But by the start of the '90s, the group was on its last legs. And the writing on the wall came with the release of their eighth album, Smooth Noodle Maps. It was so poorly received that afterward, DEVO went on hiatus and wouldn't release another album for twenty years.
Devo backstage at Max's Kansas City, New York, New York, November 15, 1977Photo by Allan Tannenbaum/Getty Images
"I know the public is going to hear this release and they're going to say, 'That's not DEVO,'" interviewer Dan Bailey said to DEVO's Mark Mothersbaugh in 1990, ahead of Smooth Noodle Maps's release.
When asked to describe Smooth Noodle Maps, Motehrsbaugh said DEVO was a "little less naïve on this record than we ever were before."
Indeed, it did happen. Smooth Noodle Maps failed to chart anywhere. Village Voice critic Robert Christgau called it a dud, and Rolling Stonehas since dubbed it one of the "genuinely horrible albums by brilliant artists."
"Around '88, '89, '90 maybe, we did our last tour in Europe, and it was kind of at that point," Mothersbaugh said in an interview, per Past Prime. "We were watching This Is Spinal Tap on the bus and said, 'Oh my God, that's our life.' And we just said, 'Things have to change.' So we kind of agreed from there that we wouldn't do live shows anymore."
DEVO and Fred Armisen attend SNL50: The Homecoming Concert at Radio City Music HallPhoto by Sean Zanni/Patrick McMullan via Getty Images
The hiatus didn't stick: DEVO reunited in 1996, playing sporadically throughout the years. They wouldn't release another album (Something For Everybody) until 2010, twenty years after Smooth Noodle Maps.
Related: Legendary '60s Rock Band Released a Song 45 Years Ago That Led to Their Split
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