Oh, No! It's Devo

Very smart clean vinyl with a good cover showing minor sticker removal tear.

Oh, No! It's Devo is the fifth studio album by the American new wave band Devo. It was originally released in October 1982, on the labels Warner Bros., and Virgin. The album was recorded over a period of four months between May and September 1982. By the time of its release, Devo were a full-fledged synth-pop act, with guitar-based new wave sounds pushed more towards the background. Most of the music on Oh, No! It's Devo was created by electronic means which gave it a much different sound than, for example, their 1978 debut Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo!, which relied more on guitars than synthesizers. This alienated some fans despite the band stating since at least 1978 that their goal was to "de-emphasize" guitars. The album was produced with prominent producer Roy Thomas Baker, who had famously worked with both Queen and The Cars, among many others.

In recent interviews, Devo's co-founder and bass guitarist Gerald Casale had stated that the album was born out of critical reviews in which the band were alternately described as both "fascists" and "clowns."^[2] In response, the band decided to make an album that would answer the question, "what would an album by fascist clowns sound like?" ^[3]

The song "I Desire" brought the band controversy because the lyrics were taken directly from a poem written by John Hinckley, Jr. (who had attempted to assassinate U.S. President Ronald Reagan, as the culmination of an effort to impress actress Jodie Foster).^[4] "Big Mess" was inspired by a series of letters sent to a radio disc jockey by a personality who went by the name "Cowboy Kim" and who was believed to be a sufferer of schizophrenia.^[5]

Devo took on another new look for this album, wearing black t-shirts and slacks with white "Spud Ring" collars. In concert, these were augmented with Energy domes, and the New Traditionalists shirts and ascots for part of the performance. The LP jacket had a cutout stand on the back so it could be stood up like a picture frame.