(L-R) Gerald Casale, Josh Hager, Mark Mothersbaugh, and Bob Mothersbaugh of Devo play Eventim Apollo in London, England on Aug. 19, 2023. Credit: Raph_PH, CC BY 2.0 , via / Wikimedia Commons
If you would have asked me what my favorite band was when I was 13 years old, I would have unequivocally answered immediately by saying it was a tie between Blondie and Devo. Several (and I mean several) decades later, that answer hasn’t changed a whole lot. On a personal level, Devo was like nothing else I’d ever heard or seen before. I had the great fortune of seeing them at Tampa’s old Jai Alai Fronton in November 1981, and it’s safe to say it was a pivotal, life changing experience for me. Not that I had many other live concert performances under my belt to compare it to, but, damn, did that experience scramble my teenage brain and set me on the course of loving live music as much as I still do.
And, luckily, the Akron, Ohio based groundbreaking band which released its brilliant debut album Q. Are We Not Men? A. We Are Devo in 1978 is still at it. Fresh off a terrifically-crafted and wildly successful co-headlining tour with new wave giants The B-52s, Devo is hitting the road for a stretch of headline shows that includes their debut at Clearwater’s comfy BayCare Sound outdoor music venue. I had the chance to speak to Devo co-founder Gerald Casale prior to the band’s visit to our area, and, although it was difficult to contain the gushing fanboy inside of me who has worshipped Devo since the day I bought my “Whip It” 45 after scraping up enough allowance money, I think I was able to keep my composure and maintain myself long enough to have an interesting chat with Casale.
You’re getting ready to come to perform at the BayCare Sound in Clearwater which is a really cool, fairly new, amphitheater right on the water, but I understand that prior to that, you’re touring with Billy Idol. Is that right?
That’s right, yeah, we have a number of dates with Billy. Like eight or 10 dates with Billy and then six of them afterwards with The B-52s.
I wanted to ask you about the touring you’ve been doing with The B-52s, because that’s such a cool package tour lineup.
Yeah, well it went so well when we did it in the past, you know, the double bill really resonated with people and they wanted to keep it going because the crowds love the whole deal.
Well, I gotta say, that’s a perfect match up. I have to imagine a lot of the audiences are made up of fans of both bands, so that’s like a perfect matchup.
It’s a good crossover crowd.
As far as opening for Billy Idol and then switching over to headlining shows, what’s the major difference, besides the fact you’ll likely play a shorter set as an opening act?
That is true. I think what’s exciting, in a way, is playing for a crowd that isn’t your typical crowd. In other words, you’re playing for people that may have never seen you, and rather than be put off or, afraid of that, we enjoy it. We’re inspired.
That’s really cool that you still get inspired by that after so long…knowing that you’re giving people the chance to see you for the first time ever, maybe ever.
We feel like we can make some converts!
I’m sure! I have to say, and I just have to mention this: the first time I saw Devo was in 1981 here in Tampa, at the old Jai Alai Fronton, and I was very young. It was one of my first concerts, and it just blew my mind, and it changed my entire outlook for what live performance should be about, and just how exciting it could be. I still recall that vividly.
That was at the height of our game, so I’m glad you caught us there because I remember that venue, which was very strange. That stage and the hall itself …just the space! But we were at the height of what we did because we had full production. We had those treadmills, we had rear projection slides, we had films. It was, it was incredible. I mean, I loved what we were doing.
I hadn’t been to that many concerts at that time, but that one just forever changed my view of what good, stunning live performance should be. I’ll never forget that one.
Yeah, we weren’t boring.
No, not at all! One thing I’ve noticed too in more current years of seeing Devo live is that I’ve seen a lot of younger people in the audiences, and it seems like there’s a lot of younger people who are going back and discovering your music, and the music of the B-52s, as well as the music of so many great bands that we grew up with. What do you think it is about the music, or what do you think the appeal is for people who were not even born when some of those records came out?
Well, because of a certain kernel of validity to what we did withstands the test of time. And what’s interesting is what you just said, which is we go out and when we do our festivals or headline gigs, we look out in an audience and, OK, some of them are there because they were there in the beginning and they’re still alive and with their kids, and then their kids’ kids and we’re seeing three generations of people, getting off on Devo, and it’s very interesting because those kids discovered us via YouTube and Vimeo, and whatever, and they’re mouthing the words and they’re dancing because I think, in their time, they’ve never seen or, heard, anything like Devo so it’s almost like an exciting novelty. They can’t believe these old guys are doing this.
