DEVO--Live In The Land Of The Rising Sun
MVD 2004
Of all the bands from the new wave era, perhaps none have been blessed with as favorable a shelf life as DEVO. Their high concept brand of synth-driven quirk and twitch sounds as vital today as it did ahead of its time back then. Truly, DEVO are one of a kind. Live In The Land Of The Rising Sun catches the band during a rare recent tour over in Japan. They may not be a very active stage unit anymore, but these spuds still effortlessly deliver all the magic that made them so great in the first place.
The main program of Live In The Land Of The Rising Sun boasts a full-length DEVO set from 2003. In terms of setlist, the band give you what would probably be considered by most the bulk of the fan faves. "Jocko Homo," "Mongoloid," "Blockhead," and of course "Whip It" are amongst the pack. It's all great and just having an official DEVO DVD on the market is treat in itself. Still, it might've been an even cooler coup for diehards if some of the more obscure gems like "Big Mess" or "Explosions" off the criminally underrated Oh, No! It's Devo album had been included. That's just nitpicking, though--rest assured, this set is an awe-inspiring joy to consume, every second of the way.
Live In The Land Of The Rising Sun also has some excellent bonus features. The most coveted of these is a clip of the band doing "Gut Feeling/Slap Yer Mammy" live in 1980. This particular footage comes from the Target video library, so you know it's a treasure. Again, the only way it could be any better is if they'd included more of it. Fans will also love the interview footage, both from the feature and supplimental sections. Gerald Casale's bits about the language barrier with the Japanese and trying to get laid in spite of it are especially priceless.
All told, there isn't a moment of Live In The Land Of The Rising Sun that's anything less than great. Often times, a band's onstage importance and presence diminishes with the passage of time. Well, there's no de-evolution here, folks. It's poetic that DEVO still manage to sound fresher than the most supposedly cutting edge sounds of today. They probably think that's a sad thing--and they'd most certainly be right. However, in the hearts of fans, it's kind of a good thing. In fact, it's a monumental good thing.
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