Devo: The new wave band John Lydon wanted to join
From day one, John Lydon always marched to the beat of his own drum. Throughout his time with Sex Pistols and later with Public Image Ltd, he was more than happy to say what was on his mind, going out of his way to be as offensive as possible whenever he had the camera’s attention. Even though Lydon could often be harsh on any rock band he wasn’t in, Lydon would have gladly thrown it all away to join one punk-adjacent act.
By the time Lydon had joined Sex Pistols, rock and roll was in dire need of a reset. Although bands like Led Zeppelin were paving the way for stadium rock across every one of their albums, the influx of various prog rock acts made the genre feel more like a parody of itself, with outfits like Yes even wearing various wizard garb whenever they went onstage.
Leaving behind the pageantry of rock, Lydon, then known as Johnny Rotten, was looking to bring the genre back to street level. Throughout the band’s only album, Nevermind the Bollocks, Lydon is practically assaulting the listener with every line that comes out of his mouth, from his need to spread chaos on ‘Anarchy in the UK’ to lambasting the monarchs on ‘God Save the Queen’.
Even though the band presented the most high-profile revolutions the rock world had ever seen, it practically ended before it had properly begun. After making the biggest headlines they could ask for, they were a walking disaster when they decided to tour America, not limited to Sid Vicious carving his chest during various gigs.
Once the rest of the band limped back to England, though, a new subgenre was slowly consuming punk. Emerging with groups like Joy Division, the sounds of post-punk were just getting started, taking the rudimentary musicianship of punk and blending it with art rock and a touch of electronica in the mix.
While England may have helped pioneer the sounds of new wave, Devo was one of the genre’s first American success stories. Looking like rock and roll robots, Mark Mothersbaugh had made songs about tearing down everything about the genre, including a warped cover of The Rolling Stones’ ‘Satisfaction’ on their debut album. Before Public Image Ltd had properly started, though, Lydon was blown away.
When talking about their early days, Mothersbaugh remembered one meeting with music mogul Richard Branson, which included an offer from Lydon: “[He said], ‘I’ve got reporters from Melody Maker, Sounds, and New Music Express, the three English papers; they’re all in the hotel right now. And Johnny Rotten is here. Johnny Rotten wants to join Devo. If you want, we can go down to the beach right now and make an announcement and sign something on the beach, and Johnny Rotten can join Devo.”
While Mothersbaugh would decline the offer from one of the kings of punk, it’s easy to see what Lydon would have been drawn to. Throughout their history, Devo was known for making songs that had catchy hooks while at the same time taking the piss out of the traditional rock and roll construct. As opposed to the rock gods of old, Lydon could appreciate Mothersbaugh’s theories of devolution.
