Song Name: Fresh
Artist: DEVO
Featured In:[1]
- Focus Group Testing[2]
- DEVO Cat Listening Party[3]
Appears On:
- “Fresh” (2023 Remaster): 50 Years Of De-Evolution (1973-2023)
Run Time: 3:02
Personnel:
Years Performed: 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013setlist.fm
Writing Credits:
- Gerald V. Casale
- Mark Mothersbaugh
Sung By: Mark Mothersbaugh (lead, chorus), Gerald V. Casale (chorus, additional), Bob Casale (backing), Bob Mothersbaugh (backing)
Alternate Version
- Fresh – unreleased instrumental (about 2:57)[5]
Trivia / Info:[]
- Recorded at Mutato Muzika by Bob Casale and Van Coppock[6]
- Additional audio engineering by Doug Boehm and Paul Hager. Additional recording and programming by Paul Hager. [Brother of Josh 2.]
- Mixed by Greg Kurstin
- Produced by Greg Kurstin, John Hill, and Santi White
- Live and rare versions available at BBB[8]
Lyrics:
- Something in the air
- Is telling me to go there
- So I'll follow my nose,
- Go wherever it goes
- It's calling from around the corner,
- Waiting just outside of town
- Trailing vapors sweet and tangy,
- Daring me to track it down
- It's blanketing the high-rise towers,
- Blasting through the sands of time
- It's useless to resist its power –
- It's now or never
- (So fresh!)
- I'll search until I find it
- (So fresh!)
- I'm closing in behind it
- (So fresh!)
- Nothing could be better
- (So fresh!)
- Like I died and went to heaven
- (So fresh it almost makes me want to) cry-aye-aye-aye-aye-aye-aye-aye-aye-aye-aye-aye-aye-i
- (So fresh it's givin' me a second) lo-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-ah-uh-ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ife
- I see a fork in the road,
- Where it goes I don't know
- I won't even think twice,
- I really don't have a choice
- It's calling from around the corner,
- Waiting just outside of town
- Trailing vapors sweet and tangy,
- Daring me to track it down
- It's blanketing the high-rise towers,
- Blasting through the sands of time
- It's useless to resist its power –
- It's now or never
- (So fresh!)
- I'll search until I find it
- (So fresh!)
- I'm closing in behind it
- (So fresh!)
- Nothing could be better
- (So fresh!)
- Like I died and went to heaven
- (So fresh!)
- (So fresh!)
- (So fresh!)
- (So fresh!)
- (So fresh it almost makes me want to) cry-aye-aye-aye-aye-aye-aye-aye-aye-aye-aye-aye-aye-i
- (So fresh it's givin' me a second) lo-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-ah-uh-ah-ah-ah-ah-ah-ife
- (So fresh it almost makes me want to) cry-aye-aye-aye-aye-aye-aye-aye-aye-aye-aye-aye-aɪ-ī
- (So fresh it's givin' me a second) lo-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-əʊ-ah-uh-ah-ah-ah-ah-ɑː-aɪf
- (So Fresh!)
Video:[]
- “Fresh” (2:59) was uploaded to DEVOvision on November 7th, 2025.[11]
- DEVO talk about this video in Episode 9, at DEVOvision.
- Fan videos and cover versions of “Fresh” are available online.
Additional Info:[]
- “The songs are all about Devo and the process of making music together. Some are more cloaked than others.” - Jerry (2010)[12]
- Song lyric allusions include DEVO making “fresh” music again,[13] and to the scent of a woman (akin to “Girl U Want” lyrics).
- Bob 1 said he changed the solo at the request of song co-producer Santi White.[14]
- DEVO debuted the final form of “Fresh”, in an internationally telecast concert, performing the song live at the Winter Olympics.[15]
- Before the album’s final tracklist was decided, the new album’s working title was Fresh.[16]
- An email address was etched into the Record Store Day single, allowing 200 respondents to get a limited edition multi-artist single; Greetings From Akron Ohio - Home Of Devo & The Black Keys.
References: []
- ↑
- "Fresh" also appears in:
- DEVO Makes Something For Everybody (outtake)
- “DEVO MSFE Outtakes 9 - Jacob Goes to the Olympics” uploaded to YouTube by Frank Sol
- ↑
Focus Group Testing
- DEVO Focus Group 3 New Single: “Fresh”
- “DEVO : Fresh : Tell Us What You Think Of This Song : Click Here To Leave Your Feedback“
- “DEVO - Fresh (Focus Group Testing New Song)” uploaded to YouTube by @DEVOvision
- ↑
- "Fresh" is featured in the timelapse video of the DEVO Cat Listening Party : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DVLebnwKAkM
- "Fresh" also appeared in the original real-time video of the DEVO Cat Listening Party.
- Listeners could hear "Fresh", and other SFE tracks, during the limited time album streaming.
- Real-time video included cats interacting with cat toys, in a room with an oversize, carpet covered energy dome.
