[.ca] P'twaaang!!!

From Amazon.co.uk:
A brief history behind Ptwaaang... Take the Mothersbaugh brothers in ace, flowerpot wearing, whip-cracking, devolutionary outfit Devo. They never wanted to be iconoclastic pop stars, leaders of a whole new school of thought. No sir. All the Mothersbaughs ever wanted was to live out their youthful dreams of being in a school-time surf band, surfboards to the ready, strumming and twanging along to the likes of Dick Dale, Jan & Dean and The Ventures. Hence, the Wipeouters--a deranged cross between The Trashmen, the B-52s and Devo. Hence "Wedgie Wipeout", swinging "Luna Goona Park" and sampladelic "Shut Up Little Man!". Hence P'twaaang!!!: 13 space age, silver-suited, sun-flecked, mostly instrumental tracks guaranteed to make even the dowdiest of beach parties go with a p'swiiiiing. --Jerry Thackray

Serendipity!:
I got this CD for a few reasons: I was trying to complete my Devo collection; I liked the Mutato stuff and figured this would be similar; I like surf music and wanted to see what these guys did with the genre. I figured that I would listen, find it amusing, and then put it away, the main advantage being that I could say that I had heard the disk and had a copy. Well, strictly speaking, a lot of this stuff isn't surfer music. But at a party, you could easily shuffle it in with a stack of old surfer disks for a touch of something different. You could call it mood music, I guess, but it's music for a *good* mood. In other words, I got more than I expected from this disk. It's nice to have for posterity's sake, but it's also a really fun listen.

SURFS UP,ROBO-HODADS!!:
A lot of people seem to think "Surf" music doesn't include lyrics,I wonder where these people were in the 60's? Even the classic "Wipeout!" by the Surfaris,had to have a vocal! The Beach Boys,Jan & Dean,The Trashmen,Big Daddy Ed Roth....surf and lyrics.( Oh well...guess you had to actually be there.) That said. This collection has TWO origins. Origin#1:pre-DEVO,Mark,Bob#1,Jim,and Bob#2 had the idea to be a surf band,fiddled around with it,and eventually dropped it to become DEVO. Origin #2:Mark Mothersbaugh was approached to do music for a cartoon about surfboards and skateboards called "Rocket Power".( Thus the "Rocket Power Theme" track.) And so,a retro-legend was made! "DEVO don't surf!"...how wrong you are Charlie! Way back since their E-Z Listening Muzak sessions,DEVO have chomped at the Surf/Tiki-Lounge bit. And now they have delved into it,and their origins....Devolution in action. But then...this outfit isn't all DEVO,it's Mark,Bob#1,Bob#2,and Josh Mancell on Drums.( Replacing original drummer Jim Mothersbaugh....whom still turns up on the album!) Only four songs actually have vocals,one has some sampling...doesn't ruin the mood or concept. "P'Twaang!" definitely sets the tone,as a brilliant surf piece and parody of "Wipeout".( It also sounds like the theme to a Surf-Detective TV series.) "Twist 'N' Launch" is a wierd surfified version of DEVO's own "Happy Guy"...and it somehow works. The album starts off sorta shakey,but once it hits the "Rocket Power Theme" it really takes off. Mark goes for a wide selection of intruments,including Ukelele's and Sitars! "Wedgie Wipeout","Rocket-ful of Power" and "Nubbie Boardsmen" are all by the book surf tunes....with a sci-fi edge.The amusing album punchline comes with the meshing of 90's Sampling and 60's surf in the craziness we call "Shut Up Little Man!",brimming with B-Movie cheesiness! The one track that can be called "DEVO" is "Luna Goona Park". This is because Gerry Casale is involved with this one. It's a lot of fun. And would probably make it on to any surf tribute album. Good choice guys! When Robots ride the surf...be assured The Wipeouters will be supplying the soundtrack! Buy it for the music....buy it for the crazy retro-picture of The Wipeouters circa 1964!!

Not Like the Original Devo Stuff But Still Lots of Fun:
I've always liked Devo. To keep the review short and sweet, all I can say is, it's not Devo. Not many vocals, but it's still lots of fun. I was surprised how much I liked it on first listen (honestly, I wasn't expecting much). After a few times of listening to the entire CD I did start to find it a bit wearing, but it does hold up well as fun music when you're working outside and just want to have something blasting.... If you're a Devo fan and are looking for something new, I would recommend it.

Nice surprise and a fun treat:
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Nice surprise and a fun treat:
I bought this as more of a collector's item than anything else. Even though I never cared for (OK, hated bitterly) their last two records, it's still kind of depressing to me that there are no new Devo albums being released these days. I bought this thinking I'd listen to it once and then put it on the shelf and forget about it. But I've actually been listening to it almost everyday. It maybe surf-ish, but it's still often unmistakably Devo-ish as well. One song even sounds remarkably like their really OLD stuff, the basement demo stuff on Hardcore Devo vols. 1 & 2. And I feel really guilty about it, but Shut Up, Little Man! cracks me up every time I hear it. I feel guilty because I think it's recording of an actual emotionally/psychologically abusive father. I'm going to hell...

• P' Twaang!!!
• Dangerdog
• Surf's Up on Goon Island
• Twist 'N' Launch
• Bikini Beach
• Ravin' Surf
• Rocket Power Theme
• Wedgie Wipeout
• Wounded Surfer
• Luna Goona Park
• Nubbie Boardsmen
• Rocket-Ful of Power
• Shut Up, Little Man!