Category: Transmissions (Page 7 of 10)

TOMITA 1932 –2016

10 May 2016 /

TOMITA

I still can’t exactly remember when, where or why I picked up a copy of Isao Tomita’s second album ‘Snowflakes Are Dancing’; in all probability as a teen synth nerd what undoubtedly would have influenced the purchase was the black and white image on the rear sleeve.

In stark contrast to the brightly coloured blue front cover with its mysterious-looking character, the back contrastingly featured a candid shot of Tomita with a large Moog modular synthesizer in the background and an exhaustive equipment list which detailed every single module and effects unit used in the production of the album.

Released in 1974, the album gave Japanese synthesist Tomita exposure for his electronic interpretations of romantic composer Claude Debussy’s tone poem compositions. The public’s willingness to accept electronic versions of classical music had already been piqued three years earlier with the Wendy Carlos soundtrack to ‘A Clockwork Orange’. But listening to Tomita’s work, it became apparent that there was a whole new depth, sensitivity and dynamic present which was somehow lacking in Carlos’ more rigid classical re-works.

Even listening to the 1974 album now, it remains astonishing how incredible the album sounds on many levels, the synthesizer programming still has the power to make you think “how on EARTH did he create sounds of such depth here?”

For a start, there are string sounds present which you would frankly think were impossible to create with an analogue monophonic modular and even now sound like they were generated on a high-end workstation keyboard from the 21st Century. In the early 70s when artists were slowly starting to get to grips with the new electronic equipment which was available, the recording and production values of electronic work were often variable and ‘Snowflakes Are Dancing’ certainly bucked that trend.

To give context to the outstanding production values of ‘Snowflakes Are Dancing’, if you put it in a head-to-head against KRAFTWERK’s ‘Autobahn’ released in the same year, the latter album (regardless of its undeniable significance in the history of electronic music) sounds like a lo-fi demo recording in comparison.

The other factor to bear in mind when listening to ‘Snowflakes Are Dancing’ is that the modular system that was used was monophonic and any part that was chord related would have had to have been played one single and painstaking note at a time. What is also striking is the way dynamics are used, from the use of volume through to elements speeding up and slowing down, Tomita’s work was so far removed from the machine-like elements of KRAFTWERK and other electronic acts that it takes on a far more human and emotional aesthetic.

Initially Tomita started his career as a composer for Nippon Columbia including creating music for theatre, film and television. As well as his interpretations of Debussy’s works, he also released albums of Stravinsky’s ‘Firebird’ and Holst’s ‘The Planets’, the latter proving controversial with Holst’s daughter blocking the release of the album in the UK, having objected to the rearrangements of her father’s compositions.

In 1984, 22 years before DAFT PUNK did something very similar, Tomita presented live shows from inside a glass pyramid suspended above his audience with many concerts utilising quadraphonic / immersive sound. He also gained international recognition as the first Japanese artist to be nominated for a Grammy Award in the USA and only recently released the albums ‘Symphony Ihatov’ featuring virtual Vocaloid singer Hatsune Miku and ‘Space Fantasy’.

To emphasise the personal significance of Tomita’s passing, his death (along with that of TANGERINE DREAM’s Edgar Froese) has affected me far more than that of David Bwoie or Prince’s, such was his talent for creating synthetic music with a heart and a soul which even now, 42 years later still has the power to get those hairs standing up on the back of your neck.

What makes Isao Tomita’s death all the more poignant is that he had recently released some new material and was in the process of preparing the performance of his new work ‘Dr Coppelius’, which was planned for November of this year. Even now, for reasons unknown, Tomita has remained in the shadow of other synthesists, whether it is Wendy Carlos or Jean-Michel Jarre.

The best way to conclude is with a quote from the man himself, interviewed in 2013 by Tokyo Weekender magazine. When asked to name his favourite synth or piano, Tomita responded: “I believe feelings, hearts and emotions are important to creating music. Not the instruments, or the equipment.”

