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Hardcore Devo, Vol. 2: 1974-1977

Devo - Hardcore Devo, Vol. 2: 1974-1977 Audio CD

A fair review of the Devo "Hardcore Devo, Vol. 2: 1974-1977" Audio CD. Please note that the below review is the views of the authors, and authors only. You can get a complete list of all Devo reviews here, or go back to the Devo tabs.

Band: Devo
Title: Hardcore Devo, Vol. 2: 1974-1977
Rating:

Release Date: 1991-08-19
Media: Audio CD

Tracks: 1: Booji Boy's Funeral 2: Can U Take It? 3: Bamboo Bimbo 4: Plan for Us 5: Rope Song 6: Goo Goo Itch 7: Be Stiff 8: All of Us 9: Baby Talkin' Bitches 10: I Need a Chick 11: U Got Me Bugged 12: Chang� 13: Fraulein 14: Dogs of Democracy 15: 37 16: Bottled Up 17: Working in the Coal Mine 18: I Been Refused 19: Fountain of Filth 20: Clockout 21: Let's Go

Freaky and fun - I love it!!!
The more Devo stuff I listen to, the more I LOVE them!!!!! In a world obsessed with outward appearance and behavior, and what other people think of you, Devo symbolize the unashamed nerds that everybody secretly loves and admires for being themselves. This CD has to be the kookiest, most original, yet excellently-made piece of work I've listened to in a long time.

In my opinion, there's nothing worse to listen to than jerk-poseur bands trying to be cool, or weak, watered-down alt and indie bands that even the radio station at my undergrad college refused to play. I'll say it again - Devo is original and authentic in everything they do. I understand and love the concept of Devolution, Devo's style of graphic art, their cosmic/nerdy sound, and the way they think. In short, I absolutely ~LOVE~ this band.

Now on to the CD. . .

This disc is packed with awesome songs that are unlike anything you'll ever hear. There are wonderful melodies mixed with unusual instruments and sounds, and of course, the wonderful singing voice of Mark Mothersbaugh, which many have tried to imitate (yes, I'm talking to you, David Byrne), but none have succeeded. Here are specifics:

~~~~~

1. Booji Boy's Funeral: Instrumental, and interesting, but a bit hard to listen to. Sounds sort of like it's from outer space! 5/10

2. Can You Take It?: Not the best, and gets a bit repetitive with the guitar-work. 5/10

3. Bamboo Bimbo: Slightly offensive to Vietnam War soldiers, but an interesting concept. Mark sings purposefully off-key in this one and has narrative interjections that are a bit funny. 6/10

4. A Plan For U: THIS ONE IS AWESOME!!! Great melody, crazy instruments!!!!! 10/10

5. The Rope Song: This one is also snazzariffic. A GREAT chorus, and kooky-sounding instruments. 10/10

6. Goo Goo Itch: A Buddy Holly-esque song about what sounds like an STD. . . However, it's a cool song, and the word "whammo" is in it about 4 times, so I have no choice but to like it. :o) 8/10

7. Be Stiff: THIS SONG is the reason I bought this CD!!!!! It's the rare slow version, and it's AWESOME!!!!!!! It leaves NO question as to the perfection, range, and general studliness of Mark Mothersbaugh's voice. What can I say - it's just perfect!!! 20,000/10

8. All of Us: Unusual for Devo. Sounds very 1970s-ish (yes, I know it was recorded in the 70s), but not in a bad way. . . Pretty good! 7/10

9. Baby Talkin' B!tches: More cool outer-space sound effects. Fairly normal sounding! 7/10

10. I Need a Chick: Do ~NOT~ let your grandparents, parents, teachers, acquaintenances, little kids, etc listen to this song!!!!! Just trust me. . . Would be great though with different lyrics.

11. U Got Me Bugged: Repetitve robotic sound effects. 1/10

12. Chango: Sound effects that are cute and disturbing at the same time. 3/10

13. Fraulein: This one has a tune that is SOOO familiar. . . It's one of my favorites on the disc, is very peppy and cute. 10/10

14. Dogs of Democracy: Here's another one with a very familiar and cute tune. . . Mark's singing on this track is pretty funny - it's very gentle, and half the time sounds like he's about ready to run out of breath! 9/10

15. "37": This one is absolutely adorable, and yet again, sounds REALLY familiar. It sounds like Bob 1 singing, and the refrain is "I'm envious of your IQ of 37. " So cute, and a really good song in and of itself!!!!! 10/10

16. Bottled Up: Very interesting. . . Absolutely beautiful melody, slightly sad lyrics, and some peppy background keyboards. 10/10

17. Working in a Coalmine: Not exactly a rare track of theirs. . . Pretty much like the original "oldies" version, not really one of my favorites. 7/10

18. I Been Refused: Awesome and adorable! Sort of old and jangly-sounding. 9/10

19. Fountain of Filth: Sit down when you listen to this one, or its awesome-ness will make you fall to the ground. If this was released as a "new" song today, it would be MAJORLY loved. . . Besides slightly confusing lyrics, this is a PERFECT song. I can't even properly describe it!!! 20,000/10

20. Clockout: This one was also released on one of Devo's "official" albums from the 1980s. Slightly slower version though. 9/10

21. Let's Go: Sounds like a let's-rally-up-the-troops song, and is extremely cute. 9/10

