Devo 

The Hordern Pavillion, Friday August 1

by Berline Abraham

When you take music that actually means something, then add a new wave synth pop sound and a funny hat, you can only get one thing. Mega band Devo brought an interesting crowd to The Hordern Pavilion on Friday night, with more yellow jumpsuits around than a fire-fighter’s convention. The ever-nerds of punk-pop put on a huge show for the Sydney crowd, with more to share than just their music.

The show started with a video to fill the audience in on anything they might have missed these passed 35 years. It showed what to wear, how to act and gave some general retro guidelines for the unknowing. After a montage of film clips Devo ran out on stage and had the whole crowd jumping. There were kids as young as ten and oldies well over the hill singing along as Mark Mothersbaugh belted out the songs in his trademark voice.

Devo have a message they’ve been singing to the world since they got together in the early 70’s- we’re going backwards. De-evolution declares that mankind is regressing instead of evolving further, evident through the herd mentality of society. That’s where the red hats come in. The ‘energy domes’ and yellow jumpsuits are to mock consumerism and promote freedom of choice. This seemed to backfire on the group, as the red ‘energy domes’ they were selling at the venue sold out before the show even started.

After a few songs the band stripped out of their yellow jumpsuits to reveal another trademark costume. Sporting black turtlenecks and shorts, Devo kept the crowd moving with their addictive pop and energetic moves. Their songs are so catchy they sound as though they are all one-hit wonders.

Devo finished with ‘Beautiful World’, the crowd delighted to see Mark Mothersbaugh dressed as the infamous character Booji Boy for the final song. The show was brilliant, and Devo took a risky move that made me like them even more. They didn’t play an encore, which, after a 90 minute show is understandable for the old blokes. But more than that, it didn’t cheapen the show with a predictable and pre-meditated encore that is so common with today’s concerts. By the end of the gig I was a believer. I was ready to don an energy dome, if only they hadn’t all sold out.