Talking Heads is easily my favorite New Wave band. Devo, Blondie, The Police. Even though Devo isn't really New Wave.

"Devo isn't really New Wave?" Granted I am the most DEVOted Devo fan in this thread, I am going to be biased and the term/genre New Wave can be stretched to fit a wide group of people as its not so easily defined.

However that statement sounds very wrong to me. You can argue there is post punk moments with them or even synthpop.

While I myself will say that Devo is thee most New Wave band it may just be a personal view, yet I think its is factually inaccurate to say that Devo is not really a new wave band.

Devo being New wave.


Devo being punk/post punk.


Devo being synthpop/disco


Besides......The Police have a larger discography of white guys doing Reggae Rock than New wave tracks which they have done.

Finally the MOST New wave track you will ever get is of course from the wonderful Gary with his question.

The media called every new band in the 80's "New Wave". If Devo was European they would have been called progressive. Whip It & Beautiful World are the only full new wave songs I've heard from them.

New Wave is a vague term, but tons of european bands were labeled that way. Why would the band's location matter?
You mean progressive rock? Devo are nothing like that and I doubt anyone would categorize them as such.

New Wave didn't become "vague" term into the mid 80's. Before that it was a actual sound, you could hear in the music; somewhere down the line it become pop rock. I listen to a lot of music, so I hear things different from others, even things not intended by the artist.

If we are only talking about a certain period in time then their can be a discussion on what is and is not New wave during the period of 1971 to 1981.

There is even a discussion on what is New wave through the 80s before as you say mid 80s is becomes an easier term to throw around and call synth pop such.

So how about we do that?

You throw down some videos on what you consider New wave and more so your absolute best showcase of what is New wave as well as what you do not consider and see if you can make us come around, you have over 15 posts this is possible for you.

So if your citing Whip it and Beautiful world as thee most New wave songs of Devo that you at least know of. Then maybe the two albums that featured them might contain more.

Which both these albums are very early 80s.

Freedom of Choice album from 1980 featuring Whip It.


New Traditionalists album from 1981 featuring Beautiful world.



Which when looking for an example of thee most New wave Devo tracks I found myself sifting through these two albums the most, which also houses the punky Gates of Steel.

Bravo. :clap:

Ive never heard a statement that arrogant before. For your sake i hope you're right but i gotta tell you, you haven't said anything so far that would back such a claim.

Devo can totally be considered new wave or synth pop or even art punk. they've been labeled that by tons of ppl including fans and even casual listeners, you can go ahead and claim your comprehension of music surpasses all of them but at some point you're gonna have to prove it with more than vague generalizations on how the mainstream media perceives what is new wave.

Strange that you quoted me & still tried to distort my words. Not once did I say my music comprehension surpassed anyone's; what I said was I heard things differently. & I was talking about how some artist were labeled new wave (Grace Jones, Robert Palmer, Wham!). I was off when I said it because vague in the mid 80's; it started earlier than that.

What did you mean when you said you hear things different from others even things not intended by the artist.?

that was the part that set me off cause i read it as you saying that you know what genre an artist should be labeled as even if he doesn't know it himself.