Text by Paul Boddy
10th May 2016

COLIN VEARNCOMBE 1962 – 2016

26 January 2016 /

colin-vearncombe-black-earlyColin Vearncombe, better known as BLACK, has passed away following a car accident where he sustained serious head injuries near his home of Cork in Ireland.

With a voice equal to a modern day Scott Walker and possessing a witty bittersweet lyricism that could only have come via his birthplace of Liverpool, Vearncombe scored his first major hit with ‘Sweetest Smile’ in 1987. Up until then, success for Vearncombe was very so near yet so far for a number of years. BLACK was initially a band fronted by Vearncombe that emerged from the vibrant Merseyside music scene that produced acts like OMD, ECHO & THE BUNNYMEN, THE TEARDROP EXPOLODES, CHINA CRISIS, THE ICICLE WORKS and WAH!

A brilliant single ‘More Than The Sun’ released by local indie label The Wonderful World Of… in 1982 gained evening airplay on Radio 1; it characterised the brooding European sound, laced with deep melancholy that BLACK were to become known for. It was during the recording of this track that Vearncombe met future musical partner Dave Dickie. A high profile support slot followed with THOMPSON TWINS on their ‘Quick Step and Side Kick’ tour.

As a result, BLACK signed to WEA but despite the excellent single ‘Hey Presto’ in 1984 and a re-recording of ‘More Than The Sun’, Vearncombe and Dickie were dropped. 1985 was a gloomy period in Vearncombe’s life and led him to write the ironically titled ‘Wonderful Life’.

Initially released independently by Ugly Man Records, the single only reached No72, but led to Vearncombe being picked up by A&M Records who relaunched his career. Although the first single released in the campaign ‘Everything’s Coming Up Roses’ failed to chart, both ‘Sweetest Smile’ and a revamped ‘Wonderful Life’ single reached No8 in the UK singles chart. Meanwhile the ‘Wonderful Life’ album produced by Dave Dix hit the Top3.

This success allowed A&M to accord a bigger budget for the follow-up ‘Comedy’ released in 1988. Written largely while he was undergoing a divorce, Vearncombe pursued a more organic direction with half of the long player produced by Robin Millar, best known for his work with EVERYTHING BUT THE GIRL, SADE and BIG COUNTRY.

While the album was did not hit the chart highs of its predecessor, ‘Comedy’ contained a number of Vearncombe’s best songs, in particular the emotive tearjerker ‘You’re A Big Girl Now’ and the sadly poignant ‘Now You’re Gone’.

With 1991’s self-titled ‘Black’ album, Vearncombe began to tire of major label politics and founded Nero Schwarz to release ‘Are We Having Fun Yet?’ in 1993. After a hiatus of several years, Vearncombe returned in 1999 to release music under his own name, but went back to the BLACK moniker in 2005 for the album ‘Between Two Churches’. Touring regularly in more recent times, 2015 saw Vearncombe issue the appropriately titled crowdfunded long player ‘Blind Faith’.

Vearncombe had planned further live dates for Spring 2016 and recorded a cover of CHRIS ISAAK’s ‘Wicked Game’ for the recently released ‘80s Re:Covered’ album which also featured CHINA CRISIS, ABC and HEAVEN 17.

While Vearncombe was perhaps not as lauded as some of his Merseyside contemporaries, songs such as ‘Sweetest Smile’, ‘You’re A Big Girl Now’ and of course ‘Wonderful Life’ easily marked him out as an equal.

http://www.colinvearncombe.com/

Text by Chi Ming Lai
26th January 2016

DAVID BOWIE 1947 – 2016

11 January 2016 /

DAVID BOWIE sadly passed away at his home in New York on 10th January 2016 after an 18 month battle with cancer.

An artistic maverick who continued to push boundaries right until the end, albums such as ‘Hunky Dory’, ‘Young Americans’, ‘Station To Station’, ‘Low’, ‘Heroes’ and ‘Scary Monsters’ influenced a generation and thus the majority of the acts that ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK has ever featured.

