I caught DEVO in Seattle this weekend. It was a great show because it ended at 8pm and I didn’t have to stay up past midnight. And oh yeah, it was also a great show! They played for around an hour and a half or more, including a couple of quick costume changes. Aside from a couple songs in the first third of the set where it seems to drag a little, the rest of the night was very high energy. They opened with “Don’t Shoot (I’m A Man)” off Something For Everyone, and the rest was a mix of songs from Are We Not Men, Oh, No! It’s Devo, Freedom Of Choice, and Duty Now For The Future before closing with a guest appearance from Booji Boy singing “Beautiful World” off New Traditionalists. I found myself with a big stupid grin involuntarily plastered on my face the whole time, and Booji nearly brought me to tears with no alcohol or drugs involved! I highly recommend seeing them live if you can. Skateboarding? During “Freedom Of Choice” they showed some of the original music video footage shot at Marina del Rey skatepark on the big screen. We’re all DEVO.

About a year and a half a go I was at KPub waiting to place an order for some very delicious Korean food when a video for an unknown (to me) Kpop band showed up on the TV screen on the wall near the counter. I assume it’s Kpop, maybe it’s Jpop or some other pop. These dreamy boys cavorted in skateboard related scenarios, complete with subtitles. I have no idea who this band is or what the song title is. I believe there was more “skateboarding” in the video but I didn’t catch very much of it once I decided to try and capture it. UPDATE: Video identified thanks to Steven Aycock. Band: Ateez. Song: Wave. Skatepark?

Two unrelated bands, two unrelated songs, two unrelated skateboards. This post has been in draft mode so long that the Night Birds have since disbanded, but fortunately The Wimps appear to be still active, and not to mention, actively embracing skateboarding hot-dogs.

It’s mid 1980 and the term “music video” had yet to be coined. Meanwhile, Devo had been making films to accompany their music since 1976. The skateboarding industry is slumping, so much so that Skateboarder magazine changes it’s name to “Action Now” to include nascent Extreme!®™ sports coverage in an attempt to broaden the appeal and hopefully stay afloat. Action Now published a 6 page feature on the making of Devo’s “Freedom of Choice” in issue #1 dated August, 1980. They titled it “Freedom of Choice – The Film.” 1980 was an interesting time for skateboarding and music. The magazine’s record reviews covered X, Devo, Frank Zappa, John Foxx, Emmylou Harris, and a jazz fusion act called The Jeff Lorber Fusion (and the album Wizard Island). There’s an ad for Corky Carroll’s “A Surfer for President” album, and an article on up-and-coming LA bands Human Hands, and Wall of Voodoo as well as a couple of random pics of the Stimulators. Devo blew minds. I know they blew my mind when I unexpectedly saw them on SNL in 1978 performing Satisfaction. I did not know what I was looking at or listening to, but it instantly connected with me on…

Old Steve Grover (Remember GVK?) texted me from Puerto Rico to let me know the 70’s channel was playing a video of the Osmonds on skateboards while singing “Do You Know The Way To San Jose?” Tracking down the video was a piece of cake, but because of the lazy nature of the internet, there is no backstory for those with skateboarding ephemera OCD. If legendary and sorely missed Scott Starr was still alive I would have doubtless been able get the answer with a quick email. After some digging around (way too much) I found a reference in the 2006 book Television Variety Shows by David M. Inman. Based purely on the visuals and the fact that it was in color I would have guessed early 70’s, but it turns out it originally aired on the 1968 season 2 premier of the Jerry Lewis Show.

Surely you’ve seen the Little Big video from the still (above left) all over social media this week. I can’t really stomach the music, but I can appreciate the weirdness. Delving into their back catalog revealed a handful of bizarre amusing videos, including Hateful Love, one that features a meat skateboard. Bonus video for Punks Not Dead as well, after the jump.

Normally I might push this post off to the Broken Kingpins section without comment but the Tubuloids video for It’s Getting Weird connected with me on a primal level. I think GVK missed his calling. Their album on Beer City Records doesn’t come out until October, but you can preorder it now.

Jan and Dean’s 1964 song Sidewalk Surfin’ is pretty much the first skatesploitation song. I haven’t actually researched that, Doc Skaterock probably knows for sure. It’s easily the most famous one. As a young lad I remember buying a cutout Jan & Dean greatest hits compilation on cassette tape just because of this song. Before we were exposed to the larger world of punk rock and skate rock, we actually used to derive a bit of stoke from this cheesy tune, and later on would bust it out for a laugh and some nostalgia.

Apparently J. Mascis is not over it, and has taken to skateboarding in a music video again. The Dinosaur Jr. video for “Tiny” looks like it was shot at the Northampton, MA skatepark. Aside from J. pushing around the park, there’s also a skateboarding dog and some roller derby action. It’s decent tune that will stick in your head, but the dog is not impressed at the end. – Thanks to Tom Tallboycan for the tip

Old school analog stop action animation and old school 90’s Riot Grrrl music going way back to… oh, 2014. Skateboarding! She’s no Maria McKee. ( Looks for crosslink on Skate and Annoy with Lone Justice video of Ways to be Wicked with Maria McKee on a skateboard, doesn’t find it, rectifies situation in this post. )