With "Come Back Jonee" as a total subversion of classic rocker "Johnny B. Goode", this song establishes that the demolition of classic rock tunes is a Devo M/O. Here we get a namedrop of "Twist and Shout". It is only a namedrop this time however. Thematically, "Gates of Steel" is a different beast, though that namedrop has a purpose. By conjuring that happy song from the past, a song people loved to dance to, it makes you notice how comparatively hopeless things are getting now. The idea of twisting and shouting used to be a good time, but now it sounds like something unpleasant.
With "Come Back Jonee" as a total subversion of classic rocker "Johnny B. Goode", this song establishes that the demolition of classic rock tunes is a Devo M/O. Here we get a namedrop of "Twist and Shout". It is only a namedrop this time however. Thematically, "Gates of Steel" is a different beast, though that namedrop has a purpose. By conjuring that happy song from the past, a song people loved to dance to, it makes you notice how comparatively hopeless things are getting now. The idea of twisting and shouting used to be a good time, but now it sounds like something unpleasant.