When GARY NUMAN first appeared with his mysterious Sci-Fi synth songs, he was dubbed ‘The New Bowie’; the clientele at The Blitz Club originally came together for a ‘Bowie Night’ and from it spawned VISAGE, SPANDAU BALLET and CULTURE CLUB; SOFT CELL and DURAN DURAN emerged from similar scenes in cities north of London; and if Dave Gahan hadn’t been heard by Vince Clarke singing along to “Heroes” in a scout hut back in 1980, would he have been asked to join COMPOSITION OF SOUND, the band who eventually became DEPECHE MODE?

“He was a brilliant songwriter and an amazing creator, he gave us all a goal to run towards” said MIDGE URE, “No-one could top him in terms of creativity”. MARC ALMOND added: “It’s not often I truly cry at the loss of an artist but I’m devastated. He meant so much. Goodbye David Bowie and our youth. We loved you. X”

Bowie’s passing sent shockwaves across the world as his illness was kept secret; his new album ‘Blackstar’ had only been released a few days earlier.

The album had been trailed in late 2015 with a striking video of the 10 minute title track; very avant garde in its nature but also very melancholic, many at the time talked of the return of an artistically driven Bowie. The album has now gained further poignancy as a musical document of his decline in health.

Bowie’s musical legacy on its own made him an icon, but his charisma and striking visual presence also resonated with those who were seeking something out of the ordinary. For many, seeing Bowie put his arm around guitarist Mick Ronson during ‘Starman’ on ‘Top Of the Pops’ in 1972 was a pivotal life changing moment. It opened doors for pop stars to not have to play the machismo game.

His first hit was ‘Space Oddity’ in 1969; the song featured a Dubreq Stylophone and tied in with the first Moon landing, but was considered a novelty record at the time. The futuristic rock of ‘The Man Who Sold The World’ in 1970 showed ‘Space Oddity’ was not a fluke, but it wasn’t until the assured theatrics of the ‘Hunky Dory’ album in 1971 that Bowie began making headway.

An attempt at composing an English version of ‘Comme D’habitude’ (the Claude François song that became ‘My Way’ via the lyrical intervention of Paul Anka) was the seed to the magnificence of ‘Life On Mars’. A song that was classic, yet ahead of its time, it became a hit in 1973 on the back of his success with ‘The Rise & Fall of Ziggy Stardust’ and ‘Aladdin Sane’.

Bowie’s journey led to him to America with his ‘Plastic Soul’ period and the excess that ‘Fame’ entailed. Looking to exorcise his dependency demons, he relocated to the divided city of Berlin in 1976. Exploring a “whole new school of pretension” with his new creative muse BRIAN ENO, tracks like ‘Sound & Vision’, ‘Always Crashing In The Same Car’, ‘Warszawa’, “Heroes”, ‘The Secret Life Of Arabia’, ‘Fantastic Voyage’ and ‘Boys Keep Swinging’ captured a tense European aesthetic that was distinct from Trans-Atlantic blues based rock n’ roll.

Co-produced by Tony Visconti, ‘Low’, ‘Heroes’ and ‘Lodger’ were augmented with synthesizers and ‘pre-arranged percussion’ as an acknowledgement to German pioneers like KRAFTWERK, TANGERINE DREAM, CLUSTER and NEU! Indeed, Bowie formed a friendship with Florian Schneider (hence the instrumental ‘V-2 Schneider’) while Michael Rother had been the first choice guitarist for the ‘Heroes’ album.

With the sound of the Giorgio Moroder produced ‘I Feel Love’ also omnipresent, the electronic pop scene in the UK was taking shape and Bowie famously dropped in to see THE HUMAN LEAGUE at The Nashville in late 1978, hailing them “the future of rock ‘n’ roll”.

By 1980, the New Romantic movement was in full swing and Bowie featured a selection of The Blitz Club regulars, including the late Steve Strange, in the video for ‘Ashes To Ashes’. Despite this, Bowie couldn’t resist a sly dig at the acts that he’d inspired, using the line “same old thing in brand new drag” on the album track ‘Teenage Wildlife’ from ‘Scary Monsters’.

