Category: Lists & Beginner’s Guides (Page 4 of 23)

A Beginner’s Guide to DAN LACKSMAN

23 April 2023 /

Born in 1950, German-born Belgian synth pioneer and producer Dan Lacksman began learning about music when he was 12.

Becoming proficient on piano and guitar, his first two loves were THE SHADOWS and THE BEATLES. Fascinated by the art of recording, he set-up the bones of his first home studio with a second hand tape recorder in his parents’ dining room and acquired more instruments along the way. After he left school, he went to study to become a professional recording engineer, but frustrated by the experience, he sought something more hands-on and found a job as a tape-op with Studio Madeleine in Brussels.

Established by Félix-Robert Faecq who was A&R at Decca Belgium, it saw Lacksman working with a number of the top hit making engineers and musicians in the Benelux region. Fascinated by the increasing use of electronics in music, Lacksman’s first synthesizer purchase was an EMS VCS 3 that still works today and in situ at his Synsound studios. But it was his investment in a Moog IIIP modular system that was to prove crucial as he made several albums under the name ELECTRONIC SYSTEM.

But Lacksman was to find fame when he formed the seminal electronic trio TELEX with noted jazz musician Marc Moulin and vocalist Michel Moers in 1978. Their aim was to make “something really European, different from rock, without guitar”. Their first single was a cover of ‘Twist à Saint Tropez’ which was made famous by LES CHATS SAUVAGES and developed around an electronic arrangement which Lacksman had blueprinted on ‘Rock Machine’, a track from his ‘Disco Machine’ album as ELECTRONIC SYSTEM.

The self-penned album opener ‘Moscow Diskow’ heralded a new phase in electronic dance music that had been seeded by the Giorgio Moroder produced ‘I Feel Love’ in 1977 and became a club favourite. But in 1979, TELEX unexpectedly found themselves on ‘Top Of The Pops’ when their deadpan funereal version of ‘Rock Around The Clock’ reached No34 in the UK singles charts. Meanwhile, Lacksman and Moulin found themselves at the top of the French charts when ‘Le Banana Split’, a track they produced for Belgian-based starlet Lio sold one million copies.

In 1980, Lacksman founded Synsound Studios in Brussels but TELEX were to get their 15 minutes of fame when they represented Belgium in the 1980 Eurovision Song Contest. Entering with a bouncy electropop tune entitled ‘Euro-Vision’, it had deliberately banal lyrics about the event highlighting that although the borders were open for one night with everyone well-dressed, after the contest, the borders would close and everyone would be back to square one. With Lacksman’s Moog modular behind them, TELEX’s amusing Situationist performance concluded with Moers stoically taking a photo of the bemused audience in The Hague.

While TELEX would release further albums and see SPARKS act as collaborators on their third long player ‘Sex’, Lacksman continued a parallel production and engineering career while also expanding his Synsound Studios into a second complex and having the likes of David Bowie, Harumi Hosono, Thomas Dolby, Youssou N’Dour, Etienne Daho and Florian Schneider use their facilities.

TELEX reunited in 2006 for the ‘How Do You Dance?’ album on Virgin Records and finding themselves welcomed back by the artists who had they had helped lay the electronic foundations for, the trio did remixes for DEPECHE MODE and PET SHOP BOYS. Sadly Marc Moulin passed away in 2008 and TELEX was retired. Fast forward to today and TELEX find themselves in a new partnership with Daniel Miller and Mute for the release of a new six disc box set containing the albums ‘Looking For Saint-Tropez’, ‘Neurovision’, ‘Sex’, ‘Wonderful World’, ‘Looney Tunes’ and ‘How Do You Dance?’.

With that in mind, it is fitting that Dan Lacksman should be more recognised for his trailblazing technical endeavours in the name of electronic music. ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK is proud to present a selection of 20 works which he had a hand in… listed in yearly and then alphabetical order, some of his many achievements will pleasantly surprise.

DAN LACKSMAN Happiness Is A Cold Beer (1973)

Releasing his first solo single ‘I Start A Dream To-Day’ in 1971, Dan Lackman’s eventual self-titled debut album was a eclectic mixture of banjo driven country rock, psychedelic folk, acoustic ballads and bluesy synth-flavoured rock ‘n’ roll. Possibly recorded while inebriated, ‘Happiness Is A Cold Beer’ was like an electronic Fats Domino using his Moog IIIP modular alongside Mellotron, piano and guitar. It was a sign of things to come.

Available on the DAN LACKSMAN album ‘Dan Lacksman’ via Real Gone Music

https://danlacksman.com/

ELECTRONIC SYSTEM Flight To Venus (1977) 

For more experimental but melodic instrumentals, Lacksman went out as THE ELECTRONIC SYSTEM with ‘Coconut’ being the first long playing release in 1973. As well as the jolly title track, it notably included covers of ‘La Bamba’ and Giorgio Moroder’s ‘Son Of My Father’. Taking the latter’s lead on the sixth album ‘Disco Machine’, ‘Flight To Venus’ was a magnificent slice of throbbing electronic disco which THE CHEMICAL BROTHERS later sampled for ‘Star Guitar’.

Available on the ELECTRONIC SYSTEM album ‘Disco Machine’ via Omega International

https://www.facebook.com/danlacksmanmusic

PLASTIC BERTRAND Tout Petit La Planète (1978)

Roger Jouret found fame in 1977 as Plastic Bertrand with ‘Ça Plane Pour Moi’ released by Belgian label RKM who TELEX also eventually signed to. Away from “plastique punk”, there was the smooth electronic disco of ‘Tout Petit La Planète’ on which Lackman’s performed synths and vocoder. In 2010, Jouret admitted he did not sing on any of the first four Plastic Bertrand albums and the vocals were by producer Lou Deprijck.

Available on the PLASTIC BERTRAND album ‘Greatest Hits’ via Choice Of Music

https://www.plasticbertrand.com/

TRANS VOLTA Disco Computer (1978)

TRANS VOLTA was Dan Lacksman’s one-off collaboration with American trumpeter Douglas Lucas who released several albums on RKM as well as founding the Afro-jazz ensemble MOMBASA, ‘Disco Computer’ was another brilliant homage to Giorgio Moroder. Imagining the mind of a machine making dance music, the robotised lead prophetically announced “I am the future” aided by arcade game bleeps and Cerrone-influenced drums.

Available on the compilation album ‘The Sound Of Belgium’ (V/A) via La Musique Fait La Force

https://www.discogs.com/artist/144074-Transvolta

PATRICK HERNANDEZ Born To Be Alive (1979)

Working with Belgian producer Jean Vanloo, French singer Patrick Hernandez had a worldwide hit with ‘Born to Be Alive’; it was infectious but thanks to its unique vocal intonation, potentially very annoying. Throwing in the kitchen sink, it also featured a synthbass sequence from a Roland System 100 programmed by Dan Lacksman. A young Madonna was part of Hernandez’s touring dance troupe.

Available on the PATRICK HERNANDEZ album ‘Born To Be Alive’ via Cherry Pop

https://www.facebook.com/patrick.hernandez3

LIO Le Banana Split (1979)

Named after a ‘Barbarella’ character, Portugese-born Lio worked with songwriters Jacques Duvall and Jay Alanski while Dan Lacksman and TELEX bandmate Marc Moulin were recruited as the main producers for her premier Lio album. ‘Le Banana Split’ recalled the delightful coquettish yé-yé girls such as France Gall and was No1 in France. Meanwhile, the song found new life in the recent “Hello Yellow” iPhone 14 advert.

Available on the LIO album ‘Lio’ via ZE Records

https://www.instagram.com/lio_la_vraie/

TELEX Ça Plane Pour Moi (1979)

While TELEX caused a stir by covering the old classic ‘Rock Around The Clock’ at a funereal pace, reinterpreting a comparatively new Euro-punk number in ‘Ça Plane Pour Moi’ in the same fashion was more surprising… or was it? “Well, it was to please our producer as it was the same record company” laughed Michel Moers. “But we thought it would be funny to do as it was a very fast track, to make it slower and add vocoder…” Lacksman added.

Available on the TELEX album ‘Looking For Saint-Tropez’ as part of the boxed set via Mute Artists

https://mutebank.co.uk/collections/telex

SŒUR SOURIRE Dominque – Version 1982 (1982)

Jeannine Deckers, known as Sœur Sourire in French or The Singing Nun in English-speaking territories, shot to fame in 1963 with ‘Dominique’ although after leaving the church, she lived in poverty. Attempting to revive her fortunes, she was teamed with Dan Lacksman and Marc Moulin to rework her biggest hit. “We did an electronic version with Soeur Sourire, it was a complete flop!” said Lacksman. Deckers sadly took her own life in 1985.

Originally released as a single on Scalp Records, currently unavailable

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Singing_Nun

TELEX Haven’t We Met Somewhere Before? (1982)

‘Haven’t We Met Somewhere Before?’ was a TELEX collaboration with SPARKS which came about by accident. Russell Mael had met Lio on a French TV show and proposed writing English lyrics for her next album. They arranged to work at Dan Lacksman’s studio in Brussels but Lio never arrived. TELEX played the Maels some tapes so SPARKS remained in the city to work on the ‘Sex’ album, commuting by tram to the studio, enjoying the attention from fans recognising them.

Available on the TELEX album ‘Sex’ as part of the boxed set via Mute Artists

https://www.facebook.com/ThisIsTelex

MIHARU KOSHI L’Amour Toujours (1983)

TELEX and YELLOW MAGIC ORCHESTRA had much in common and Japanese trio’s leader Haruomi Hosono came over to Brussels to record a cover of TELEX’s ‘L’Amour Toujours’ with chanteuse Miharu Koshi whose album he was producing. ”It was fantastic” remembered Lacksman of the sessions at his studio which also featured Marc Moulin on synth, “we were very close technically, those three days were really incredible…”

Available on the MIHARU KOSHI album ‘Tutu’ via Great Tracks

https://www.miharukoshi.info/

THOMAS DOLBY Hyperactive! (1983)

Having had his first solo material appear on the compilation ‘From Brussels With Love’, Thomas Dolby ventured over to the Belgian capital to record his second album ‘The Flat Earth’ with Dan Lacksman engineering. Despite being labelled a “synth boffin”, Dolby aimed to make a much more organic sounding record despite the use of a Fairlight. One of the big surprises was the speedy art-funk of ‘Hyperactive!’ which had been pitched to Michael Jackson.