I have to imagine that’s a big part of it because, really, there’s still nothing else like a Devo experience to me.
I’m glad that younger kids get to experience it, because Devo wasn’t just about some linear style like The Knack, like, ‘Here we are, white shirts, black ties.’ It was conceptual, and it was never hip. It was art driven, and that’s why it doesn’t age the same way as stuff that relied on style aged.
That’s a great point. Another thing I hear a lot, too, is a lot of younger bands citing Devo as an influence and talking about how Devo impacted them. What does that feel like for you all when you hear these bands mentioning you as an influence?
We’re really honored and heartened by that, because it’s like, our favorite bands were always bands that inspired other bands and other creative artists. We were an artists’ band; other artists cite us because we inspired them to do what they did.
Right. So now you’re just passing it forward to all these other bands, which is really cool. I’d heard that you’re recording some new stuff. Can we expect any new Devo music anytime soon?
I’m recording a lot of stuff right now and I’m trying to finish an album’s worth of songs. I did release my protest against our fearless leader. It’s called “Just Do It,” and it’s out there. And there’s a video for it. And, you know, I’m just so appalled at what’s going on.
I think a lot of people are. So, I’ll be looking forward to your upcoming full-length album, as I’m sure many Devo fans will too. And, speaking of Devo fans, I know earlier you referenced the people who were there from the beginning and who have stuck by you. Devo still has a very, very voracious, diehard following. Does that surprise you?
No, not at all. I think, because Devo was about something that was new and polarizing and thought provoking, that you had to invest something to be a Devo fan, and you got beat up if you were a Devo fan. So, way before Lady Gaga had her Little Monsters or ICP had Juggalos, or their crowd, [we had] The Beautiful Mutants, The Spuds. It was a cult, and it still is.
That’s just a true testament to the music, to the presentation, to what you’ve done throughout the years. It’s so great. Speaking of getting beat up, I will say that’s true because, when I wore my Devo t-shirt to junior high school the day after I attended my first concert of yours, I get tons of threats from people I didn’t even know. They said, “I’m gonna kick your ass for wearing that shirt!,” but, at that point, I didn’t care. I was like I’ve just seen the greatest show of my young life, so you can say what you want to me, and I’m totally fine with it.
There’s always this thing about mainstream society, and being intolerant of anybody else who’s got any other kind of point of view. We were appealing to the disenfranchised kids, and the marginalized kids way back when, when there was nobody representing them.
I can tell you straight up that I felt that because, once I saw that show and while I listened to all my Devo records, I felt like I belonged. I felt like I had found something that I could be part of that was different from everybody else and it made me feel so comfortable and so at home. So, thank you.
Well, we were those kids at one point, and we knew exactly who we were appealing to.
Well, you did a good job of making people like me feel welcomed.
To me that’s what the real America is about. See, I thought it was about individual liberty and tolerance. I didn’t think it was about fascism and dictatorial demands and tyrants, and so for Devo, we were raising the flag for all of those who were being persecuted.
And you still are, and I’m so grateful for that, as are so many other people I’m sure. I wanted to ask you about this current tour… I’ve heard rumors that this is going to be it; that this is a farewell tour. Is that so?
Well, yes and no. You know, to be fair and to be honest, a farewell tour takes two or three years to go to all the markets who are interested in you, around the world to complete it. And we haven’t done that. We will continue, probably in the next year. We haven’t gone to South America. We haven’t gone to Spain, we haven’t gone to France. We haven’t gone to Italy. We haven’t gone to Austria. We haven’t gone to New Zealand. We haven’t gone to Australia or Japan. You know, there’s a lot of places to go.
Well, good, I’m glad that you’ll continue to do that so that everybody around the world can get that chance to see you. Lastly, with all the music and the catalog you have, how difficult is it for you all to pick out which songs you want to play for any given set list? or any given tour?
I mean it’s hard to switch them out. It is hard because everything involves designed lighting and video backdrops, and the 14-man crew has to know what you’re doing. And the front of house mixers have to know what’s coming. And so it all requires preparation and rehearsal. It can’t be like Bob Dylan, where you go, “OK, call out a song, and I’ll start it on my acoustic guitar”. You know, it’s not plug and play.
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This article appears in August 13 – 19, 2026.
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