Devo's Mothersbaugh Doesn't Dig Rage's 'Beautiful World'

03/16/2001 6:00 PM, Yahoo! Music
Neal Weiss

(3/16/01, 6 p.m. ET) -- Fans of the recent Rage Against The Machine covers album, Renegades, might have taken note that one of the odder song choices by the band was the Devo classic, "Beautiful World." Devo's own Mark Mothersbaugh heard the rap-metal band's version of his group's song and came away stumped.

He tells LAUNCH: "Wow, is that depressing or what? You know, it's like people always misinterpret Devo. You know, it's like, at least two different bands covered 'Freedom Of Choice' in the last three or four years, and both of them--I couldn't believe it--it's like both of them, it gets to the end and where it goes, 'Freedom of choice is what you've got, freedom from choice is what you want,' nobody ever got that right. They all ignored... it's like they didn't hear it and they just keep going, (sings) 'Freedom of choice is what you....' No. The whole song was a build-up to that last chorus, and you never even paid attention."

In recent years, "Freedom Of Choice" has been covered by industrial group Psychotica and ska band Kelly's Heroes. While Devo itself remains on the sidelines, several members of the group, including Mothersbaugh, have recorded the debut album by the Wipeouters, According to its newly unearthed legend, the Akron, Ohio, band was the late-'60s surf band precursor to Devo that showcased the so-called "North Coast" sound of yesteryear. P'Twaaang!!!, the Wipeouters' debut, arrives from the Casual Tonalities label on April 24.

-- Neal Weiss, Los Angeles

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