But as an advert for ‘Heroes’ once said: “There’s Old Wave. There’s New Wave. And there’s David Bowie…”

But even when Bowie himself was consciously aiming at the mainstream with the Nile Rodgers produced ‘Let’s Dance’, he was influential with every act ending up employing a brass section! Bowie returned to more experimental territory with ‘1.Outside’ in 1995, but always able to position himself between two camps, he scored a Top 20 UK chart hit ‘Hallo Spaceboy’ with PET SHOP BOYS.

He remained a live draw, but extensive touring in this period took its toll. After suffering a heart attack in 2004, he largely withdrew from public life, only re-emerging in 2013 with ‘Where Are We Now?’, a surprise single release in early 2013.

The parent album ‘The Next Day’ signalled a return, but with ‘Blackstar’, it is now obvious that Bowie was using his art to bid farewell.

Tony Visconti who worked on this final album said: “His death was no different from his life – a work of art. He made ‘Blackstar’ for us, his parting gift. I knew for a year this was the way it would be. I wasn’t, however, prepared for it. He was an extraordinary man, full of love and life. He will always be with us. For now, it is appropriate to cry”

www.davidbowie.com

Text by Chi Ming Lai
11th January 2016

2015 END OF YEAR REVIEW

16 December 2015 /

System100 Cake

There are no illegal connections…

The user manual for the Roland System 100 semi-modular synthesizer profoundly stated “there are no illegal connections…”

And in modern electronic music, that is still the case with the accomplished artists of today very much connected to the synth pioneers of yesteryear like KRAFTWERK, OMD, ULTRAVOX, JAPAN, DEPECHE MODE and THE HUMAN LEAGUE.

Belgian duo METROLAND would not exist without the tradition established at Klingklang, while EAST INDIA YOUTH’s interest in BRIAN ENO and Motorik beats curated a sound that has enabled parallels to be drawn with the artful template of the similarly influenced Paul Humphreys and Andy McCluskey.

And although Susanne Sundfør was already an established singer / songwriter in her homeland of Norway, attention was not fully drawn on her new synth based direction until she performed a sympathetic cover of ‘Ice Machine’ with RÖYKSOPP in late 2012.

Even the exquisite lo-fi Welsh language electronica of Gwenno can be traced to Sheffield, thanks to the songstress’ previous pop excursions which involved working on an album with the late Martin Rushent. As Jean-Michel Jarre said: “Electronic music has a family, a legacy and a future…” so to deny the glorious heritage of electronic music when assessing new acts would be futile. Indeed, acknowledging history is very much part of ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK’s style and it appears to have been appreciated, especially in regard to the feature ‘30 Favourite Albums 2010 – 2014’, one of a quintet of special articles to celebrate the site’s fifth birthday in March…

“Huge thanks to ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK” said avid reader Hugh David, “A victory for well-written, artfully conveyed content curation once again… you knew exactly what to say to sell me on one artist or another. That rare ability of a reviewer to pinpoint the precise comparisons that enable me to decide to seek something out based on my own tastes is something lacking in so many other outlets; love that you’ve got that in spades”

Another reader David Sims added: “ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK is a great way of discovering artists you might not otherwise be aware of. A bit like when a friend used to come round your house clutching an LP or C90 saying ‘I really love this, have a listen’, introducing you to new music that makes your neck hairs stand up in ovation”

2014 was a comparatively lean 12 months, but this year found many veterans returning to the fold. NEW ORDER released ‘Music Complete’, a much discussed comeback that was not only the Mancunians’ first album for Mute, but also without estranged bassist Peter Hook.

Marc Almond released ‘The Velvet Trail’, his first pop album for many years while ANDY BELL embarked on further solo adventures in support of ‘Torsten The Bareback Saint’.

