The return (and sellout) of DEVO

[obie]

So I was reading the paper yesterday and I came across an ad for DEVO at NYC's Central Park Summerstage in July. (One of their annual benefit shows, with Yeah Yeah Yeahs + Stellastarr*, tickets on sale Saturday noon.) And I thought to myself "holy crap, I wonder when was the last time DEVO played in New York." So I did some research and found out that:

-- Their last regular NYC show seems to have been at least a decade ago.
-- More disturbingly, they're the headliner of some idiotic Nike-sponsored 80s retro tour (http://www.clubdevo.com/mp_redesign/live.html) with shows only open to runners who sign up for some Nike promotional run.

When did this happen? I know that DEVO has done Lollapalooza, and a couple of shows on the Tony Hawk tour, but is Mothersbaugh so hard up for cash that he's reduced to playing with Tone-Loc and A Flock Of Seagulls at corporate functions?

Sad, very sad.

[Footix]

-- More disturbingly, they're the headliner of some idiotic Nike-sponsored 80s retro tour (http://www.clubdevo.com/mp_redesign/live.html) with shows only open to runners who sign up for some Nike promotional run.


That's funny you post this, because I was gonna post something about the run, which after hearing how much of a blast the one in LA was last week, I fully intend to sign up for:

http://www.nike.com/nikerunning/runhitwonder/main.jhtml?ref=nike_running_usa

My guess is that Nike offered them some INSANE dough to do these gigs. I can't blame anyone for taking crazy money for stuff like this, or even to modify their tunes for commercials (Swiff it! Swiff it good!). It's not like they are Pearl Jam or some band who's very popularity has more to do with their perceived integrity, whether truthful or not...I'm guessing Mothersbaugh fully understands that they are perceived by most music listeners (note: not music "fans" or experts) as kind of a goof anyway, so why not get paid big to do some high profile stuff that is bound to sell some catalog product at the same time? In early DEVO manifestos, their music has always been referred to as "product", and CLUB DEVO was one of the first online band merch outlets.

Tell me that Central Park run doesn't sound like fun! And you don't have to deal with the Yeah Yeah Yeah trucker hat squad for that day's DEVO show.

[obie]

I can empathize with bands that sell their songs to certain companies - I don't think I could ever get too angry at, say, Dean Wareham or Apples In Stereo for taking Gap's money. But this just seems so lame and inherently corporate-controlled in a way that a left-field group like DEVO wouldn't fit in. But who knows, I'll have to read the LA reviews and see what people say. If you can get a free hour-long 12-song set from DEVO out of this, it's probably worth it to put up with the Nike side of things. I just had the impression that it would be 2-3 songs from each act (does Tone-Loc or AFOS have more than three to perform?) and relentless shilling from the "hosts".

[obie]

Correction: It's not free - $25 entry fee for LA.

[nicodemus]

Maybe they just want to get out and play again and this is an easy way to do it.

[Footix]

Yeah, it's not "free" in the sense that you've got to pay a race entry fee, but that's about what most similar races cost...but then again all you get at the end of those races is a t-shirt that nobody in their right mind would ever wear and a free shot at a bowl of bananas and granola bars.

If I'm reading the Nike site correctly, the bands other than DEVO are actually setting up and playing along the running course...which makes little sense to me.

I haven't seen DEVO since the New Traditionalists tour, but I recently rented their live DVD from Lolla, and was amazed at how great they sounded and how hard they rocked. "Smart Patrol/Mr. DNA" absolutely killed.

I may be biased since I'm fresh into a mid-life-crisis exercise jag (and having run my first road race @ Giants Stadium last week without collapsing), but I'm really psyched for this race/concert. I can't think of a better reason to stay in running shape than the gift of a more or less gratis DEVO show in the greatest public park in the world.

[Deuteriumoxide]

Selling out is the point.

[AndyMead]

Selling out is the point.

I spent ten years as a union stagehand and I worked a Devo show about 12 years ago in Raleigh, NC. They performed the first song sitting on stage on barstools. After the song, Mothersbaugh explained that they played the first song sitting down to show that "after 15 years in the music industry, they still could."

The third encore was "Somewhere" from West Side Story. :D

[nancyb]

I've never seen them live, but plenty of my friends and my only spouse have. They have always delivered live, from what I've heard. Hey, they went years without a record deal (still do?). If they can get dough doing this stuff and they put on a show worth watching, why not? I mean they could be doing the Elvis Costello thing where you never know whether you're going to get the old, angry Elvis or the 90s mellow Elvis or the newly reborn angry young man Elvis.

[skipshady]

FWIW, this isn't exactly a new territory for Devo. A couple of years ago, when Nissan re-rolled out the 300ZX, they had a series of "surprise" concerts around the country and Devo played the Civic Center in San Francisco.

[Footix]

Registration for this race/concert opens today...the revised band list is now:

DEVO
A Flock Of Seagulls
Tommy Tutone
General Public
Tone Loc
Kajagoogoo

Ridiculous, and cool, all at once. I can't wait. If this were a corporate challenge type thing, I'd organize a BigSoccer team.

[MikeLastort2]

Registration for this race/concert opens today...the revised band list is now:

DEVO
A Flock Of Seagulls
Tommy Tutone
General Public
Tone Loc
Kajagoogoo

Ridiculous, and cool, all at once. I can't wait. If this were a corporate challenge type thing, I'd organize a BigSoccer team.
Whoa, I'd love to see that show.

[Footix]

The NYC race is sold-out as of this morning.

[Footix]

Went to the race last night, and had a ball.

Special unanounced guest was Dramarama at the pre-race concert.

As I ran past A Flock Of Seagulls, I momentarily contemplated snatching Mike Score's baseball cap off to see what's doing under the hat. The bands play right on the course so I literally was close enough to do it, but chickened out.

DEVO played a full set and tore it up. Surprisingly, they played a bunch of stuff from their earliest material, standouts being "Mongoloid", "Uncontrollable Urge", and "Smart Patrol/Mr DNA".

The whole thing couldn't have been more fun.

[655321]

FWIW, this isn't exactly a new territory for Devo. A couple of years ago, when Nissan re-rolled out the 300ZX, they had a series of "surprise" concerts around the country and Devo played the Civic Center in San Francisco.

Yep, I remember that...

Throw a rock in San Francisco and you'll hit some ex-dotcommer who saw Devo play a coporate party back in the day.