Available on the THOMAS DOLBY album ‘The Flat Earth’ via EMI Music

https://www.thomasdolby.com/

SPARKS Music You Can Dance To (1986)

When SPARKS returned to Brussels to record with Dan Lacksman, the release of ‘Change’ in 1985 had not been received well. In what turned out to be a one-off single on London Records, one A&R muttered to the Maels: “why can’t you make music that you can dance to?” – but from criticism comes inspiration and this led to ‘Music That You Can Dance To’. Making use of a Fairlight, Roland Jupiter 8 and Yamaha DX7, the energetic similarities to ERASURE’s ‘Oh L’Amour’ did not go unnoticed.

Available on the album ‘Music You Can Dance To’ via Repertoire Records

https://allsparks.com/

DEEP FOREST Sweet Lullaby (1992)

A French duo comprising of Eric Mouquet and Michel Sanchez, DEEP FOREST were along with ENIGMA, pioneers of “Global Pop”, a type of ambient dance music combined with ethnic sound samples. Spening over a year to craft the record, the producer of their self-titled first album was Dan Lacksman and with ‘Sweet Lullaby’, he found himself part of yet another worldwide hit.

Available on the DEEP FOREST album ‘Deep Forest’ via Columbia Records

https://www.deep-forest.fr/

CAMOUFLAGE In Your Ivory Tower (1993)

Dan Lacksman had been the main producer of the second CAMOUFLAGE album ‘Methods Of Silence’.  He returned in 1993 to helm ‘Bodega Bohemia’ and the end result was the Germans’ best album since their 1988 debut ‘Voices & Images’. While the album’s hit single came with the ‘Violator’-lite of ‘Suspicious Love’, the closing 9 minute Sylvian-esque drama of ‘In Your Ivory Tower’ was its crowning glory.

Available on the CAMOUFLAGE album ‘Bodega Bohemia’ via Universal Music

https://www.camouflage-music.com/en/News

PANGEA Memories Of Pangea (1996)

Developing on the exotic new age of DEEP FOREST, Lacksman formed his own project PANGEA. Named after the ancient supercontinent that once comprised of Africa, India, South America, Antarctica and Australia, it told the story of “once upon a time at the beginning of earth”. ‘Memories Of Pangea’ was conceived with the idea of “one earth” and how technology was able to unite all like one continent.

Available on the PANGEA album ‘Pangea’ via EastWest

https://www.discogs.com/artist/71181-Pangea

SANDRINE COLLARD Cache-Cache Dans Le Noir (2002)

‘Cache-Cache Dans Le Noir’, the first single by Belgian singer Sandrine Collard recalled Lio. So it was no big surprise to learn that Dan Lacksman had produced it. Blippy electronic pop with wispy vocals, and translating as “hide and seek in the dark”, she saw her lyrics as parodies of her own life. A reluctant pop star, Collard had even suggested to Lacksman that his daughter Alice should record her songs; she was persuaded otherwise.

Available on the SANDRINE COLLARD album ‘Je Communique’ via Need Records

https://www.discogs.com/release/4037388-Sandrine-Collard-Je-Communique

DEPECHE MODE A Pain That I Am Used To – TELEX remix (2006)

Capturing “pain and suffering in various tempos”, ‘Playing The Angel’ was a return to form of sorts for DEPECHE MODE after the painfully lacklustre ‘Exciter’. Already a brooding epic in its original form, TELEX made ‘A Pain That I Am Used To’ more electronic and more metronomic with a deep throb and bass resonance. It tied in perfectly with the trio’s return with new recordings after a lengthy hiatus and began an association with Mute that would see fruition 15 years later.

Available on the DEPECHE MODE boxed set ‘Playing The Angel – The 12” Singles’ via Sony Music

https://www.depechemode.com/

TELEX La Bamba (2006)

While ‘Rock Around The Clock’ was TELEX’s only UK hit, it set the tone for their later cover versions which often saw the trio slow rock n’ roll classics right down “so that old people can even dance to it” as Michel Moers joked – Lacksman had already recorded a faster version for ELECTRONIC SYSTEM in 1973 that used acoustic guitar as well as synths, but he had been itching to realise a purer electronic vision.

Available on the TELEX album ‘This Is Telex’ via Mute Artists

https://www.instagram.com/this_is_telex/

DAN & ALICE LACKSMAN Bonjour Monsieur Hulot (2013)

Dan Lacksman released his first solo LP in nearly four decades to express his ‘Electric Dreams’. The sequencer heavy ‘I Want My Space’ harked back to ELECTRONIC SYSTEM and while the album was instrumental melodies, an interesting curio was ‘Bonjour Monsieur Hulot’. A sweet electro chanson duet with his producer daughter Alice, the song recalled TELEX in spirit with its sense of humour.

Available on the DAN LACKSMAN album ‘Electric Dreams’ via 77 Recordings

https://www.facebook.com/danlacksmanmusic

FLORIAN SCHNEIDER & DAN LACKSMAN Stop Plastic Pollution (2015)

Having left KRAFTWERK in 2008, the late Florian Schneider was enjoying his retirement but while on holiday in Ghana, he observed the local fishermen were catching nothing but plastic rubbish in their nets. He teamed up with Dan Lacksman and environmental campaign group Parley For The Oceans, recording ‘Stop Plastic Pollution’ to raise awareness of the issue. The message was “Stop plastic pollution in the oceans… save the fish… keep your planet clean.”

Not officially released, listen at https://soundcloud.com/dazedandconfused/stop-plastic-pollution-florian-schneiderkraftwerk-co-founder-dan-lacksman-telex

https://www.parley.tv/updates/2016/1/6/stop-plastic-pollution-florian-schneider-for-the-oceans

Text by Chi Ming Lai
23rd April 2023

A Beginner’s Guide To MIKE THORNE

20 February 2023 /

Photo by JR Host

Born in Sunderland, Mike Thorne began learning to play piano at the age of 11.  

The lessons sparked a passion for music that led to him buying a tape recorder so that he could record songs off the radio. He then studied composition at The Guildhall School of Music & Drama. But despite later graduating with a physics degree from Oxford University, the music industry was where he wanted to be. His first jobs included tape op, journalist and then A&R at EMI looking after THE SEX PISTOLS during their short tenure at the label in 1976.

This led to becoming a house record producer at EMI and his first assignment involved recording 120 saxophones playing ‘The White Cliffs Of Dover’. After recording several live albums including ‘Live at The Roxy’, Thorne got his break producing French rock band TÉLÉPHONE whose eponymous debut album went gold.

New Yorkers THE SHIRTS and the Peter Godwin fronted METRO were among those followed, but it was his work on the first three albums by WIRE – a band he spotted and signed to PINK FLOYD’s label Harvest – that drew the most critical acclaim. The records demonstrated Thorne’s willingness to experiment in the studio, stripping down structures while adding electronic elements where appropriate.

Recognising that electronics and computers were the future of pop music and that a reinvention was likely by responding to new possibilities, Thorne had the foresight to purchase the first version of the NED Synclavier in 1979. A polyphonic digital sampling system and music workstation which used FM synthesis, it was to become his production mainstay and arrived in time for Colin Newman of WIRE’s first solo release and Scottish new wave quartet BERLIN BLONDES’ only long player.

Thorne moved to New York to become a freelance producer, working mostly at Media Sound Studio. But it was while in London working on the soundtrack to a Julie Christie film ‘Memoirs Of A Survivor’ that Thorne was commissioned by Phonogram Records to produce their new signing B-MOVIE. The deal had been brokered by Some Bizzare, an umbrella organisation that was more stable than label and part of the 2-for-1 arrangement was for him to work with a Northern synth duo called SOFT CELL. The rest, as they say, is history…

‘Tainted Love’, a cover of a song written by Ed Cobb and recorded by Gloria Jones, went to No1 and was the biggest selling UK single of 1981. It also spent a staggering 43 weeks on the US Billboard Hot 100. During the recording of ‘Tainted Love’, Thorne conceived a new way of producing an extended dance mix… the 12” single would be arranged and recorded first, with the 7” single version edited from sections of the longer track. Phonogram boss Roger Ames felt the track was a little slow so it was varispeeded up slightly for release!

Meanwhile, SOFT CELL were to enter an imperial phase of five successive Top4 UK hit singles with Thorne at the production helm including ‘Bedsitter’, ‘Say Hello Wave Goodbye’, ‘Torch’ and ‘What’. However, with the overwhelming success of their debut long player ‘Non Stop Erotic Cabaret’, tensions brewed during the recording of SOFT CELL’s appropriately titled second album ‘The Art Of Falling Apart’ leading to Thorne parting ways with the duo.

In 1984, Thorne was to produce one of the most important albums of his career when he was teamed up with BRONSKI BEAT for ‘The Age Of Consent’. The trio soon fragmented after its release, but Thorne followed their lead singer Jimmy Somerville to his new project THE COMMUNARDS with Richard Coles to achieve yet another No1 in a HI-NRG cover of ‘Don’t Leave Me This Way’; it was also the best-selling UK single of 1986.

Thorne’s ethos was always “to make music I liked with people I liked”. As well as working with more esoteric clients such as Marianne Faithful, Nina Hagen and Laurie Anderson, he was appreciated for his crossover potential in the mainstream with Daryl Hall & John Oates commissioning him to construct an Extended Club Mix of ‘Maneater’ in 1984 which included a breakdown clearly influenced by the middle section of the ‘Tainted Love’/ Where Did Our Love Go’ 12” segue.