~~~~~

Even though I absolutely love this CD, there's no way I'd shell out the ridiculous amount of $50 that is consistently being charged for a used copy here on Amazon. Yes I'm a tightwad, but there are other, ~ahem~ less expensive places to get a copy. . .
.

Prepare To Devolve...
This music is psychotic and deranged. This blew my mind. I was really not ready for this. I consider myself to be something of a freakish music seeker, yet this amazing recording had not crossed my path till recently (blame it on my age). The true influence of Devo will not be recognized by scholars and the masses for awhile. Devo are directly responsible for ill synthesis, post-punk, new wave, and the video age. If you have not had the fortune to hear these early historic templates than you need to immediately. I actually prefer this to Volume 1, as Volume 1 has many early versions of later Devo classics, Volume 2 has quite a few tracks unavailable elsewhere. And with good reason, the unstable might break if they were administered some of these doses in large quantities. These tracks are much rawer and more deranged than later Devo. From crude vocoder paired with detuned synth, to fuzzy guitar rock, this is some truly Devolutionary music for Devolutionary people. Some of these songs have a leering, almost sinister edge which was later smoothed out for mass consumption. It is absolutely criminal that these two albums are out-of-print. I am a sucker for musical madness, and this was just what my shrink ordered. If you can only get one of these two discs, go for Volume 2, as it is the pinnacle of Devo's pre-corporate madness.

The REAL Devo
These NEED to be in print, their other stuff NEEDS to be out of print, trust me all you need is Hardcore Vol 1 and 2, everything else is just bleeggh, this is the REAL Devo.

A Fitting Title
I am one. Obviously, this album is reserved for major DEVO fans. Now that that's out of the way. . .
You guys need to calm down. I can appreciate the experimentation and "Screw the mainstream" spirit that went into many of these tracks. Clearly, these are songs written by guys who wanted to challenge the conventional rock music scene of the time. But let's be honest: They hadn't found their voice yet. They hadn't even gelled as a musical unit yet. They were shooting high, and that should be commended. But they were also kind of sloppy musically, and that should be recognized. Just because they went on to create some brilliant music doesn't mean this is brilliant. They were young and passionate and pushing themselves hard and falling along the way, which is fine. Nothing wrong with falling. But perspective doesn't change the quality of the music, regardless of how good "Are We Not Men?" proved to be.

not for beginners
Definitely Hardcore Vol 1 and 2 are not for the easily confused person who thinks that they are are just the guys who played "Whip It" but if you are willing to embrace the darker creepier sides of DEVO that led to "Whip It" you will be entranced, transported and intrigued. Dark, sometimes misogynist, humorous and creative. Hardcore is from a time before DEVO went completely digital and they took psychedelia to the mechanical level. There is a lot of MOOG synthesizer here but it sounds like the primitive version of the computer-programmed music DEVO became known for. There are lots of clicks and hums like you're inside a huge machine. It's scary unless you can figure out how to laugh at your own animalistic devolved tendencies.

You can see a complete list of all Devo discography, or go back to the Devo tabs. There is also a good guide on how to read guitar tabs here.