Devo’s New Sleeveless Turtleneck Tradition

In this section I highlight the worst vintage t-shirts ever created. No, I don’t mean Bad in the 1980s Michael Jackson way … I mean:  offensive, vile, in poor taste, politically incorrect, or just plain ugly.

T-Shirt: Devo New Traditionalists Fan Club T-Shirt

Type: Band

Offense: Paradoxically Ugly

Uses: You’re a member of Devo, OR, one of your hangers desperately needs a shirt on it.

Don’t get me wrong, I love Devo and 99.9% percent of vintage Devo t-shirts. I love the trend-setting fashion gimmicks and uniforms they used. Truth be told, I’m actually wearing an Energy Dome as I type this. I love all their imagery, logos, layout, and use of color. But this sleeveless red turtleneck atrocity is definitely the exception that proves the rule.

For openers, a sleeveless tee / turtleneck combo clashes in terms of its weather-friendly features. If it’s warm enough to go sleeveless, why would you want a turtleneck on? It doesn’t make any sense, but I’m sure that’s why Devo did it. This turtleneck is actually thicker fabric than the base of the shirt and it’s pretty long so it bunches up under your chin. Yuck.

To make matters worse, both sleeveless and turtlenecks are difficult to pull off even when not sewn together. Please don’t go sleeveless unless you’ve got a toned torso and fit arms. And pass on turtlenecks unless you’re a professor and it’s worn under a corduroy blazer with elbow patches.

Now that you know what to avoid there’s plenty of amazing vintage Devo t-shirts here.

Check out “The 10 Worst Vintage Band Tees You Must Wear” or our previous worst entry: Bloody Stools t-shirt.