Event Listing - Music

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Fri Nov 6 - Sat Nov 7

Devo


Website
$41.50 - $54
Tickets

Location
Date and Time
Regency Ballroom
1290 Sutter Street
San Francisco, CA 94109 map
cross street: Van Ness Ave
district: Polk Gulch/Van Ness

Fri Nov 6 (9pm)
Sat Nov 7 (9pm)

Description
One of new wave's most innovative and successful bands, Devo, was also perhaps one of its most misunderstood. Formed in Akron, OH, in 1974 by Kent State art students Gerald Casale and Mark Mothersbaugh, Devo took its name from their concept of "de-evolution" - the idea that instead of evolving, mankind has actually regressed, as evidenced by the dysfunction and herd mentality of American society. Their music echoed this view of society as rigid, repressive, and mechanical, with appropriate touches -- jerky, robotic rhythms; an obsession with technology and electronics (the group was among the first non-prog rock bands to make the synthesizer a core element); often atonal melodies and chord progressions - all of which were filtered through the perspectives of geeky misfits. Devo became a cult sensation, helped in part by their concurrent emphasis on highly stylized visuals and groundbreaking music videos directed by Gerald Casale.