Overall, this strikes me as a continuation Devo album, something I would have expected from then in the late 80s. The sound essentially is the same, the rhythms and arrangements expected and delivering almost as well as I had expected.
All twelve songs are pop, none longer than four minutes. That unique Devo voice is there, that immediately recognizable Mothersbaugh/Casale sound, still thankfully youthful (despite the clear aging in that very cool rear-panel group portrait). There's a lot of electronic sound--not necessarily noise--but that unique Devonic marriage of hard guitar chords over electronics a la Are We Not Men? and Duty Now for the Future just isn't there (you can hear them just starting to wind up in the far background on "Fresh," unfortunately just as the song closes out). The sound is clubby in bass and beat at times ("Human Rocket," "Step Up," "Cameo"), and has more than a hint of currently trendy voice manipulation. In fact, the chorus for the closer, "March On" could almost be music for a car rental or computer processor commercial.
The opener, "Fresh," is the most catchy of the album, with a strong and easy chorus. "What We Do" follows, and has a good opening hook and vocal. If you're listening to the lyrics, they're saying that those dancing to this song are mercifully going to be the first ones to go.
The title track, "Sumthin,'" with its very, very Whip It-like beat, is as political as this release gets, with a shot at Dubya Bush, the New World Order (a reference now a good twenty years old), and complaints about pundits/angry mobs/fundamentalists/, outlining the current state of post-punk devolution.
The package offers no song lyrics, nor detailed liner notes. You get the bare minimum on personnel and copyright, but the booklet is a wordless tableau of photos centered on that iconic flowerpot hat, now apparently a delicious, sexy, irresistible blast of gelatinized cobalt-blue self-actualization. It's pure Devo concept, open to any number of interpretations.
One thing I was listening intently for is the raw, trembling, nerd-infused sexual drive that made songs such as "Pink Pussycat," Triumph of the Will," and especially "Uncontrollable Urge" (and more) so powerfully resonant. "Please Baby Please" (with a percussion opening which instantly reminded me of The Polecats' "Make a Circuit with Me") is in contact with the touchy subject, but this song is a plea rather than the direct, earthy, threatening demands of old.
Bottom line: we've heard this Devo before. It's familiar and easy, with no strange departures, with their consistent product updated and tuned to a new consumer demographic. There's nothing more Devo than that.
- Audio CD (June 15, 2010)
- Number of Discs: 1
- Label: Warner Bros / Wea
- ASIN: B003JYOFIW
- Average Customer Review: 150 customer reviews
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Amazon Best Sellers Rank:
#125,459 in CDs & Vinyl (See Top 100 in CDs & Vinyl)
- #1379 in New Wave
- #50018 in Rock (CDs & Vinyl)
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