Although Thorne ceased working as a hired hand from 1995, he continued as a producer for artists signed to his label imprint The Stereo Society while he issued his first his solo record ‘The Contessa’s Party’ in 2005 featuring special guests Kit Hain, Lene Lovich and Sarah Jane Morris.

Despite achieving two best-selling UK singles of the year, Mike Thorne has often slipped under the radar in discussions about notable record producers who led the start of the digital era. Documenting a significant and trailblazing career, here are 20 tracks selected by ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK which act a Beginner’s Guide to Mike Thorne, listed in yearly and then alphabetical order by artist moniker with a restriction of one track per album project.

WIRE I Am The Fly (1978)

Although WIRE’s debut ‘Pink Flag’ was minimalist post-punk rock, their sophomore offering, ‘Chairs Missing,’ adopted more song structure, art rock approaches and synthesizer textures brought in by Thorne. One of WIRE’s signature tracks, ‘I Am The Fly’ had menace and provocation, prompting audiences at gigs to start lying down, waving their limbs in the air like dying flies! Musically, its influence can be heard from TUBEWAY ARMY’s ‘My Shadow In Vain’ to ELASTICA’s ‘Lined Up’.

Available on the WIRE album ‘Chairs Missing’ via Pink Flag

http://www.pinkflag.com/

BERLIN BLONDES Framework (1980)

A meeting of synthesizers, art rock and obscure vocals, Glasgow’s BERLIN BLONDES exuded the detached European cool of David Bowie during his Mauerstadt exile and were unusual at the time for using a drum machine. The quartet only made one album produced by Thorne which was recorded at Gary Numan’s Rock City Studios, ‘Framework’ was syncopated futurist disco featuring crashing electronic beats and icy flashes of synth under the influence of SPARKS and MAGAZINE.

Available on the BERLIN BLONDES album ’The Complete Recordings 1980-81’ via Cherry Red Records

https://www.discogs.com/artist/512473-Berlin-Blondes

COLIN NEWMAN Order For Order (1980)

After three albums, WIRE split for the first time. Their lead vocalist Colin Newman released his first solo album, ‘A-Z’ in 1980, featuring songs created for the anticipated fourth WIRE album. It was produced by Thorne and could be considered a sonic companion to BERLIN BLONDES. ‘Order for Order’, explored the possibilities of new wave mainstream numbers and while some compared it to Gary Numan, it had more in common with MAGAZINE.

Available on the COLIN NEWMAN album ‘A–Z’ via Sentient Sonics

http://www.coldwarnightlife.com/features/shine-on-colin-newman/

B-MOVIE Remembrance Day (1981)

Despite being alongside DEPECHE MODE, SOFT CELL, BLANCMANGE and THE THE on the now iconic ‘Some Bizarre Album’, B-MOVIE were unable to secure a hit with the poignant magnificence of the Thorne produced ‘Remembrance Day’. The struggle for success and internal tensions led to the band fragmenting by 1983. But the song gained cult status and in 2004, American band THE FAINT presented a fine interpolation in ‘Southern Belles In London Sing’ .

Available on the compilation album ‘Dawn Of Electronica’ (V/A) via Demon Music Group

http://www.b-movie.co.uk/

KIT HAIN Spirits Walking Out (1981)

Kit Hain had an international hit ‘Dancing In The City’ with Julian Marshall in 1978 but after the duo split, Hain issued her debut solo album ‘Spirits Walking Out’ produced by Thorne. While ‘Danny’ was to be a minor single success, one of the album highlights was the synthesized cabaret noir of the dramatic title song. Hain was to have a role in the SOFT CELL story as it was her Roland CR78 Compurhythm which Thorne borrowed and used as the rhythmic backbone to ‘Tainted Love’.

Available on the KIT HAIN album ‘Spirits Walking Out’ via Renaissance Records

https://kittusmusic.com/

SOFT CELL Bedsitter – Early Morning Dance Side (1981)

With direction from Thorne, SOFT CELL often incorporated extra vocal sections into their 12” extended formats as on ‘Torch’, ‘Facility Girls’ and ‘Insecure Me’. So instead of purely instrumental breakdown extensions, ‘Bedsitter’ added a marvellous rap from Marc Almond where he asked “do you look a mess, do have a hangover?” before taking a little blusher. The literal kitchen sink drama to song concept saw tea leaves pushed down the drain as the night life started all over again.

Available on the SOFT CELL album ‘The Twelve Inch Singles’ via UMC

https://www.softcell.co.uk/

NINA HAGEN Tiatschi Tarot (1982)

Record in New York with Thorne, ‘NunSexMonkRock’ was the debut solo adventure by eccentric German singer Nina Hagen, as well as her first record with all her songs performed in English after disbanding her band after two acclaimed albums. While it was primarily a dissonant mix of punk, funk and reggae, ‘Taitschi-Tarot’ was a delightful oddball avant opera piece using piano and synths that covered the topics of Buddhism, reincarnation and yoga.

Available on the NINA HAGEN album ‘Nunsexmonkrock’ via Sony Music

https://ninahagendas.beepworld.de/

SOFT CELL Torch – 12” version (1982)

Thorne and Marc Almond agreed that ‘Torch’ was their finest moment of recording together. Punctuated by John Gatchell’s flugelhorn, ‘Torch’ came in the middle of SOFT CELL’s imperial pop phase and the 12” version was a pièce de résistance, fuelled by Almond and Dave Ball partying on the New York club scene where they met Cindy Ecstasy. In an amusing spoken middle section, her nonchalant off-key vocal counterpointed Almond’s fabulously forlorn romanticism.

Available on the SOFT CELL boxed set ‘Keychains & Snowstorms’ via UMC

https://www.facebook.com/softcell

THE THE Uncertain Smile (1982)

Still Matt Johnson’s finest five minutes as THE THE, ‘Uncertain Smile’ on its single release featured a wonderfully rigid TR808 pattern, lovely layers of synths and a variety of woodwinds including flute and sax. Produced by Mike Thorne, this fuller sounding and more emotive take far outstripped the bland and overly-long ‘Soul Mining’ album cut, which had been re-recorded by Thorne associate Paul Hardiman and included the extended boogie-woogie piano of Jools Holland…

Available on the THE THE album ’45 RPM – The Singles’ via Epic Records

https://www.thethe.com/

SEONA DANCING More To Lose (1983)

SEONA DANCING were the synthpop duo comprising of a young Ricky Gervais and his friend Bill McRae formed while they were students at University College London. With Gervais adopting a melodramatic Bowie-like persona as a doomed romantic, their first single ‘More To Lose’ produced by Mike Thorne was of its time. However, its incessant rhythms and tuneful keyboard inflections had appeal and the song became a surprise radio hit in The Philippines.

Available on the SEONA DANCING single ‘More To Lose’ via London Records

http://www.rickygervais.com/

SOFT CELL The Art Of Falling Apart (1983)

Whereas Mike Thorne had been a happy collaborator on their debut album ‘Non Stop Erotic Cabaret’, during the making of the follow-up, he was viewed as a controller and spy for Phonogram. As former art school students, pop stardom did not suit SOFT CELL so there was no option but for Marc Almond and Dave Ball to self-destruct. The imploding disposition of ‘The Art Of Falling Apart’ title song couldn’t have soundtracked a mental breakdown any better.

Available on the album ‘The Art Of Falling Apart’ via Mercury Records

https://www.instagram.com/softcellhq/

BRONSKI BEAT Smalltown Boy (1984)

When BRONSKI BEAT made their first ever TV appearance performing on BBC2’s ‘ORS’,  they were nothing short of startling, thanks to their look, their minimal synth sound and Somerville’s lonely earth shattering falsetto. The trio had sought to be more outspoken and political in their position as openly gay performers and the tale of the Mike Thorne produced ‘Smalltown Boy’ about a gay teenager fleeing his hometown made an important statement.

Available on the BRONSKI BEAT album ‘The Age Of Consent’ via London Records

https://www.jimmysomerville.co.uk/

THE COMMUNARDS Disenchanted (1986)

After leaving BRONSKI BEAT, Jimmy Somerville formed THE COMMUNARDS with future TV vicar Richard Coles and took Thorne with him to produce their self-titled debut. While more organic elements such as piano, brass and strings featured, there remained a HI-NRG electronic element. The brilliant ‘Disenchanted’ heavily recalled the sound of his previous band. Somerville never stuck around for long and his relationship with Coles was dissolved in 1987.

Available on THE COMMUNARDS album ‘Communards’ via London Records

https://www.facebook.com/officialjimmysomerville

HOLLYWOOD BEYOND Save Me (1987)

HOLLYWOOD BEYOND was the vehicle of flamboyant singer-songwriter Mark Rogers and he went Top10 with the Stephen Hague produced ‘What’s The Colour Of Money?’ in 1986. Mike Thorne was brought in to produce one track, ‘Save Me’, for the parent album ‘If’. Released as a single, it was an attempt to make a funkier version of BRONSKI BEAT and THE COMMUNARDS but Rogers lacked the vocal richness of Jimmy Somerville to pull it off.

Available on the HOLLYWOOD BEYOND album ‘If’ via Warner Music

https://www.discogs.com/artist/134514-Hollywood-Beyond

LAURIE ANDERSON The Day The Devil (1989)

Laurie Anderson’s fourth studio album ‘Strange Angels’ saw her attempt to move away from performance art into a more musical territory. Taking singing lessons and developing into a soprano, there was less of the spoken word that characterised her surprise No2 UK hit ‘O Superman’ and its parent album ‘Big Science’. Thorne produced four tracks on the album including ‘The Day the Devil’, a gothic art mini-opera with sinister diabolic overtones.

Available on the LAURIE ANDERSON album ‘Strange Angels’ via Warner Music

https://laurieanderson.com/

CHINA CRISIS Red Letter Day (1989)

While CHINA CRISIS had recorded their fifth album ‘Diary Of A Hollow Horse’ with STEELY DAN’s Walter Becker, Virgin Records had felt there were no potential hit singles. So the band were despatched to re-record three songs including ‘Red Letter Day’. Using a sharp piano figure reminiscent of Rupert Holmes’ one hit wonder ‘Escape (The Pina Colada Song)’ with more counterpoints, synths and vocal harmonies, the track was issued as the album’s second single but no hit was forthcoming.

