Brian Eno is MORE DARK THAN SHARK

INTERVIEWS, REVIEWS & RELATED ARTICLES

Record Collector JANUARY 2016 - by Shane Baldwin

DEVO - SOCIAL FOOLS: THE VIRGIN SINGLES 1978-1982

Ohio weirdos, big on MTV

Devo began their bizarre, high-concept campaign to bafe, confuse and, possibly, educate way back in 1972. The band espoused the tongue-in-cheek concept of De-evolution, delivered over quirky backing and presented with high-art theatricality.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, Devo only really made progress in the punk era, though even then they were an awkward fit. On their own Booji Boy label the band released debut single Mongoloid in 1976, followed in 1977 by a cover of The Stones' Satisfaction, both of which were picked up for release in the UK by Stiff (both separately and as part of the Be Stiff EP). The band were signed by Warner Bros, releasing debut album Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo!, produced by Brian Eno, in 1978, but it would be 1980 before they delivered a big hit with the MTV-friendly Whip It from their third album, Freedom Of Choice.

This set delivers all the Devo singles (including their B-sides) released in the UK by Virgin; unfortunately this means that the absence of Mongoloid and Satisfaction is felt.