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DEVO Announce New Studio Album To Debut Fall 2009!!!

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I just received word that Akron, OH’s DEVO has announced that they will be working on a studio album for a Fall 2009 release!

Direct from the email I received:

What the iconic new wave, art punk pioneers cautioned us about almost 30 years ago is no longer a humorous theory. It’s pretty much fact–we now live in a devolved world that’s getting wackier each and every day.

The fall of 2009 will bring a new DEVO studio album, their first one since 1990’s Smooth Noodle Maps. It’ll mark their first new music since the strong fan reaction that greeted the 2007 single “Watch Us Work It,” their first new song in 18 years and one that was produced by Sweden’s TeddyBears (Robyn). They’re now in the studio putting the finishing touches on their new album (title TBA).

The five-piece–featuring co-founders and songwriters MARK MOTHERSBAUGH (lead vocals, synthesizer innovations) and GERALD CASALE (lead vocal, bass) and rounded out by BOB CASALE (guitarist), BOB MOTHERSBAUGH (guitars/vocals) and JOSH FREESE (drums)–are set make a special U.S. appearance at SXSW this year including a press conference (4:00pm) and keynote panel (5:00pm)–moderated by radio veteran Nic Harcourt–set for Thursday, March 19 at the Austin Convention Center (500 East Cesar Chavez St.). They’ll follow that up with a Friday, March 20 one-night-only SXSW concert at the Austin Music Hall (208 Nueces St.). Pre SXSW, DEVO fans in Dallas can catch a special one-off show on Wednesday, March 18 at the Palladium Ballroom.

In May, DEVO will head to the United Kingdom for a series of dates. On Wednesday, May 6, DEVO will perform their debut album, the seminal Q: Are We Not Men, We Are Devo! in its entirety from beginning to end at London’s Kentish Town Forum. Released in 1978, the seminal album produced by Brian Eno and recorded in Germany features such notable tracks such as the band’s cover of The Rolling Stones’ “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction,” “Mongoloid” and “Jocko Homo.” Next up on Friday, May 8, they’ll headline the All Tomorrow’s Parties festival in Somerset at the Butlins Holiday Centre.

Formed in 1972 in Akron, OH, DEVO–short for “de-evolution”–began as an art project cautioning that humans were devolving and regressing into a herd mentality of American society, not evolving. A conceptual band from the beginning, DEVO were ahead of their time, incorporating elaborate aesthetics into their live shows and seamlessly combining their music with visuals years before MTV or any music-video culture existed. Indeed, the group’s first appearance at Kent State University in 1973 was recorded with a black and white portable video system. Societal satirists, DEVO’s lyrical mix of comedy and quirky wit, warned of the dangers of rampant capitalism in “Whip It” and “Freedom of Choice”, and the devolution of society in “Jocko Homo” and ”Beautiful World.“ Onstage in their early incarnation, the group began with a mixture of synthesizers and rock instruments; as they developed in the late seventies and early eighties, DEVO became one of the first American acts to perform using only synthesizers. DEVO have now returned with an evolved look, ready to impact the vastly devolved world we now find ourselves trying to navigate.

Expect more news regarding DEVO soon and catch up with them at:
www.clubdevo.com
www.myspace.com/devo

Music, Punk

Beat Union Almost Forced To Cancel Tour Thanks To Crackheads

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UK’s Beat Union had the unexpected happen to them earlier this week while touring in Canada.  Their tour van and trailer, full of their equipment, were stolen from outside a hotel the band was staying at.  It looked as if the band was going to have to call it quits until they could get back on their feet.  Luckily for them (unlike Iggy Pop‘s incident at the beginning of August) the Edmonton police were able to recover the vehicle and badly damaged trailer.

Beat Union meeting with authorities after their trailer was stolen. <br>(Photo by Anne-Marie Jackson/ Edmonton Journal)
Beat Union meeting with authorities after their trailer was stolen. (Photo by Anne-Marie Jackson/ Edmonton Journal)

The van sustained minimal damage but due to a high speed chase the trailer was not in the best of shape.  With the back wheels missing from the high pursuit and damage to the frame it needed serious attention before it would be used again.

It took all but moments for the van to be stolen.  One of the band members slept in the van as security while the others were in the hotel.  Lead singer David Warsop decided to leave the van for 20 minutes to take a shower.  While the van was unoccupied someone decided to steal it and the attached trailer.

At first the band did not think they would recover any of the $28,000 worth of equipment and personal belongings.  Upon recovery only minimal items were discovered taken such as a scooter, a white Gibson firebird guitar, a couple of cameras, clothing,  and passports.  Crack pipes and condom wrappers were found in the van and trailer as a replacement for the stolen items.  The band was more upset based upon the fact that some shows had to be canceled as they waited for repairs to be completed on the trailer.

Thanks to the Edmonton police crew and most notably their police dog Knight, who took down one of the suspects at the end of the chase, the band will play on.  Already involved in their nice sized North American tour and just having wrapped up their Warped Tour stint, this was the last thing the band needed.

Look for the band on the road once again touring in support of their debut release Disconnected with select dates along side Flogging Molly, The Loved Ones, and the Horrorpops.

For more information check out The Edmonton Sun or The Province.