Available on the CHINA CRISIS album ‘Diary Of A Hollow Horse’ via Virgin Records

https://www.facebook.com/chinacrisisofficial

BRONSKI BEAT I’m Gonna Run Away From You (1990)

Mike Thorne reunited with Steve Bronski and Larry Steinbachek when BRONSKI BEAT were rebooted in a new deal with Zomba Records subsidiary Zed Beat featuring a new vocalist Jonathan Hellyer who possessed a falsetto similar to Jimmy Somerville. The first track released was a frantic dance cover of ‘I’m Gonna Run Away From You’, a Northern Soul song made famous by Tami Lynn. Sadly, Larry Steinbachek passed away in 2017 and Steve Bronski in 2022.

Originally released as a single by Zed Beat, currently unavailable.

http://www.bronskibeat.co.uk/

INFORMATION SOCIETY Peace & Love, Inc (1992)

From Minneapolis, INFORMATION SOCIETY had their breakthrough ‘What’s On Your Mind (Pure Energy)’ in 1988. From the album of the same name on which Thorne produced 4 tracks, ‘Peace & Love, Inc’ was spikey and energetic social commentary with heavy rave influences with 808 STATE samples thrown in. Incidentally another album track ‘To Be Free’ was produced by Karl Bartos under his post-KRAFTWERK guise as ELEKTRIC MUSIC.

Available on the INFORMATION SOCIETY album ‘Peace & Love, Inc’ via Tommy Boy Records

https://www.facebook.com/informationsociety

PETER MURPHY Our Secret Garden (1992)

BAUHAUS front man Peter Murphy sought to capture the live feel of a band, having sampled musicians on his two previous works. But recording had not been straightforward and it was the longest time Thorne had worked on an album. the spacious and exotic ‘Our Secret Garden’ saw keyboards played by Murphy himself alongside the producer’s Synclavier. The ‘Holy Smoke’ album also reunited Thorne with B-MOVIE’s Paul Statham who was now acting as Murphy’s wingman.

Available on the PETER MURPHY album ‘Holy Smoke’ via Beggars Banquet Records

https://www.petermurphy.info/

MARC ALMOND We Need Jealousy (1996)

During Thorne’s reunion with Marc Almond in 1993, the singer was dismayed that the producer was still using his Synclavier. A change in record labels led to Thorne’s productions being remixed by THE BEATMASTERS and BIZARRE INC. Mixed by Gregg Jackman, ‘We Need Jealousy’ featured some great bassline programming augmented by ‘Motorbiking’ guitar by Chris Spedding. The experience drained Thorne, who withdrew from working as a hired hand.

Available on the MARC ALMOND album ‘Fantastic Star’ via Mercury Records

http://www.marcalmond.co.uk/

For personal commentary by Mike Thorne, archive articles and information on releases by The Stereo Society, please visit https://stereosociety.com/

Text by Chi Ming Lai with thanks to Simon Helm
20th February 2023

THE ELECTRONIC LEGACY OF 1983

19 January 2023 /

In addition to albums, several standalone singles were to be key to 1983 for those with a preference for the synthesized form.

NEW ORDER’s ‘Blue Monday’ and KRAFTWERK’s ‘Tour De France’ became iconic works while the David Sylvian and Ryuichi Sakamoto collaboration ‘Forbidden Colours’ not only bravely tackled a topic during a period when gay pop stars and media personalities still felt unable to openly come out, but also reinforced the value of a movie tie-in.

Sampling was no longer the preserve of wealthy musicians and their Fairlights as the cheaper but still expensive Emulator became more widely available. Meanwhile the Roland Jupiter-6, Prophet 600, the Roland TR-909 and Roland MSQ-700 became the first instruments available with MIDI. Digital synthesis became affordable via the astonishingly affordable Yamaha DX7, although it proved to be a nightmare to programme. As a result, the music world fell into a preset trap overnight with the sound of simulated slap bass, flute and harmonica appearing on almost every pop record for the next few years…

But synthesizers and electronic sounds ceased being a desired texture as the huge success of David Bowie with his ‘Let’s Dance’ album meant every band would soon add a brass section to their line-up. SPANDAU BALLET, who perhaps may have triggered pop’s brass aspirations back in 1981 with ‘Chant No1’, went all smaltzy with ‘True’ and this coincided with the rise of pseudo-soul pop such as WHAM! and CULTURE CLUB. Meanwhile, in alternative circles, bands like THE SMITHS were spearheading the backlash with their frontman Morrissey declaring “there was nothing more repellent than the synthesizer…”

However, the old guard from Synth Britannia soldiered on and continued to experiment while acts who perhaps were not electronically-minded at their heart could see the benefits of embracing the developing technology, such as having more streamlined line-ups and dispensing with drummers.

However, a sign of the confusing artistic mindsets of the period came with Gary Numan’s ‘Warriors’ album and its dreadful artwork with our hero looking like Mad Max after a visit to the hair salon, but annoyed that his mulleted mane had been dyed the wrong colour. Things had looked promising for his return to the UK live stage after retiring in 1981, but he fell out with producer Bill Nelson during the recording sessions.

With the embracement of jazz funk influences and sax solos appearing whether they were really needed or not, the result was a well-played if confused record that was the beginning of a creative confidence crisis that would afflict Numan for at least another decade.

So here are 20 albums selected by ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK as contributing to the electronic legacy of 1983. Listed in alphabetical order, there is a restriction of one album per artist moniker where beyond this place, the rains are falling hard…

CABARET VOLTAIRE The Crackdown

Richard H Kirk and Stephen Mallinder became seduced by the sequenced adventures of NEW ORDER and electronic dance music emerging from New York. Signing to Some Bizzare and licensed to Virgin Records, ‘The Crackdown’ was produced by Flood and featured contributions from Dave Ball of SOFT CELL on the title song and ‘Animation’. Meanwhile the stark single ‘Just Fascination’ helped the album become CABARET VOLTAIRE’s highest ever UK chart entry at No31.

‘The Crackdown’ is still available via Mute Artists

https://mute.com/artists/cabaret-voltaire

CHINA CRISIS Working With Fire & Steel – Possible Pop Songs Volume 2

Produced by Mike Howlett, ‘Working With Fire & Steel’ allowed CHINA CRISIS to deliver a more cohesive album following the four producers who steered their debut ‘Difficult Shapes & Passive Rhythms’! Best known for the brilliant ‘Wishful Thinking’, the album is much more with melancholic synth melodies and woodwind counterpoints, from feistier numbers such as ‘Animals In Jungles’ to more atmospheric set pieces like ‘Here Comes A Raincloud’ and ‘The Soul Awakening’.

‘Working With Fire & Steel – Possible Pop Songs Volume 2’ is still available via Caroline International

https://www.facebook.com/chinacrisisofficial

DEPECHE MODE Construction Time Again

The first album featuring Alan Wilder as a full member as well as Gareth Jones as Tonmeister, ‘Construction Time Again’ saw DEPECHE MODE experimenting with found object sampling. Mixed at Hansa Studios in West Berlin, it was a socially conscious record featuring Cold War paranoia on ‘Two Minute Warning’, environmental concerns on ’The Landscape Is Changing’ and the now ironic anti-capitalist statements ‘More Than A Party’, ‘Pipeline’ and ‘Everything Counts’!

‘Construction Time Again’ is still available via Sony Music

https://www.depechemode.com/

DURAN DURAN Seven & The Ragged Tiger

DURAN DURAN may have yielded a 1984 No1 single in a Nile Rodgers remix of ‘The Reflex’ but overall, ‘Seven & The Ragged Tiger’ was an over produced disappointment. Recorded in France and Australia, tensions between the band and producer Ian Little led to the ubiquitous Alex Sadkin to be brought in. Despite this, highlights included the punchy ‘Shadows On Your Side’, the JAPAN inspired instrumental ‘Tiger Tiger’ and the forgotten single ‘New Moon On Monday’.

‘Seven & The Ragged Tiger’ is still available via EMI Music

https://duranduran.com/

ENDGAMES Building Beauty

The success of ABC and HEAVEN 17 heralded a new age of technologically enhanced blue-eyed soul. One band with aspirations in that field were Glasgow’s ENDGAMES. ‘Universe Won’t Mind’, ‘Desire’ and ‘Waiting For Another Chance’ were among the standouts. Meanwhile ‘Love Cares’ was like a funky CHINA CRISIS walking into the recording sessions of ‘The Lexicon Of Love’ and by coincidence, singer David Rudden had a passing resemblance to Gary Daly!

‘Building Beauty’ was originally released on Virgin Records, currently unavailable

https://www.discogs.com/artist/50709-Endgames

BRIAN ENO Apollo: Atmospheres and Soundtracks

Recorded as a soundtrack to a documentary about the Apollo moon missions, Brian Eno wanted to convey the feelings of space travel and weightlessness as a reaction to the uptempo, manner of space travel presented by news reels of the day with their fast cuts and speeded up images. Although based around a Yamaha DX7, it was instrumentally varied featuring Daniel Lanois’ countrified guitar on its best known track ‘Deep Blue Day’, as well as ‘Silver Morning’ and ‘Weightless’.

‘Apollo: Atmospheres and Soundtracks’ is still available via Virgin / EMI Records

http://www.brian-eno.net

EURYTHMICS Sweet Dreams (Are Made Of This)

The first of two EURYTHMICS albums in 1983, after their German-inspired debut ‘In The Garden’, Annie Lennox and David A Stewart explored the synthesizer and acquired a Movement Drum Computer. Recorded in their newly equipped 8 track home studio, ‘Love Is A Stranger’ was the breakthrough. Despite its hopeless nihilism, the title song went global but there were other notable songs such as ‘I Could Give You (A Mirror)’, ‘I’ve Got An Angel’ and the brilliant forgotten single ‘The Walk’.

