Thread by @latifnasser

A tiny story about how tragedy ripples thru culture and history. /1

#OTD: May 4, 1970. Ohio National Guard fires on unarmed Kent State student protestors, killing four.  Among the crowd: art student Jerry Casale. He knew two of the students who got killed. /2

Over the next few months, the campus is locked down. Casale and fellow student protester Bob Lewis channel their anguish into a weird new style of art. The central idea: everything is going to hell. People and society seem to be getting worse, to be devolving. /3

They call it Art Devo.
At some point, they get more members, start playing music, mostly bass and synthesizers, and call their band DEVO.
But you can still clearly hear in some of their songs, this same idea of devolution ... /4

“I don’t think I would have started Devo had that [Kent State] not happened,” Casale has said, “It’s that simple.”

Makes you wonder about all the new styles and genres of everything being hatched right now in COVID-isolated studios/garages/basements across the world … /5

A million places to read more about the tragic origin of this brilliant weirdo band, but maybe start here devobook.net
kent.edu/art/news/remem…
/end