SPARKS joined forces with FRANZ FERDINAND as FFS while telling everyone to ‘P*ss Off’ and proved that collaborations do work. Electronic music legend Jean-Michel Jarre also went the collaborative root. His first album for several years ‘Electronica 1 – The Time Machine’ featured the likes of LITTLE BOOTS,  TANGERINE DREAM, AIR, GESAFFELSTEIN and MASSIVE ATTACK along with ArminVan Buuren, John Carpenter and Vince Clarke.

Another legend Giorgio Moroder made his statement of intent with ‘74 Is The New 24’ and released ‘Déjà Vu’, a disco pop record featuring the likes of Sia, Britney Spears, Foxes and Kylie Minogue.

Meanwhile, his artier counterpart Zeus B Held gave us some ‘Logic of Coincidence’ and Wolfgang Flur made his solo debut with ‘Eloquence’, his first length album project since 1997.

Liverpool duo CHINA CRISIS delivered ‘Autumn In The Neighbourhood’, their first original material since 1994’s ‘Warped By Success’ while Howard Jones showed he could still innovate at 60 years of age when he launched ‘Engage’, “a highly interactive live experience designed to immerse audiences in an audio / visual feast”. A-HA came back after disbanding in 2010 with ‘Cast In Steel’ and DURAN DURAN recruited an all-star cast that included Nile Rodgers, John Frusciante, Kiesza and Lindsay Lohan for the rather disappointing EDM blow-out ‘Paper Gods’.

BLANCMANGE’s ‘Semi Detached’ was Neil Arthur’s first without long-time partner Stephen Luscombe and he even found time to release a wonderful instrumental collection entitled ‘Nil By Mouth’. Indeed, there were quite a few instrumental opuses in 2015, with GHOST HARMONIC’s wonderful ‘Codex’ featuring John Foxx and the electronic pioneer’s own glorious ‘London Overgrown’.

DEPECHE MODE’s Martin Gore released the tutorial for his new Eurorack modular system as the simply titled ‘MG’. 2015 saw the 25th anniversary of DEPECHE MODE’s ‘Violator’ and to ignore its significance, as some DM fan related platforms did, would have been incredibly short sighted. However, there was none of that from premier DM tribute band SPEAK & SPELL who played their biggest UK gig yet with a splendid boutique showcase of that landmark album at London’s Islington Academy.

CAMOUFLAGE, a band who started off very much under the influence of the Basildon boys, issued the mature statement of ‘Greyscale’ while continuing the DEPECHE MODE album theme, Athens based synth maidens MARSHEAUX gave a worthy of re-assessment of ‘A Broken Frame’ and procured a number of interesting arrangements for some under rated songs. DIE KRUPPS got more metal than machine on their fifth opus ‘V – Metal Machine Music’.

Fellow Germans BEBORN BETON made up for a ten year absence with ‘A Worthy Compensation’ while SOLAR FAKE and SYNTHDECADE also got in on the action too.

CHVRCHES continued their quest for world domination with something that LITTLE BOOTS, LA ROUX, LADYHAWKE and HURTS never managed… a decent second album. But PURITY RING, the Canadian act whose template CHVRCHES borrowed, must have looked over with a touch of envy at the Glaswegian’s success so responded with ‘Another Eternity’.

HANNAH PEEL released an interim mini-album ‘Rebox 2’ which blended centuries of music technology while VILE ELECTRODES came up with the gorgeous ‘Captive In Symmetry’, possibly one of the songs of 2015. EURASIANEYES heeded all the guidance available to them to produce their most accomplished song yet in ‘Call Your God’ and ANALOG ANGEL went on a well-received tour supporting Swedish veterans COVENANT with a message to listeners of ‘Don’t Forget To Love’.

Elsewhere in the British Isles, CIRCUIT3, RODNEY CROMWELL and SUDDEN CREATION made their first excursions into the long player format just as KID KASIO and KOVAK each delivered album number two while Berlin based Brit EMIKA helpfully titled her third opus ‘Drei’.

