50 Years of DEVOlution (Continued): DEVO at the Met - May 1, 2025

 50 Years of DEVOlution (Continued): DEVO at the Met - May 1, 2025

by John Brenner

The phrase “bucket list” gets tossed around so often it can lose its meaning—but every now and then, it truly fits. For me, if there was ever a “White Whale” band sitting at the very top of my bucket list, it was DEVO. Since Mark Mothersbaugh has his other life creating brilliant music for TV and movies, DEVO isn’t always a priority. Their sporadic reunions and rare tours made them feel like a mythical creature—hugely influential, yet always just out of reach. DEVO was one of the first bands I latched onto when I started digging into punk rock, but for years, seeing them live just never panned out.

So when they announced another leg of their 50th anniversary/farewell tour—with the first stop in Philadelphia—I was ecstatic. I was finally going to see DEVO.

My friend and I arrived at the Met on a Thursday night, buzzing with anticipation. Side note: the Met is stunning. I hadn’t been there since it reopened, having spent most of the last decade living in Florida. I was genuinely impressed. If you haven’t seen a show there, add it to your bucket list.

With no opener, the show was set to begin at 8 p.m., and right on schedule—following a cheeky warm-up video—the band hit the stage at 8:15. They kicked things off with Don’t Shoot (I’m a Man) from their criminally underrated 2010 album Something for Everybody. It was a brave choice being a “newer” song, but the crowd responded enthusiastically.

What followed was 100 minutes of pure joy—one killer song after another, packed with costume changes, mesmerizing visuals, and an expertly curated setlist. We got the certified bangers from the early albums, the unforgettable covers of Satisfaction and Secret Agent Man, deep cuts, and of course, the hits. A track like Whip It—which unfairly boxed them into “one-hit wonder” territory—was performed with so much energy and fun, it reignited how revolutionary it really was.

Still, for me, everything felt like it was building towards a killer conclusion—and it delivered. The final song of the main set was my all-time favorite DEVO track, Gates of Steel. If you’re someone who goes to a lot of shows, you know the magic of that “I can die happy after hearing that live” feeling. This was one of those moments.

The encore opened with a powerful intro to Freedom of Choice. “Freedom of choice—don’t you miss that?” A single sentence that cut deep. Then came Gut Feeling, and suddenly I wasn’t sure Gates of Steel was my favorite anymore. For the second time in one set, I had that “I can die happy now” moment—and somehow, it still wasn’t the last.

They closed the night with their haunting and anthemic Beautiful World, set to a moving visual montage depicting society’s devolution. As the finale played out, they tossed branded bounce balls into the crowd—I managed to grab one, a perfect little souvenir from a perfect show. And just like that, by 10 p.m., we were in our Uber home.

Well done, DEVO. Here’s hoping this wasn’t really the farewell. If another leg gets announced, I’m there wearing an energy dome.

If you're a music lover and enjoyed this DEVO recap, be sure to check out the Nerdthusiast Music Podcast! From deep dives into legendary bands to discovering hidden gems across all genres, we keep the beat going. Tune in on Spotify here: Nerdthusiast Music Podcast.