Album #51 : Devo - Freedom of Choice

Devo

Freedom of Choice (1980)

There was some sad news in the music world yesterday, with the death of Bob 2 from Devo, Bob Casale. As is probably to be expected with the passing of a member of a forty-year-old band, the news was met with typical grace from Devo fans, while others merely commented on it in passing (to my mild amusement, one website said they were going to 'honour' him by watching a single music video of the band's biggest hit....some honour.)

His passing though made me reflect on just how influential Devo have been on music. They were one of the first bands to really take the post-punk movement into different directions, exploring new wave music when it was in its infancy, and spearheading the heavy use of synthesisers in new wave music; in fact, arguably, Devo were music's first synthpop band, using synthesisers to create pop structures while still retaining some semblance of rock/post-punk credibility.

Their first two albums were heavier in sound (in terms of guitar), although sophomore effort Duty Now For The Future saw the group increase their experimentation with synths. This use of electronic instruments would be further ensconced in the band's sound on their third album, Freedom of Choice, where traditional instrumentation would be heavily reduced (pretty much to only guitar and drums). Consequently it has been suggested by critics to be one of the most important and influential new wave albums.

As my feeble attempt to salute Bob 2's work (I think it's better than watching a single fucking music video) I am going to review this album today.

The Album

Devo's reputation for unusual time signatures, experimentally dissonant chord progressions and just general tomfoolery with the conventions of music are still on this album, although they are largely replaced with more pop music sentiments. There's a few tracks that contain undeniable hooks and more conventional song structures. The biggest change for the group is in sound - while their post-punk roots occasionally bare themselves, on the whole this is a synth new wave album. The dissonance is now played by synth chords rather than guitars, and the role of the guitar is confined to providing backbone riffs while synthesisers blast away over the top.

Freedom of Choice provided Devo with probably their two biggest hits, those being Girl U Want and the iconic Whip It. The former is the template for a successful, catchy new wave pop single - punchy verses, a danceable beat and tasteful synthesiser hooks aplenty. The latter is a sublime combination of several catchy riffs all mingling together (ironically, the most memorable riffs are the simplest ones: the two different two-chord synthesiser melodies that punctuate the guitar during the verses, and are the main component of the choruses). Driving it all is a motorik beat that is a tip of the hat to German music of the late 60s and 70s, particularly Neu! and Kraftwerk.

Other examples of this heavy synth new wave pop sound abound. Snowball is part new wave tune, part cheap 80s synthesiser theme tune for a bad TV show, with its phased wobbly synthesiser melodies, and 100% hooktacular. It's Not Right sees Mark Mothersbaugh's vocal very low in the mix, while plonking synthesisers blip and blop away in the foreground. Like a good punk song, it doesn't overstay its welcome. Planet Earth does contain some guitar, but its thunder is completely stolen by a swirling, insistent synthesiser melody.

There are some songs where the guitar is more prominent, but there is still a substantial presence of synthesiser sounds and effects, in keeping with the band's shift in direction. Cold War, for instance, contains a simple, repetitive series of guitar riffs, while synthesisers swirl in and out supported by electronic sound manipulations. Don't You Know is very similar in style and sound to Girl U Want, featuring the same balance between synth and guitar, and is rather unsettling in sound, keeping with its stalkerish themes. That's Pep is an intriguing track also. Using a poem from a 1924 Ohio State University College of Engineering periodical, the song is stylistically an advertising jingle, hook-laden and featuring a catchy refrain ("That's Pep!").

On the rare occasions that Devo revisit their more guitar based sound from their first album, the results are electric (pun not intended). Gates of Steel is a deceptively, and surprisingly, heavy track with a riff that is bursting with energy. It is the purest post-punk song on the album with some impressive guitar work from Bob Mothersbaugh (aka Bob 1). The synthesiser on the track is simple and supports the crunchy riff. The title track is one of the group's real underrated classics, a rollicking guitar track that is typical of the new wave sound. The underlying backbone of the track is provided by synthesisers, though the sound is dominated by another abrasive, crunchy guitar riff. There's a rumble to the percussion and the choruses are sparse, with the synths dropping out. It's a genuinely brilliant song.

The Verdict

Freedom Of Choice is a terrific album. Its strengths lie in Devo's ability to take a certain level of sonic experimentation and squeeze it into a pop song. With songs that don't run for much longer than four minutes, this is for all intents and purposes a pop album with a new wave/post-punk edge. Apart from the two big singles, there are other tracks that are well worth your time.

If there's one thing that shines through, it's that Devo were a band that could write hooks with the best of them, but in keeping with their slightly anarchic, agitprop viewpoint, these hooks were manipulated, synthesised, intermingled with others. 

So on this fairly sad occasion, we can at least take heart that Bob 2 was a co-conspirator in a band that were wildly influential, even though those that have never understood them hate them. Give it a listen. You'll either love it or hate it.

My rating: ****

Standout Tracks

Freedom of Choice

Whip It

Gates of Steel

Tomorrow, I'll be reviewing a release by an all-girl rock band. I reckon those of you with an ear for 70s rock revivalism that isn't Wolfmother will quite like it.