‘Sweet Dreams (Are Made Of This)’ is still available via RCA

https://www.eurythmics.com/

JOHN FOXX The Golden Section

John Foxx had envisioned ‘The Golden Section’ as “a roots check” with a psychedelic electronic rock flavour. This came to a head on a revised ‘Endlessy’ which captured an accessible uptempo euphoria. With folk laden overtones, ‘Ghosts On Water’ was a highlight along with the powerful opener ‘My Wild Love’. But away from these influences, ‘Twilight’s Last Gleaming’ was a glorious haunting closer. Foxx later remarked the album was a mistake as he tried to “fit too many favourite things together”.

‘The Golden Section’ is still available via Edsel Records

http://www.metamatic.com/

PAUL HAIG Rhythm Of Life

Produced by Alex Sadkin, ‘Rhythm Of Life’ was the one and only attempt by Paul Haig to crack the pop mainstream away from the frantic guitar driven angst of his previous band JOSEF K. Highly percussive and lifted by some sub-ASSOCIATES rhythm guitar and big layered synth riffs, ‘Never Give Up (Party Party)’ showed great promise while ‘Heaven Sent’ was a superb reimagination of SIMPLE MINDS’ ‘I Travel’ for the New York dancefloor. A lack of hits failed to ignite wider interest in the album.

‘Rhythm Of Life’ is still available via Les Disques Du Crépuscule

http://www.paulhaig.com/

HEAVEN 17 The Luxury Gap

After the success of ‘Penthouse & Pavement’, the second album ‘The Luxury Gap’ was HEAVEN 17 aiming to be incredibly popular. With a Roland MC4 Micro-composer and Linn Drum driving their System 100s and Jupiter 4, there were Top 5 hits in ‘Temptation’ and ‘Come Live With Me’. Still experimenting, ‘Lady Ice & Mr Hex’ was a surreal marriage of synthesizers with jazz while with the use of a Roland TB303 Bassline prominently on ‘Let Me Go’ pre-dated acid house.

Available on the album ‘The Luxury Gap’ via Virgin Records

https://www.heaven17.com/

THE HUMAN LEAGUE Fascination!

Trying to follow-up ‘Dare’ proved to be a fractious experience with producer Martin Rushent leaving the sessions after creative conflicts with various members of THE HUMAN LEAGUE. The few completed tracks were issued on a North American mini-album. While included were the ‘Love Action’ B-side ‘Hard Times’, the catchy title single and the electro-Tamla of ‘Mirror Man’, they were topped by ‘You Remind Me Of Gold’ and Rushent’s mix of ‘I Love You too Much’.

‘Fascination!’ is still available as part of the boxed set ‘The Virgin Years’ via Virgin Records

https://www.thehumanleague.co.uk/

NAKED EYES Burning Bridges

Pete Byrne and Rob Fisher were NAKED EYES and while their Simmons heavy Bacharach & David cover of ‘Always Something There To Remind Me’ didn’t trouble the UK Top 40, it reached No8 in the US. Produced by Tony Mansfield of NEW MUSIK, the eponymous debut album used a Fairlight, Synclavier 2, PPG Wave 2.2, Emulator, OBX-a and Prophet 5. Not another Bacharach & David cover, a further US hit came with ‘Promises Promises’.

‘Burning Bridges’ is still available as ‘Naked Eyes’ via Chrysalis Records

https://www.nakedeyesmusic.com/

NEW ORDER Power, Corruption & Lies

Using sequencer-like effects on interim singles ‘Everything’s Gone Green’ and ‘Temptation’ had set NEW ORDER on a new path and while there were still guitar driven songs such as ‘Age Of Consent’ and ‘Leave Me Alone’, hybrids such as ‘The Village’ and ‘Ultraviolence’ utilised a pulsing electronic backbone. ‘Your Silent Face’, dubbed the “KRAFTWERK one”, was the ultimate romantic homage to Kling Klang but strangely, the track that seeded it all ‘586’ lost its menace in its album incarnation.

‘Power, Corruption & Lies’ is still available via Warner Music

http://www.neworder.com/

OMD Dazzle Ships

A brave sonic exploration of Cold War tensions and economic corruption, ‘Dazzle Ships’ was not what Virgin Records expected from OMD after three Top5 hits. Of its two singles, the jangly ‘Genetic Engineering’ was only a minor hit while the scathing attack on TV evangelism ‘Telegraph’ failed to get into the Top40. Although it featured some of the band’s best songs like ‘The Romance Of The Telescope’, ‘International’ and ‘Radio Waves’, ‘Dazzle Ships’ sold poorly on release but it has since been re-evaluated.

‘Dazzle Ships’ is still available via Virgin Records

http://www.omd.uk.com

SOFT CELL The Art Of Falling Apart

Pop stardom did not suit SOFT CELL so there was no option but for Marc Almond and Dave Ball to self-destruct. The imploding disposition of ‘The Art Of Falling Apart’ title song couldn’t have soundtracked a mental breakdown any better. Despite the sinister romp of ‘Baby Doll’ and the explicit ode to promiscuity ‘Numbers’, ‘Forever The Same’ and ‘Loving You Hating Me’ could have been a singles, while ‘Where The Heart Is’ and ‘Kitchen Sink Drama’ featured highly relatable domestic narratives.

‘The Art Of Falling Apart’ is still available via Mercury Records

http://www.softcell.co.uk

TEARS FOR FEARS The Hurting

With a magnificent combination of synth, preset rhythms and conventional instruments, ‘Mad World’ had set the scene for TEARS FOR FEARS’ debut album ‘The Hurting’. But it disappointed some, as it not only had all four singles to date been included but also two B-sides. But the majority had been reworked while the fraught tensions of the title song and ‘Memories Fade’ found favour amongst the new material. The re-recorded ‘Pale Shelter’ became a hit on second time of asking too.

‘The Hurting’ is still available via Mercury Records

https://tearsforfears.com/

THOMPSON TWINS Quick Step & Side Kick

Now down to a trio, the Alex Sadkin produced ‘Quick Step & Side Kick’ was the third THOMPSON TWINS album. Although ‘Love On Your Side’ was to be the breakthrough hit with the catchy but potentially annoying ‘We Are Detective’ following, the exotic funky non-hit ‘Lies’ deserved greater recognition while ‘Judy Do’ gloriously borrowed from Lou Reed’s ‘Satellite Of Love’. This was without the Grace Jones cameo on the bonkers ‘Watching’ and the rousing ‘If You Were There’.

‘Quick Step & Side Kick’ is still available via Edsel Records

http://www.thompsontwinstombailey.co.uk/

WHITE DOOR Windows

WHITE DOOR formed from the ashes of prog rock combo GRACE. Led by the sensitive vocal presence of Mac Austin, he backed by the Davies brothers Harry and John on synths. Produced by a young Andy Richards, ‘Windows’ saw its title song get BBC Radio1 airplay. The beautiful choir boy synthpop of ‘Jerusalem’ was later covered by Swedish synthesist Johan Baeckström, along with another album track ‘School Days’. Baeckström wolud join the trio for their 2020 comeback.

‘Windows’ is still available as a CD from Cherry Red Records

https://www.facebook.com/whitedoorband/

YAZOO You & Me Both

Despite the success of ‘Upstairs At Eric’s’, all was not well in the YAZOO camp so by the time of ‘You & Me Both’, Vince Clarke and Alison Moyet were working in the studio separately. ‘Ode To Boy’ was rescued from B-side obscurity while ‘Nobody’s Diary’ was the mighty swansong single. The album contained Moyet’s poignant anti-war statement ‘Mr Blue’ but in the Vince Clarke voiced ‘Happy People’, he came up with his most polarising composition since ‘What’s Your Name?’.

‘You & Me Both’ is still available via Mute Records

https://yazooinfo.com/

YELLOW MAGIC ORCHESTRA Naughty Boys

As a reaction to the over-seriousness of their previous two albums, YELLOW MAGIC ORCHESTRA lightened up considerably for ‘Naughty Boys’. The most commercial record of their career, this was highlighted by the joyous lead single ‘Kimi Ni Mune Kyun’. But while ‘Opened My Eyes’ could have been any Western synthpop act, ‘Lotus Love’ revealed some unexpected psychedelic overtones and ‘Kai-Koh’ showed that the trio had not lost their ear for exotic timbres.

‘Naughty Boys’ is still available via Sony Music

http://www.ymo.org/

Text by Chi Ming Lai
19th January 2023

A Beginner’s Guide To TONY MANSFIELD

4 January 2023 /

Photo by Andrew Douglas

Tony Mansfield is perhaps one of the UK’s most underrated production and songwriting talents.

Born in London, he first found fame as the leader of NEW MUSIK who released three albums and scored three successive Top40 hit singles. In common with Trevor Horn, Mansfield felt more at home in the studio than fronting a band and he maintained a parallel career as a producer. His innovative points deal with TMC Studios owner Bernie Proctor allowed Mansfield almost endless studio time to hone his craft.

With Clive Gates on keyboards, Phil Towner on drums and bassist Tony Hibbert, NEW MUSIK appeared on ‘Top Of The Pops’ with their first four singles ‘Straight Lines’, ‘Living By Numbers’, ‘This World Of Water’ and ‘Sanctuary’ between 1979-1980. But in their day, the band were often dismissed by the music press as a novelty act due to the comedic voices in their songs.

Mansfield’s aim was to create a sonic balance between pop and oddness; while the varispeeded and treated voices heard on NEW MUSIK tracks could be considered annoying, these acted as memorable hooks that grabbed the attention of listeners and in that respect, they pre-dated THE ART OF NOISE.

