Devo - Miracle Witness Hour

For fans of the wonderfully weird, art-punk world of new-wave band DEVO, this previously unreleased, re-mastered live album from 1977 is a DEVO mindbomb!  If you’re not acquainted, this is not a bad introduction. In raw, original form, they’re full of livewire energy, taut vocals and richly abrasive sounds.  It’s easy to hear why they were ahead of their time, attracting attention from bottles hurled by confused and angry bikers in spit and sawdust clubs, then from Virgin records, Bowie and Brian Eno. Even Kurt Cobain declared them a favourite for their anarchic, outsider attitude.  Favourites like Uncontrollable Urge and Mongoloid are fresh to the ear, catchy and full of tense energy, whereas obscurities like Huboon Stomp showcase the off-kilter riffs and rhythms that created their unique frisson and contained chaos. Listening to DEVO’s beginnings, before their defining debut album Are We Not Men? where Eno put his own slant on things (arguably reducing the rawness through the production process), you can disappear into this intimate old biker dive, whirring with enthrallingly alarming sounds, jerky post-punk guitar and frustrated anxious vocals.  In the current era of high-gloss production, this is de-evolution in action and it’s great!(RIP Bob 2)