“So, what’s so special about Sweden then?” someone once rather cluelessly asked TEC. Well, it is the modern hub of inventive, electronic pop. KARIN PARK offered her profanity laden fifth album ‘Apocalypse Pop’.

Meanwhile SAY LOU LOU finally gave the world their ‘Lucid Dreaming’. SISTA MANNEN PÅ JORDEN offered to ‘Translate’ while TRAIN TO SPAIN told the world ‘What It’s All About’. And this was without feisty youngsters like ME THE TIGER and comparatively experienced hands such as PRESENCE OF MIND, DESTIN FRAGILE, CLUB 8, 047 and HILTIPOP all entering the equation too.

Still in Sweden, DAYBEHAVIOR went all female PET SHOP BOYS with the Italo flavoured ‘Cambiare’ and MACHINISTA followed up their debut ‘Xenoglossy’ with ‘Garmonbozia’. while there was also the unexpected return of alternative synthpopsters ASHBURY HEIGHTS.

But best of all were the mighty KITE; their ‘VI’ EP was a masterclass in epic, majestic electronic pop. In the rest of Europe, there was an influx of darker female fronted acts such as Hungary’s BLACK NAIL CABARET, Italy’s ELECTROGENIC, Greece’s SARAH P. and Germany’s NINA; the latter’s ‘My Mistake’ even ended up on a Mercedes TV advert. The male contingent did their bit too with Slovenia’s TORUL unleashing their second offering ‘The Measure’ while the prolific Finnish duo SIN COS TAN took things a little bit easier in their fourth year with just an EP ‘Smile, Tomorrow Will Be Worse’, having already released three albums since 2012.

Oslo based studio legend John Fryer returned with two new projects, SILVER GHOST SHIMMER and MURICIDAE featuring vocalists Pinky Turzo and Louise Fraser respectively. Both reminded listeners of his work with COCTEAU TWINS and THIS MORTAL COIL, but with an Americanised twist. The Icelandic domiciled Denver singer / songwriter JOHN GRANT added some funkier vibes to his continuing electronic direction while IAMX moved from Berlin to Los Angeles, and did no harm to his art with the brooding ‘Metanoia’ album.

On the brighter side of North America, PRIEST’s self-titled debut long player became reality following their dreamy ‘Samurai’ EP, while HYPERBUBBLE made available their wacky award winning soundtrack to the short film ‘Dee Dee Rocks The Galaxy’ and joyous 2014 London show. And GRIMES caught the music biz on the hop when she released a new album ‘Art Angels’, having scrapped an album’s worth of material in 2014.

But despite North America itself being one of the territories flying the flag for the synth with acts like NIGHT CLUB, BATTLE TAPES, AESTHETIC PERFECTION and RARE FACTURE all figuring, the worst single of 2015 actually came from the USA! Literally decades of synth heritage were eminently obliterated in five soul destroying minutes… was this really what the Electronic Revolution was fought for? This is cultural history and it needs to be protected.

Although the year had flashes of brilliance, it was generally less impressive overall for fledgling electronic artists, with a number forgetting that all important factor of a good tune! Eddie Bengtsson of SISTA MANNEN PÅ JORDEN remarked last year that synthpop was becoming a dying art.

And in 2015, synthpop’s credibility was further tarnished with lazy use of the term by the mainstream press for acts like YEARS & YEARS; one could argue that Taylor Swift and her ‘1989’ opus is possibly more synthpop than YEARS & YEARS have ever been! In a market where EDM appears to be king and clubbers are happy to witness DJs miming their two hour sets, there is clearly something wrong. Things were not helped by certain media outlets insisting that dance music was the only way; it was as if electronic music had somehow managed to jump from KRAFTWERK to Detroit techno with nothing happening in between.

jarre clarke

And then, there were those who had never particularly enjoyed music from that key Synth Britannia period, who were trying to dictate how modern electronic music was being presented and pretending it had popped out of thin air!