Despite the seemingly perky radio-friendly sound, Mansfield’s lyrics projected dystopian concerns and downright bleakness. ‘Living By Numbers’ summed up how life was subject to numerical identity be it age, statistics, registration, credit or wealth. Meanwhile ‘This World Of Water’ was a metaphor for drowning in the pressures of society and ‘Dead Fish (Don’t Swim Home)’ reflected the nuclear paranoia of the times. But Mansfield could get genuinely wacky too and ‘Home’ by his short-lived side-project PLANET HA HA in 1982 was an ode to ‘ET The Extra-Terrestrial’.

A guitarist and self-taught keyboard player with a fascination for technological developments, the Korg 700s, Logan String Melody, Roland VP-330, Prophet 5, Yamaha CS80, Oberheim OBXa, Emulator, PPG Wave 2.2, Synclavier 2 and Fairlight CMI were among his tools during his career.

Today, his combination of gently strummed 12 string alongside pretty synth melodies and punchy electronic rhythms has highlighted a sonic connection to modern pop such as THE WEEKND, particularly on songs such as ‘Less Than Zero’ and ‘Blinding Lights’. As if to confirm the link, Mansfield did the original production on A-HA’s debut album ‘Hunting High & Low’ in 1984.

While Mansfield’s work with A-HA did not have a happy outcome with his work on ‘Take On Me’ first remixed and then replaced with what eventually became the re-recorded hit version produced by Alan Tarney, it would be fair to say that without their time with Mansfield, A-HA may not have become as driven to pave their own path so ambitiously. Despite this set back, Mansfield’s production portfolio has included many other notable artists and netted UK No1s, European Top5s and US Top10s along the way.

Notably reclusive, Mansfield withdrew from the limelight after NEW MUSIK to concentrate on the job in hand. In more recent times, the world has been his oyster with international hit productions such as the 1997 Spanish No1 album ‘Puntos Cardinales’ for Ana Torroja and ‘Online’, the 2001 “Latvian Pop Music Album of the Year” by BRAINSTORM.

With the timely announcement that the Cherry Red imprint Lemon will be issuing a 4CD NEW MUSIK boxed set ‘From A To B – The Sony Years’ on 24th March 2023, here are 18 tracks selected by ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK which act a Beginner’s Guide to the impressive and understated career of Tony Mansfield, listed in yearly and then alphabetical order by artist moniker…

AFTER THE FIRE Life In The City (1979)

AFTER THE FIRE were a London prog rock band who gradually developed into having more new wave inclinations by the time of their second album ‘Laser Love’. Notable for its fabulous synth solo, ‘Life In The City’ was re-recorded with Tony Mansfield producing for a single in late 1979 after NEW MUSIK first appeared on ‘Top Of The Pops’. AFTER THE FIRE would score a US Top 10 single hit with a cover of FALCO’s ‘Der Kommissar’ in 1983 after they had disbanded.

Originally available on the AFTER THE FIRE single ‘Life In The City’ via CBS, currently unavailable

http://afterthefire.co.uk/

NICK STRAKER BAND A Walk In The Park (1979)

Nick Straker had been school friends with Tony Mansfield and was even slated to become NEW MUSIK’s keyboardist; he played on ‘Straight Lines’ and ‘On Islands’ which was later covered by German trio CAMOUFLAGE. Simultaneously Straker had been working on his own songs with the members of NEW MUSIK as his band. Produced by Jeremy Paul, ‘A Walk In The Park’ was picked up by Pinnacle records and became an unexpected and huge European disco hit.

Originally available on the single ‘A Walk In The Park’ via CBS, currently unavailable

http://www.nickstraker.com/

NEW MUSIK Sanctuary (1980)

Proving that the successes of ‘Living By Numbers’ and ‘This World Of Water’ were not flukes, NEW MUSIK scored a third Top 40 hit single taken off their debut album ‘From A To B’. Although ‘Sanctuary’ featured a similar cascading synth riff that appeared on John Foxx’s ‘Underpass’ which was released a few months before, Mansfield maintained that it was already on their demos from the previous year. He also felt that ‘From A To B’ was more a collection of songs rather than a proper album.

Available on the NEW MUSIK album ‘From A To B’ via Lemon Records

https://www.new-musik.co.uk/

NEW MUSIK Changing Minds (1981)

The second NEW MUSIK album ‘Anywhere’, aimed to be less pop and more experimental. With a long instrumental intro and his lead vocal not coming until close to the 2 minute mark, ‘Changing Minds’ provided a snappy highlight laced in rigid beats, strums and synth heaven. A sign of Mansfield’s quirky sense of humour, the album featured a song called ‘This World Of Water’ which was totally unconnected with the 1980 hit. But there were to be no hits with the album’s singles.

Available on the NEW MUSIK album ‘Anywhere’ via Lemon Records

http://www.discog.info/mansfield.html

YUKIHIRO TAKAHASHI Drip Dry Eyes (1981)

Tony Mansfield had publicly cited YELLOW MAGIC ORCHESTRA as his favourite band in 1980 and on ‘Drip Dry Eyes’ where he contributed keyboards to their drummer Yukihiro Takahashi’s 1981 solo album ‘Neuromantic’, the glistening synth melodies made it NEW MUSIK in all but name. 1982’s ‘What Me Worry’ saw Mansfield duet with Takahashi-san on ‘Disposable Love’; incidentally both songs featured Andy Mackay of ROXY MUSIC on sax.

Available on the YUKIHIRO TAKAHASHI album ‘Neuromantic’ via Sony Music Direct Japan

https://www.room66plus.com/

PHILIP JAP Total Erasure (1982)

‘The David Essex Showcase’ was a bizarre BBC talent contest involving the major labels; the winner was performance artist Philip Jap who fought off TALK TALK and Thomas Dolby to win. Mixed by Tony Mansfield, ‘Total Erasure’ was a slice of synthesized art funk in the vein of Zaine Griff that provided the victorious performance. His self-titled 1983 album featured productions by Trevor Horn, Colin Thurston and Mansfield, but mainstream success was not to be.

Originally available on the single ‘Total Erasure’ via A&M, currently unavailable

https://www.discogs.com/artist/108718-Philip-Jap

NEW MUSIK The Planet Doesn’t Mind (1982)

The 1982 NEW MUSIK album ‘Warp’ was a more experimental and mostly electronic affair that confusingly had two songs called ‘All You Need Is Love’ including THE BEATLES one with ‘Greensleeves’ tagged onto the end! But ‘The Planet Doesn’t Mind’ was proof that they could still produce excellent singles although this too failed to chart. However, seeing a brighter future in record production, Mansfield had disbanded NEW MUSIK by the end of the year.

Available on the NEW MUSIK album ‘Warp’ via Lemon Records

https://www.facebook.com/groups/128706093862654

SEARCH PARTY Urban Foxes (1982)

SEARCH PARTY comprised of Londoners Lee Jacob and Alan Rear, the pair respectively had an eccentric duet singing and talking style of expression. Having met Tony Mansfield at TMC studios and provided backing vocals on ‘Anywhere’, it was unsurprising that when he produced ‘Urban Foxes’, it sounded a bit too much like NEW MUSIK. Their second and final single ‘All Around The World’ was produced by Mansfield’s chief engineer Pete Hammond who later went on to work for PWL.

Originally available on the single ‘Urban Foxes’ via Magnet, currently unavailable

https://www.discogs.com/artist/588719-Search-Party

MARI WILSON Just What I Always Wanted (1982)

The self-styled “Neasden Queen Of Soul” scored her first biggest hit with this classic beehive pop pastiche produced by Tony Mansfield. Despite its brassy big band image and presence, ‘Just What I Always Wanted’ was laced with the latest studio technology, featuring voice samples, subtle synths and big electronic drums. The parent album ‘Showpeople’ also mostly produced by Mansfield featured variations on the theme.

Available on the MARI WILSON album ‘The Neasden Queen Of Soul’ via Cherry Red

https://www.mariwilson.co.uk/

AZTEC CAMERA Walk Out To Winter (1983)

Roddy Frame’s early AZTEC CAMERA singles on Postcard led to the young Scot being signed by Rough Trade. So who better than to handle acoustic guitars while adding a modern sheen than Tony Mansfield. The original 7” single version of ‘Walk Out To Winter’ saw a lovely synth intro while Emulator voices were brought in to add a then state-of-the-art texture. But it was reworked with a six string strum for the eventual album version.

Extended Version available on the AZTEC CAMERA deluxe album ‘High Land, Hard Rain – Expanded Edition’ via Warner Music

http://www.roddyframe.com/

CAPTAIN SENSIBLE Glad It’s All Over (1983)

Best known as the guitarist with THE DAMNED, Captain Sensible caused something of a shock by reaching No1 with a synthesized novelty cover of ‘Happy Talk’ produced by Tony Mansfield. The connection was made by The Captain’s NEW MUSIK fan girlfriend. While there has another novelty hit in the Croydon rap of ‘Wot!’, things took a more serious turn with the poignant anti-Falklands War anthem ‘Glad It’s All Over’ co-written by Mansfield.

Available on the CAPTAIN SENSIBLE album ‘The Power Of Love’ via Cherry Red Records

https://www.facebook.com/sensiblecaptain

NAKED EYES Voices In My Head (1983)

Hailing from Bath, Pete Byrne and Rob Fisher were NAKED EYES. Although their Simmons drums heavy Bacharach & David cover of ‘Always Something There To Remind Me’ didn’t trouble the UK Top 40, it reached No8 in the US. The parent album ‘Burning Bridges’ was produced by Tony Mansfield and it opened with the catchy ‘Voices In My Head’. Rob Fisher later had hits with Simon Climie but sadly passed away in 1999 while Peter Byrne continues performing as NAKED EYES.

Available on the NAKED EYES album ‘Burning Bridges’ via Cherry Red Records

https://www.nakedeyesmusic.com/

A-HA Living A Boy’s Adventure Tale – Early mix (Recorded 1984, released 2015)

Tony Mansfield had done the original production on A-HA’s debut album ‘Hunting High & Low’, but the band had been unhappy with the Fairlight-assisted results so remixed the sessions with their manager John Radcliff. The 2015 30th Anniversary Edition saw a number of Mansfield’s original mixes publicly emerge for the first time. Apart from having much louder drum machine, ‘Living A Boy’s Adventure Tale’ was not that much different in vision from the final album version.

