretty great", despite the source.[9] Casale later said that Hinckley was "quite proud" of the song, but "completely didn't understand that what we did was invert it. We knew how nuts he was, of course, and the third verse I added clearly turns the mirror on the psycho."[9] While Foster gave the band her blessing to use the lyrics, the FBI issued them several warnings.[9]

Promotion

Devo supported the album with a North American tour.[10]

The band also produced three music videos for the album: "Time Out for Fun," "Peek-a-Boo!" and "That's Good". All three videos eschewed Devo's previous narrative style for a basic performance against a bluescreen background displaying related visuals to the song. These were intended to replicate the band's intentions for the forthcoming tour for those who would be unable to attend. The video for "That's Good" ran into censorship troubles on MTV, as the juxtaposition of a cartoon french fry penetrating the hole of a doughnut and quickly cutting to a writhing, smiling nude woman, shot from the neck up, was considered too risqué for airplay. Band member and video director Gerald Casale later elaborated in an interview for the 33⅓ series book Devo's Freedom of Choice in 2015:

"We got this call from [MTV co-founder] Les Garland, He was like, 'Look, we know what you're trying to do here.' I go, What do you mean? He goes, 'Ya know, when that cartoon French fry glides through that cartoon donut and then it's with the girl looking happy. You can have the French fry, or you can have the donut, but you can't have the French fry and the donut, Otherwise, you can't cut to the girl.' And I go, 'But what about when the French fry hits the donut and breaks in half and she's sad?' And he goes 'Alright you little smart ass.' It was horrible. Then I go, 'What about that Billy Idol video you have and the girls are in skin-tight pants and their asses are full on in the screen and his head is between her legs and then somebody slaps her ass? What about that?' He goes, 'we're talking about you, we're not talking about them."

Casale eventually relented and made significant cuts to the video, which he came to regret, as "the song was going down in the charts, not up."

Devo took on another new look for this album, wearing black T-shirts and slacks with white "Spud Ring" collars. In concert, these were augmented with Freedom of Choice (1980) era energy domes and New Traditionalists era shirts and ascots for part of the performance. The LP jacket had a cutout stand on the back so it could be stood up like a picture frame.

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[11]
Robert ChristgauB+[12]
Rolling Stone[13]
Spin Alternative Record Guide8/10[14]

Debby Miller of Rolling Stone observed that "Devo again proves to be at their best with a singular brand of dance song—sort of a Chubby Checker-in-space idea, with loony instructions set to a mechanized stomp." However, she cited "Peek-a-Boo!" and "That's Good" as the album's sole highlights, adding, "it's getting harder to take the whole Devo package—the dumbbell retrograde-evolution philosophy and all the promotional merchandise.[13] Trouser Press felt the album was "pointlessly produced by Roy Thomas Baker" and "failed to slow the creative slide."[15] The Globe and Mail determined that the band and Baker captured "a full and satisfying sound without losing the spastic mechanical repetitiveness for which Devo is known."[16]

In retrospective reviews, Steve Huey of AllMusic praised the album's "quality singles" but felt that Baker's production "smooths out any remaining edges in the band's sound", noting its "colder-sounding digital synths" and "thudding electronic percussion, which contributes heavily to the album's overall feeling of bloodlessness".[11] The Spin Alternative Record Guide deemed "That's Good" and "Big Mess" "Devo at its most pointed and charming."[14]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Mark Mothersbaugh and Gerald Casale, except where noted.

Side one
No.TitleLength
1."Time Out for Fun"2:48
2."Peek-a-Boo!"3:01
3."Out of Sync"3:34
4."Explosions"3:01
5."That's Good"3:23
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Patterns" 2:57
2."Big Mess" 2:42
3."Speed Racer"Mark Mothersbaugh2:38
4."What I Must Do" 2:34
5."I Desire"
3:13
6."Deep Sleep" 3:24
Total length:32:14

Personnel

Credits adapted from Pioneers Who Got Scalped: The Anthology CD liner notes:[17]

Devo

Credits adapted from the original album's liner notes:[18]

Additional musician

  • Annerose Bücklers – backing vocals on "Deep Sleep"

Technical

  • Roy Thomas Baker – producer
  • Gordon Fordyce – engineer
  • Stuart Graham – assistant engineer
  • George Marino – mastering
  • Erik Arnesen – cover photography
  • Devo Inc. – graphic concept
  • Rick Seireeni – art direction
  • Brent Scrivner – "Spudring" manufacturing

Charts

Chart (1982) Peak
position
Australian Albums (Kent Music Report)[19] 57
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[20] 10
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[21] 38
US Billboard 200[22] 47
Chart (2022) Peak
position
US Top Album Sales (Billboard)[23] 54

References

  1. ^ Zax, Andy (2000). Pioneers Who Got Scalped: The Anthology (CD liner notes). Los Angeles: Rhino. R2 75967.
  2. ^ DJ Pangburn (August 13, 2020). "The Synths and Studio Techniques of Devo". Reverb.com. Retrieved July 17, 2024.
  3. ^ "Mark of Devo interview 1982". YouTube. Alain From France. December 4, 2009. Retrieved January 14, 2022.
  4. ^ Sculley, Alan (June 30, 2010). "'Devo is like the House Band on the Titanic'". The Shepherd Express. Retrieved January 14, 2022.
  5. ^ "SXSW - Devo". YouTube. NME. March 20, 2009. Retrieved January 14, 2022.
  6. ^ Turner, Danny. "A Few Minutes with Gerald V. Casale of Devo". Roland Corporation. Retrieved August 11, 2025.
  7. ^ "Ultra Geek - Cowboy Kim Letters". devo-obsesso.com. Retrieved January 14, 2022.
  8. ^ "I Desire by Devo | Song Stories | Rolling Stone". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on March 29, 2014. Retrieved January 14, 2022.
  9. ^ a b c Grow, Kory (July 31, 2018). "Devo on How 'Whip It' Changed Their Lives, Meeting the Rolling Stones". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on March 22, 2023. Retrieved July 16, 2024.
  10. ^ Warren, Doug (November 29, 1982). "They Are Devo and You, Devoted Fans, Are Spuds". Miami Herald. p. 6C.
  11. ^ a b Huey, Steve. "Oh No! It's Devo Review by Steve Huey". AllMusic. Retrieved July 10, 2023.
  12. ^ Christgau, Robert. "Devo". Robert Christgau.
  13. ^ a b Miller, Debby (February 17, 1983). "Devo Oh, No! It's Devo". Rolling Stone. No. 389. Archived from the original on August 27, 2006.
  14. ^ a b Spin Alternative Record Guide. Vintage Books. 1995. pp. 110–111.
  15. ^ Isler, Scott; Robbins, Ira; Neugebauer, Delvin. "Devo". Trouser Press. Retrieved July 10, 2023.
  16. ^ Lacey, Liam (November 20, 1982). "Oh No! It's Devo". The Globe and Mail. p. F6.
  17. ^ Devo (2000). Pioneers Who Got Scalped: The Anthology (CD liner notes). Rhino. R2 75967.
  18. ^ Devo (1982). Oh, No! It's Devo (LP liner notes). Warner Bros. Records. 1-23741.
  19. ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 88. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  20. ^ "Charts.nz – Devo – Oh, No! It's Devo". Hung Medien. Retrieved June 30, 2024.
  21. ^ "Swedishcharts.com – Devo – Oh, No! It's Devo". Hung Medien. Retrieved June 30, 2024.
  22. ^ "Devo Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved June 30, 2024.
  23. ^ "Devo Chart History (Top Album Sales)". Billboard. Retrieved June 30, 2024.
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