The Kingsmob

Today's Mood: Obsequious
Today's Drink: Large amounts of Coke from a case acquired for very cheap.
Today's Song: 20 Chumbawamba - We Don't Go To God's House Anymore.mp3
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Thousands of Parents Cry Out in Gratitude

There is an unheralded Renaissance in progress right now in the United States, one that is going unnoticed but will have an effect on American society for years to come. The artistic revolution in question is happening in the most unlikely art forms -- children's music.

There was a time when the only music produced for kids was some of the most insipid, pandering condescending crap imaginable. The phrase "children's Music" paints nauseating images of Raffi or some equally offensive, soft spoken creep churning out low quality, goofy music that should only be used as a torture device for the most heinous criminals. There were a whole slew of these creepy types who if actually given access to children would alarm any aware parent as a possible child molester.

Kids liked it, for no other reason than they knew no better. This is why children's music as it used to be was so evil. We offered children the lowest quality "music" at the crucial time when their musical tastes are first developing. How can we expect people to develop taste beyond the Britney Spears of the world when we raise them on intellectually and artistically vapid trash?

In addition to the scarring on the collective ability to appreciate music, parent have suffered greatly. I can't imagine being part of the great American Mini-Van army of the past. Poor parents had to drive around listening to this crap. It a wonder that more parents haven't set themselves on fire in some sort of public statement against the human rights violation occurring daily in the "family truckster".

However, over the last few years there has been a paradigm shift in the production of music for kids. New artists have emerged produce music that is not only educational and enriching for children but actually sounds pretty damn good too. Some of these artists have risen to be the forerunners of the genre. Laurie Berkner hit the scene via the Viacom owned Noggin network. Her songs are a little on the folkish side but they are quite catchy and the lyrics are cleaver and fun. Dan Zanes produces kids songs with an alt-country flair as if Wilco were a kids band. Even aging popsters, They Might be Giants have released at least three albums of music produced specifically for children. All of these artists are not only bearable, but in the case of Zanes and They Might be Giants, are down right rockin'.


My Angry Youth, Reflected in a Fun House Mirror

One of the newest additions to our kid's music arsenal is a very strange group. One that caused a lot of introspection before my final acceptance. My daughter has become enthralled with a kid's group called DEV2.O. If you are around my age and were ever hip you should recognize this as a Play on DEVO. In fact DEVO2.O is the second generation of the classic 80's Synth Art group. The band is made up of kids, playing antiseptic renditions of classic DEVO tunes.

At first I was horrified. I couldn't believe that a mainstay of 80's alternative culture had been inverted into a squeaky clean children's product. One made by Disney no less. DEVO was in my opinion one of the most subversive bands of the 80's. The concept of DEVOLUTION point an accusatory finger at the road of consumerism and greed bolstered by our mass-produced plastic culture. DEVO took the concept and positioned themselves as the poster-boys for the DEVOLUTION concept. They were the spokesmen for the "brave new world" and the authors of it's sound track. They managed to take this artistic platform and serve it up as a mass-produced product eagerly consumed by the masses, there by increasing the ironic effect of DEVOLUTION.

I couldn't believe that the geniuses behind DEVOLUTION would allow the concept to be watered down and made into a consumer-friendly mass produced product. After investigating the group, I was shocked to learn that not only was the group endorsed by the bad but the children were hand-picked by DEVO themselves. The group also produced the record and the associated DVD. I was appalled.


Sometimes Subversion is More Subtle Then It Seems

After feeling pretty disillusioned by DEV2.O, I began to realize that this actually fits right into the concept of DEVOLUTION. The original group was a plastic, computerized glimpse at where we are headed. The band held a mirror up to society's dependence on technology, our obsession with consumerism and our dehumanizing need to conform. They were the theoretical result of DEVOLUTION. However, they were the first model. If the artistic concept of DEVOLUTION is taken to the logical conclusion, then it is a force of nature, like Evolution and continues down a set path. If DEVO was the first generation of the DEVOLVED, than DEV2.O is the logical next step. They are the improved model. A clean, mass-produced bauble with wide-appeal. Plastic and cute, they represent everything that DEVOLUTION represents. Instated to believe that this had to be one of the reasons behind the project. Using corporate media to advance an 20 year-old artistic statement against consumerism and reinforcing the subversive message through an ironic reality. The fact that the original concept has been purged of all surrealist humor, social satire and radical undertones only makes the original concept more valid and cutting. I was convinced that this had to be behind the creation of the group.

After reading about the band and a few interviews with Mark Mothersbaugh confirmed my suspicions. They did indeed see this as the logical progression of the DEVOLUTION statement. The idea is to use the DEV2.o concept to show that DEVOLUTION has progressed far beyond the nightmarish vision of the original group. However, in the process they wanted to make the music fun and interesting to kids. The concept is pure genius.


Yeah, Yeah. Enough with the Intellectual Shit -- Do they Suck?

Surprisingly, DEV2.O is a pretty damn good interpretation of the original DEVO sound. The recordings are top notch and all those kinds can play. All of the songs have all of the hooks from the original DEVO tunes and are just as much fun to listen to. Nicole Stoehr, the frontperson of the new DEVO is one of the coolest 11 year-old girls I have ever seen in my life. She has a great voice, does a pretty good job of singing in a DEVO-esque style while not simply aping the original vocals. She has great presence and really look cool in front of the group. I have to admit that I really like this record and have listened to it a few time with my kids no where in sight. I still prefer the original but the new version is pretty fun.


And Just Why Are You Telling Us This?

Well mostly because I narrowly averted a serious mid-life crisis. For a moment, I thought I was witnessing the most despicable coercion of my youth culture. I was afraid that perhaps, the culture that I feasted upon while growing up is being recycled into typical pop trash and that everything in my youth had been rendered void. After really checking DEV2.O out, I can rest easy. It is every bit as subversive and the original and my kids dig it too. I get to keep feeling relevant and the music in the car does have to totally eat it.

I wouldn't even mind seeing "Sigue Sigue Sputkidz" sometime soon. However, as soon as I see releases by bands like, "The Little Misfits" or "The Black Flag Kids" I will end up on a Burger King roof with a high powered automatic rifle.