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Devo

Rubber Robot Records was an underground label that, in the late '70s and early '80s, provided nothing but Devo bootlegs -- some live, some studio-oriented. The company really got into Devo's de-evolution concept, and its illicit LPs contained long-winded essays that elaborated on the band's ideas. Released in 1979, Can U Take It? was Rubber Robot's first Devo bootleg. This LP offers rare studio demos from 1974-1977 (including "Can U Take It?," which eventually ended up on Rykodisc's very legal 1991 collection Hardcore Devo, Vol. 2) as well as live performances that were probably recorded in 1978 and 1979; regrettably, Rubber Robot fails to list venues, cities, or exact recording dates. What we do know is that the sound quality is generally decent -- not audiophile quality, but decent -- and that Devo sounds inspired on live performances that range from "Jocko Homo," "Wiggly World," and "Sloppy" to "Come Back, Jonee" and "Smart Patrol/Mr. DNA." Devo's performances make for a lot of goofy, wacky fun and, yet, there is a method to the madness. For all its goofiness and eccentricity, Devo had an important message -- one that was anti-fascist and discouraged mindless conformity. Like George Clinton and Parliament/Funkadelic, Devo knew how to use madcap humor to get a serious point across. If you were an enthusiastic Devo collector back in 1979, Can U Take It? was worth searching for. ~ Alex Henderson, All Music Guide