- Tattoo inspired by Cat Listening Party : https://devo-obsesso.com/html/html_tatts/megan_ultimate.html
- ↑
- Singles
- Fresh
- Fresh (Album Version) (3:04) / What We Do (Album Version) (3:23)
- Song Study
- Fresh (Album Version) (3:04) / What We Do (Album Version) (3:23) / Song Study [video] (2:01)
- The Fresh / What We Do single was also available as a promo digital download : https://web.archive.org/web/*/http://wbr.edgeboss.net/wmedia/wbr/devo/audio/devo*
- ↑
- “DEVO - Let's Get To It (Instrumental)” uploaded to YouTube by spudb0yy 2
- ↑
- Demo: A demo version of “Fresh” was completed in 2009:
- “DEVO - Fresh (2009 Demo)” uploaded to YouTube by Devolved Spudgun
- ↑
- DEVO debuted “Fresh”, “What We Do”, and “Don’t Shoot (I’m A Man) songs and backing videos within their set performed March 20, 2009 at the SxSW festival in Austin, Texas.
- ↑
- Live and rare versions of “Fresh” are available at Booji Boy’s Basement:
- boojiboysbasement.com/?s=Fresh
- ↑
- Josh Freese – Roland electronic V-drums, white, and rubber-coated V-cymbals, black [prop] Vater wooden drumsticks, Hickory
- Gerald Casale – Steinberger L2 headless electric bass guitar, black w/ clear strap
- Bob Mothersbaugh – Ibanez potato / cloud custom electric guitar, blue [3] w/ clear strap
- Bob Casale – Roland AX-7 MIDI controller keytar, white [prop] w/ clear strap
- ↑
- A strutting DEVA wears a purple bottom.
- A British Shorthair kitten, with wide open copper-amber colored eyes, wears light brown fur. (A different breed kitten is shown in the concert backing video.)
- A Yorkshire Terrier wears a tri-color Partie Yorkie coat of fur; black, white, and tan, and a small brown leather, buckled dog collar.
- (At 2:11,) a tabby, black-and-white striped kitten’s mouth is agape and its eyes are wide open.
- (At 2:14,) a Teddy Bear Pomeranian toy dog side-eyes the camera, wearing a rusty red colored coat of fur.
- Succulent produce wears a glossy coating of wax.
- Animated dot eyes wear alternating expressions that are wide-eyed, and then mournful, leaking a shower of tears.
- A generic, silhouetted business man wears a “monkey suit”.
- A generic American city wears a light sheen of moisture.
- ↑
- A devolved quality version of “Fresh” (2:59) was uploaded, on November 7th, 2025, by the publicity people now managing this YouTube channel.
- This may be another video upload with anti-pirating features.
- The actual high-quality video may be included in the newest video compilation release.
- https://www.reddit.com/r/devo/comments/1ot8mty/why_the_youtube_videos_are_broken/
- Boogie Boys respond to the glitching uploader: “You Ain’t Fresh”
- ↑
- Chris William. “21 : Pedal To The Meta”, The Secret History of DEVO : Masterminds Mark Mothersbaugh and Jerry Casale (with a little help from Josh Freese) trace the evolution of the de-evolutionists, Spin (2010, August): 78
- ↑
- Chris William. “21 Pedal To The Meta”, The Secret History of DEVO : Masterminds Mark Mothersbaugh and Jerry Casale (with a little help from Josh Freese) trace the evolution of the de-evolutionists, Spin (2010, August): 78
- “The songs are all about Devo and the process of making music together. Some are more cloaked than others.” - Jerry (2010)
- ↑
- Santi White had previously included a remix of “Be Stiff” as track 8 on the 35-track remix album she issued with DJ Diplo in 2008. [4]
- ↑
- DEVO debuted the album version of “Fresh”, in an internationally telecast concert, performing the song live at the Winter Olympics.
- Subsequently, free previews of “Fresh” and “What We Do” were available as MP3 format limited time downloads.
- splash.clubdevo.com/olympics/
- undertheradar.co.nz/utr/more/NID/1983/Download-New-Single-From-Devo---Fresh.utr
- Subsequently, free previews of “Fresh” and “What We Do” were available as MP3 format limited time downloads.
- ↑
- Cortney Harding. “DEVO” : “Title TBD (Warner Bros., April)”, Best Bets 2010, Billboard (2010, January 23) (PDF, 33 of 56)
- “...A consciously ironic corporate marketing strategy for the album, which Casale hopes to call ‘Something for Everybody’ despite the publicized working title of ‘Fresh.’ The final track list is still being decided but is likely to feature the high-energy (and ‘focus group-approved,’ according to Casale) ‘Please Baby Please,’ as well as tracks by producers including Greg Kurstin and John Hill.”
- Cortney Harding. “DEVO” : “Title TBD (Warner Bros., April)”, Best Bets 2010, Billboard (2010, January 23) (PDF, 33 of 56)
Links:[]