Some bands were not doing themselves any favours either, showing little empathetic connection to the history of electronic music in their deluded optimism that they were crafting something completely new! As Jean-Michel Jarre amusingly quipped to Sound-On-Sound magazine: “Lots of people in America think that electronic music started with AVICII and it’s not exactly the truth…”

The lack of accuracy in a number of publications over the last 18 months was also shocking, particularly within magazines and online media that continued to employ writers with a history of not knowing their tape recorders from their drum machines. This simply proved the old adage that just because someone is employed as a professional writer, it doesn’t actually mean they are a good writer!

MYSADCAT2015

Photo @MYSADCAT

The domestic live scene had its challenges too with slow ticket sales and a number of events cancelled. But even when some true legends in electronic music were booked, ticket sales could not be guaranteed and efficient promotion was needed to maximise potential.

Some observers were bemoaning a lack of support for the scene, but if line-ups are not particularly appealing, then audiences cannot be expected to invest time and money to attend. A number of organisational infrastructures also lacked credibility; if a promoter doesn’t have at least some idea if they’re going to sell fifty tickets or five thousand, then they really shouldn’t be in the business!

The question that has to be asked then is, has anybody actually learnt from the Alt-Fest debacle of 2014? It really would appear not! While ‘A Secret Wish’ and SOS#2 were a couple of the year’s better UK events, Europe showed once again how things should be done. Electronic Summer in Gothenburg and the Electri_City_Conference in Düsseldorf were two of the most notable electronic music events of 2015.

The inherent knowledge and sense of understanding in both differed immensely to some British promoters. This perhaps could explain why electronic pop has generally flourished more in territories across the North Sea. Electronic pop needs to continue to develop, but quality control must be maintained to ensure the genre is not publically misrepresented. SOFT CELL once sang about ‘Monoculture’ while KID MOXIE declared how everyone was just content with ‘Medium Pleasure’.

If all that’s heard is the best of a bad bunch, then younger listeners (and therefore potential future synth oriented musicians) will not be inspired. That is why it is important that CHVRCHES and EAST INDIA YOUTH consolidate their positions as modern electronic pop’s representatives in the mainstream.

It is not good practice to support mediocre music just because it happens to be electronic. The finest examples need to be set so as to show what can be achieved; now if that means possibly referencing back to the golden age of synthpop, then so be it. Only then will the synth baton be able to taken up by a new generation who can then truly reinvigorate it.

ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK Contributor Listings 2015

PAUL BODDY

Best Album: EAST INDIA YOUTH Culture Of Volume
Best Song: NEW ORDER Restless
Best Gig: EAST INDIA YOUTH + HANNAH PEEL at London Village Underground
Best Video: BATTLE TAPES Valkyrie
Most Promising New Act: BATTLE TAPES

DEB DANAHAY

Best Album: IAMX Metanoia
Best Song: KITE Up For Life
Best Gig: NODE at The Royal College of Music
Best Video: IAMX Oh Cruel Darkness Embrace Me
Most Promising New Act: KITE

IAN FERGUSON

Best Album: EAST INDIA YOUTH Culture Of Volume
Best Song: KITE Count The Days
Best Gig: ASSEMBLAGE 23 at SOS#2 Festival
Best Video: VILE ELECTRODES Captive In Symmetry
Most Promising New Act: RODNEY CROMWELL

MONIKA IZABELA GOSS

Best Album: SILVER GHOST SHIMMER Soft Landing
Best Song: IAMX Happiness
Best Gig: IAMX at London Koko
Best Video: TORUL The Balance
Most Promising New Act: SYNTHDECADE

SIMON HELM

Best Album: LAU NAU Hem Någonstans
Best Song: ME THE TIGER As We Really Are
Best Gig: SISTA MANNEN PÅ JORDEN at A Secret Wish
Best Video: JUNO Same To Me
Most Promising New Act: REIN

CHI MING LAI

Best Album: SUSANNE SUNDFØR Ten Love Songs
Best Song: KITE Up For Life
Best Gig: FFS at The Troxy
Best Video: VILE ELECTRODES Captive In Symmetry
Most Promising New Act: RODNEY CROMWELL

RICHARD PRICE

Best Album: EAST INDIA YOUTH Culture Of Volume
Best Song: NEW ORDER Plastic
Best Gig: EAST INDIA YOUTH + HANNAH PEEL at London Village Underground
Best Video: VILE ELECTRODES Captive In Symmetry
Most Promising New Act: KITE

Text by Chi Ming Lai
16th December 2015

5 Years of ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK – WHILE MY SYNTH GENTLY BLEEPS

14 March 2015 /

ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK celebrates its fifth anniversary and it has been a glorious journey.