Available on the A-HA album ‘Hunting High & Low – 30th Anniversary Edition’ via Warner Music

https://a-ha.com/

VICIOUS PINK Cccan’t You See (1984)

Formally known as VICIOUS PINK PHENOMENA, Josephine Warden and Brian Moss had begun as SOFT CELL backing vocalists, appearing prominently on ‘Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret’. Their debut single ‘My Private Tokyo’ had been produced by Dave Ball, but having shortened their name and got a deal with Parlophone, Tony Mansfield was at the helm of their best song ‘Cccan’t You See’. Sultry and sexy, it was luscious pop that deserved better than its UK peak of No67.

Available on the VICIOUS PINK album ‘Vicious Pink’ via Cherry Red Records

https://www.instagram.com/vicious.pink.music/

THE B-52’S She Brakes For Rainbows (1986)

Produced by Tony Mansfield, ‘Bouncing Off The Satellites’ was the last album featuring founder member Ricky Wilson who passed away aged 32 during its recording. Although released a year later, promotion was low key as the band were still in mourning and declined to tour. Meanwhile the material perhaps not unexpectedly had a darker and more melancholy atmosphere. The album closer ‘She Brakes For Rainbows’ utilised a range of synthetically flavoured tones.

Available on THE B-52’S album ‘Bouncing Off The Satellites’ via Island Records

https://www.theb52s.com/

JEAN PAUL GAULTIER How To Do That ‎(1989)

Mansfield co-wrote and co-produced this appealing Euro house track with flamboyant fashion icon Jean Paul Gaultier which debuted as a single sided laser etched single in the UK and France. Meanwhile he also co-composed the majority of the parent album ‘Aow Tou Dou Zat’ which featured remixes by Norman Cook, JJ Jeczalik, Tony Moran, Mantronik, CJ Mackintosh and Dave Dorrell. Gaultier would go on to present Channel 4 TV show ‘Eurotrash’ with Antoine de Caunes.

Available on the JEAN PAUL GAULTIER single ‘How To Do That’ via Mercury Records

https://www.jeanpaulgaultier.com/ww/en

MADER En Résumé… En Conclusion

Releasing his first single ‘Les Bandes Dessinées’ in 1978, Toulouse singer-songwriter Jean-Pierre Mader scored his biggest domestic hit ‘Macumba’ in 1985. Adopting a heavy synth-based sound, he turned to Tony Mansfield for his fourth album ‘Midi À Minuit’ from which, the highlight was ‘En Résumé… En Conclusion’. A song co-written for him by French superstar Françoise Hardy, she recorded her own version with David Bowie producer David Richards.

Available on the MADER album ‘Midi À Minuit’ via Polydor

http://www.jeanpierremader.com/

MIMORI YUSA Kotori (1994)

Tony Mansfield brought his distinctive synth and strums sound to two tracks on Mimori Yusa’s 7th album ‘Aluhi-Halenohi’. The Japanese singer made her nationwide TV debut aged 6 reciting a nursery rhyme. ‘Slowly’ saw original NEW MUSIK bassist Tony Hibbert return while the bittersweet ‘Kotori’ featured a melancholic Mansfield declaring “all you need is a cage”. She was also in supergroup LOVE, PEACE & TRANCE which featured Haruomi Hosono of YELLOW MAGIC ORCHESTRA.

Available on the MIMORI YUSA album ‘Aluhi-Halenohi’ via Sony Music Direct Japan

https://www.mimoriyusa.net/

Text by Chi Ming Lai
4th January 2023

25 SONGS NOT SUNG BY THE LEAD VOCALIST

31 December 2022 /

Wikipedia says “The lead vocalist in popular music is typically the member of a group or band whose voice is the most prominent melody in a performance where multiple voices may be heard”.

It also adds “The lead vocalist may also be called the main vocalist or lead singer. Especially in rock music, the lead singer or solo singer is often the front man or front woman”. A BBC Radio 4 parody series ‘Radio Active’ first made the joke in 1981 that “Ringo Starr isn’t the best drummer in THE BEATLES” and in a similar way, it could be said that Bernard Sumner is not the best singer in NEW ORDER.

However, the lead vocalist is considered the figurehead and often the character of a band so regardless of what is said publicly about democracy, a hierarchy inevitably ensues.

But what happens when another member of the band takes their turn at the front? In most cases, it is just a one-off although sometimes it becomes recurring feature over successive albums. These tracks can meet with varying degrees of success, but there have even been occasions where the second vocalist eventually becomes lead singer! However, there have been strange situations where a less vocally competent instrumentalist is unhappy about the attention that a singer is getting and insists on switching roles, thus ensuring that the band does not play to any of its strengths!

So taking things back to front and with a limit of one track per act, ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK presents a list of 25 songs not sung by the lead vocalist in chronological, then alpnabetical order…

ULTRAVOX Mr X (1980)

Having been an idea that dated back to the John Foxx-era of ULTRAVOX just before his departure, the KRAFTWERK influenced robotic spy story of ‘Mr X’ was voiced by Warren Cann while Midge Ure was settling in as the band’s new lead vocalist. The track had begun as ‘Touch & Go’ and been premiered live. In a gentlemen’s agreement, keyboardist Billy Currie gave his melody of ‘He’s A Liquid’ in return for Foxx’s melody to ‘Touch & Go’, hence the structural similarity to ‘Mr X’.

Available on the album ‘Vienna’ via Chrysalis Records

http://www.ultravox.org.uk/

DEPECHE MODE Any Second Now (1981)

Although now known as a songwriter, Martin Gore had contributed an instrumental ‘Big Muff’ and one song with lyrics ‘Tora! Tora! Tora!’ on DEPECHE MODE’s debut album. Written by Vince Clarke like most of ‘Speak & Spell’, ‘Any Second Now’ was a beautiful minimalist set piece that stood out amongst the dance friendly synthpop tunes and suited an understated tone of expression. And so began a tradition of Gore taking on DM’s ballads instead of front man Dave Gahan.

Available on the album ‘Speak & Spell’ via Sony Music

https://www.depechemode.com/

DRAMATIS Turn (1981)

DRAMATIS were the former Gary Numan live band and while they were musically virtuoso, the band’s Achilles’ heel was vocals. RRussell Bell and Denis Haines were the quartet’s main singers and Numan himself guested on their biggest hit ‘Love Needs No Disguise’. The classically trained multi-instrumentalist Chris Payne found himself a reluctant vocalist on a song he had written called ‘Turn’; “I have never felt comfortable about my own voice” he clarified.

Available on the album ‘For Future Reference’ via Cherry Red Records

https://www.discogs.com/artist/45761-Dramatis

NEW ORDER Doubts Even Here (1981)

After the end of JOY DIVISION, Peter Hook, Bernard Sumner and Stephen Morris reconvened as NEW ORDER while recruiting Gillian Gilbert on keyboards and guitar. Synths and drum machines were taking greater prominence but not entirely. While Sumner did the majority of the vocals on their debut album ‘Movement’, it was Hooky’s fraught delivery on ‘Doubts Even Here’ and words from The Bible spoken by Gilbert that provided the album’s most glorious moment.

Available on the album ‘Movement’ via Rhino

http://www.neworder.com/

KISSING THE PINK Watching Their Eyes (1982)

Best known for the profound anti-war statement ‘The Last Film’ which entered the Top20 in 1983, KISSING THE PINK had Nick Whitecross as their lead singer. Produced by Colin Thurston, the baroque opera tinged ‘Watching Their Eyes’ saw saxophonist Josephine Wells provide a haunting impassioned vocal. Wells went on to play live with TEARS FOR FEARS but sadly, she was to later battle her own traumas as a survivor of the Marchioness boat disaster in 1989.

Available on the album ‘Naked’ via Cherry Red Records

https://www.facebook.com/kissingthepink/

CHINA CRISIS Wishful Thinking (1983)

After his OMD success, Mike Howlett produced the most synth based CHINA CRISIS long player. Utilising Emulator strings and a pizzicato sample derived from plucking an acoustic guitar string close to the bridge, ‘Wishful Thinking’ was written and sung by guitarist Eddie Lundon. A sweetly textured, melodic pop single that deserved its hit status, lead singer Gary Daly responded with ‘Never Too Late’ but that song was shelved to B-side status for sounding too similar.

Available on the album ‘Working With Fire & Steel – Possible Pop Songs Volume 2’ via Caroline Records

https://www.facebook.com/chinacrisisofficial/

TEARS FOR FEARS The Hurting (1983)

While Roland Orzabal is more or less seen as TEARS FOR FEARS lead singer now, that is not how it was perceived at the start even though he sang their debut single ‘Suffer The Children’. Following three Top10 hit singles prior to the release of their debut album ‘The Hurting’, Curt Smith was considered the face and the voice of the band. Orzabal was main songwriter and sang lead on the title track with a more angst-ridden take than was heard on the Smith-fronted singles.

Available on the album ‘The Hurting’ via Mercury Records

https://tearsforfears.com/

YAZOO Happy People (1983)

Of Vince Clarke’s most polarising song since ‘What’s Your Name?’ for DEPECHE MODE, Alison Moyet said “That could have been the beginning of the end for us… in fact, no it wasn’t because Vince had already decided to leave. ‘Happy People’, I just tried singing it a couple of ways and I just hit him with ‘I can’t do this, you want it sung, you sing it yourself mate!’… so he sang it himself, fair play to him”. The song was an ironic send-up of middle aged political activists.

