It’s been 30 years since Devo gave the world “Whip It.” The spuds are back with their first album in 20 years and it’s worth the wait. Devo never was a mainstream band and Something for Everybody tries to be just that. The album’s tracks were in part determined by an online song study, factoring input from 40,000 participants. Standout tracks “Fresh” and “Sumthin’” recall the catchiness of cuts from their landmark Freedom of Choice, but “Don’t Shoot (I’m a Man)” is classic Devo, full of wit and social commentary: “One thing’s always the same, no matter what they say, there’s way too many problems.”
This article appears in Jun 17-23, 2010.