Available on the album ‘Three Pieces’ via Mute Records

https://yazooinfo.com/

BERLIN Rumor Of Love (1984)

Multi-instrumentalist John Crawford had proved himself a capable if almost anonymous singer when duetting with BERLIN front woman Terri Nunn on their 1982 breakthrough track ‘Sex (I’m A…)’. But for the B-side of the 1984 Giorgio Moroder produced single ‘No More Words’, Crawford did a lead vocal turn on the Mike Howlett-helmed ‘Rumor Of Love’ which echoed Scott Walker and ended up as a bonus track on the original edition of the ‘Love Life’ album

Available on the album ‘Love Life’ via Rubellan Records

https://www.berlinmusic.net/

OMD Never Turn Away (1984)

While Andy McCluskey was the lead singer of OMD, Paul Humphreys would see his less frequent vocalled tracks released as singles with ‘Souvenir’, ‘Secret’ and ‘Forever Live & Die’ becoming international hits. While their fifth ‘Junk Culture’ saw forays into brass sections, calypso and reggae, ‘Never Turn Away’ was a more traditional OMD ballad with Autumnal atmospheres but while it was a fine album track, it made little impression as a single release.

Available on the album ‘Junk Culture’ via Virgin Records

https://www.omd.uk.com/

PROPAGANDA Dream Within A Dream (1985)

While Susanne Freytag was the original PROPAGANDA vocalist with her stark narrative style, she soon stepped back in favour of her friend and TOPOLINOS bandmate Claudia Brücken. While Freytag’s Germanic prose remained vital on songs such as ‘Doctor Mabuse’ and ‘P-Machinery’, her vocal style suited the lead role on ‘Dream With A Dream’, a 9 minute epic which put a mighty soundtrack to accompany an Edgar Allan Poe poem which was first published in 1849.

Available on the album ‘A Secret Wish’ via ZTT Records

https://www.xpropaganda.co.uk/

KRAFTWERK The Telephone Call (1986)

On the disappointing ‘Techno Pop’ née ‘Electric Café’ album, Karl Bartos gave an assured performance in his only lead vocal for KRAFTWERK on ‘The Telephone Call’. While the assertive automated phone messages were a sharpened metaphor for female empowerment, band politics were at play when Ralf Hütter refused to let Bartos lip-synch his part on the monochromatic video although Wolfgang Flür got to mime a single phrase while cast in shadow.

Available on the album ‘Techno Pop’ via EMI Music

https://kraftwerk.com/

PET SHOP BOYS Paninaro (1986)

“Passion and love and sex and money – Violence, religion, injustice and death” went the opening phrases of Chris Lowe’s debut lead vocal for PET SHOP BOYS. Dryly spoken rather than sung, the track was a celebration of an Italian fashion cult. The middle eight featuring an ‘Entertainment Tonight’ interview saw Lowe deadpan: “I don’t like Country & Western. I don’t like rock music. I don’t like Rockabilly. I don’t like much, really, do I? But what I do like, I love passionately!”

Available on the album ‘Alternative’ via EMI Music

https://www.petshopboys.co.uk/

NITZER EBB Let Beauty Loose (1987)

With Douglas J McCarthy fronting NITZER EBB, the singing abilities of instrumentalist Bon Harris only came to the fore with his ‘Songs From the Lemon Tree’ lockdown live streams of solo covers often tinged with falsetto. But on the ‘That Total Age’ album, he had shouted his way through ‘Let Beauty Loose’, a typical slice of frantically paced EBM. Acting as a supersub in late 2021, Harris stood in for a hospitalised McCarthy at two NITZER EBB shows in Palm Beach and Toronto.

Available on the album ‘That Total Age’ via Mute Records

http://www.nitzer-ebb.com/

BOOK OF LOVE With A Little Love (1988)

Originally from Philadelphia, BOOK OF LOVE were started by school friends Susan Ottaviano and Ted Ottaviano who were not actually related. Jade Lee and Lauren Roselli Johnson joined later on and the quartet were invited to support DEPECHE MODE on two US tours while their single ‘I Touch Roses’ was reissued in a Daniel Miller remix. Although Susan Ottaviano was lead vocalist, Ted Ottaviano impressed on ‘With A Little Love’ which was co-produced by Flood.

Available on the album ’Lullaby’ via Noble Rot

https://www.bookoflovemusic.com/

CAMOUFLAGE Sooner Than We Think (1989)

German trio CAMOUFLAGE named themselves after a YELLOW MAGIC ORCHESTRA track. While Marcus Meyn was lead singer and the voice of hits like ‘The Great Commandment’, on their second album ‘Methods Of Silence’, both instrumentalists Heiko Maile and Oliver Kreyssig did a vocal turn, with the latter’s ‘Sooner Than We Think’ considered worthy enough to include on their first two Best Of compilations ‘We Stroke The Flames’ and ‘Rewind – The Best Of 95-87’.

Available on the album ‘Methods Of Silence’ via Universal Music

https://www.camouflage-music.com/en/News

KON KAN Move To Move (1989)

Despite Kevin Wynne being the voice on KON KAN’s sample heavy NEW ORDER inspired international hit ‘I Beg Your Pardon’, he was a hired hand as the mastermind behind the project was Canadian producer Barry Harris. The surprise success led to an album for which Wynne did most of the vocals for. However, Harris took the lead on the album’s title track. For the next two KON KAN albums ‘Syntonic’ and ‘Vida!’, Wynne was not recalled.

Available on the album ‘Move To Move’ via Atlantic Records

https://www.facebook.com/konkanofficial

THE HUMAN LEAGUE One Man In My Heart (1995)

Phil Oakey has often cited Susanne Sulley as the best singer in THE HUMAN LEAGUE. While she famously did a verse on the UK and US No1 ‘Don’t You Want Me?’ as well as various solo phrases on ‘(Keep Feeling) Fascination’ and ‘Heart Like A Wheel’, she didn’t get a lead vocal turn until ‘One Man In My Heart’. The format of the song fitted right in with the rise of female fronted trios like DUBSTAR, SAINT ETIENNE and PEACH.

Available on the album ‘Octopus’ via EastWest

https://thehumanleague.co.uk/

DURAN DURAN Medazzaland (1997)

After their panned 1995 covers album ‘Thank You’, DURAN DURAN were in a state of turmoil; Simon Le Bon was experiencing writer’s block while John Taylor was suffering from depression. This state of affairs led to Nick Rhodes working more closely with guitarist Warren Cuccurullo and the keyboardist taking a spoken word lead on the title track of the ‘Medazzaland’ album. Taylor left halfway through recording while the end product was only released in the US.

Available on the album ‘Medazzaland’ via Tape Modern

https://duranduran.com

LADYTRON True Mathematics (2002)

With a template similar to PROPAGANDA, LADYTRON had a singing vocalist in Helen Marnie while Mira Aroyo provided stark spoken prose in her native Bulgarian. While the latter had been an enticing subplot to ‘Discotraxx’ on the debut album ‘604’, Aroyo took the deadpan lead on the fierce ‘True Mathematics’ which opened their next album ‘Light & Magic’. Owing a debt to THE NORMAL’s ‘Warm Leatherette’, it premiered a much harder LADYTRON sound.

Available on the album ‘Light & Magic’ via Nettwerk

https://www.ladytron.com/

KID MOXIE Medium Pleasure – Marsheaux remix (2009)

KID MOXIE began as a duo comprising of Elena Charbila and Erica Zabowski, recording an EP ‘Human Stereo’ and album ‘Selector’. Although Charbila took the majority of the lead vocals in her airy continental style, Zabowski adopted more of a snarl on ‘Medium Pleasure’ with a lyric attacking cultural mediocrity. By the time ‘Selector’ was released, the pair had already parted.

Available on the album ‘Selector’ via Undo Records

https://www.facebook.com/kidmoxie

DE/VISION Kamikaze (2012)

Forming in 1988, German duo DE/VISION have been a mainstay in Europe for enthusiasts of darker electronic climes. Comprising of Steffen Keth on vocals and Thomas Adam on synths, their vast majority of their songs have been sung in English. For their 2012 album ‘Rockets & Swords’, there was a surprise in the penultimate song ‘Kamikaze’ which was not only voiced by Adam but also in Deutsch.

Available on the album ‘Rockets & Swords’ via Popgefahr Records

http://www.devision-music.de

TWINS NATALIA I Avoid Strangers (2014)

TWINS NATALIA comprised of Marc Schaffer, Steve Lippert, synth wizard Dave Hewson and singers Sharon Abbott and Julie Ruler, with the latter three from cult combo POEME ELECTRONIQUE. With classic Weimar Cabaret melodies and vibrant Kling Klang interplay, they conjured memories of holiday romances. But the uptempo ‘I Avoid Strangers’ featured Hewson on vocals, possessing a paranoia that suited the song perfectly.

Available on the album ‘The Destiny Room’ via Anna Logue Records

https://www.facebook.com/twinsnatalia

CHVRCHES High Enough To Carry You Over (2015)

The two Martin Doherty vocalled tracks on ‘The Bones Of What You Believe’ polarised opinion and his voice made an appearance again on the synth driven funk of ‘High Enough To Carry You Over’ for CHVRCHES second album ‘Every Open Eye’. While nowhere near as accomplished as main vocalist Lauren Mayberry, by taking on a more Americanised drawl in the vein of MISTER MISTER, this was a big improvement on the stoner vibe of his previos two singing attempts.

Available on the album ‘Every Open Eye’ via Virgin Records

http://chvrch.es/

APOPTYGMA BERZERK Nearest (2019)

The project of Norwegian Stephan Groth, APOPTYGMA BERZERK went Deutsch on the ‘Nein Danke!’ EP while displaying a prominent “NEWWAVESYNTHPOP” legend on its artwork. ‘Nearest’ saw Stephan’s live bandmate and brother Jonas step into the limelight on a chilled electronic ballad ‘Nearest’ that possessed the same ethereal qualities as the best known APOP track ‘Kathy’s Song’. Jonas Groth has since stepped fully up to the front in his own synthpop duo PISTON DAMP.

Available on the EP ‘Nein Danke!’ via Pitch Black Drive

http://www.theapboffice.com/

Text by Chi Ming Lai
Photo by Catrine Christensen
31st December 2022

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