The site came into being on 15th March 2010 after the founding team discussed having an online platform to feature the best in new and classic electronic pop music. After weeks of deliberation, the decision to finally launch the site came at the HEAVEN 17 aftershow party for their triumphant gig at The Magna Science Park on 6th March 2010.

That evening, ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK met and chatted with HEAVEN 17’s Glenn Gregory and Martyn Ware, OMD’s Paul Humphreys and Claudia Brücken, best known as the singer of PROPAGANDA… by the end of the year, all four had given insightful interviews to the site.

ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK received a major boost in profile in May 2010 when its interview with Paul Humphreys was quoted by The Guardian as part of a news item announcing the release of OMD’s comeback album ‘History Of Modern’.

Key interviews with DUBSTAR and CLIENT’s Sarah Blackwood, LANDSCAPE’s Richard James Burgess, THE ART OF NOISE’s Gary Langan and ULTRAVOX’s Warren Cann also followed. Later in the year, ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK featured promising new act VILE ELECTRODES for the very first time; they were soon to become a stalwart of the UK independent electronic scene.

But the first act to formally be reviewed was MARINA & THE DIAMONDS, reflecting the kooky female fronted keyboard based pop like LA ROUX, LITTLE BOOTS, LADYHAWKE and LADY GAGA that was prevalent at the time. However, there was a changing of the guard on the horizon as new astute male fronted electronic based acts such as HURTS, VILLA NAH and MIRRORS appeared which the site took a keen interest in.

ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK has always prided itself in asking the questions that have never usually been asked, but which fans want to know the answers to. And it was with this reputation for intelligent and well researched interviewing that the site was granted its biggest coup yet when it spoke to NEW ORDER’s Stephen Morris. In the ensuing chat, Morris cryptically hinted that Manchester’s finest would return… and that is exactly what happened in Autumn of that year when concerts in aid of the band’s late friend Michael Shamberg were announced.

ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK was on a roll in 2011 as OMD’s Andy McCluskey, RECOIL mainman Alan Wilder, BLANCMANGE’s Neil Arthur, Mira Aroyo of LADYTRON, HOWARD JONES, THOMAS DOLBY and DRAMATIS’ Chris Payne all gave interviews. And in rather bizarre throwback to 1981, DURAN DURAN, THE HUMAN LEAGUE and JOHN FOXX released new albums on the same day in March. Meanwhile, up-and-coming acts such as AUSTRA, SOFT METALS, ELEVEN: ELEVEN and QUEEN OF HEARTS made a good first impression.

Events like ‘Return To The Blitz Club’, ‘Short Circuit Presents Mute’, ‘Back To The Phuture – Tomorrow Is Today’, ‘The Electronic Phuture Revue’ and the BEF Weekender reinforced the new found profile for music seeded from the Synth Britannia era and kept the team busy. ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK even found time to curate its own live event featuring VILE ELECTRODES.

2012 paled in comparison after such a fruitful year and several acts who were featured probably would not have gained as much coverage in more competitive periods.

But the year did unearth talents such as CHVRCHES, GAZELLE TWIN, GRIMES, KARIN PARK, TRUST, METROLAND and IAMAMIWHOAMI who were eventually make a lasting impact. During this time though, MIRRORS sadly lost momentum and appeared to wind down after the departure of founder member Ally Young while VILLA NAH mutated into SIN COS TAN.

Ahead of ULTRAVOX’s recorded return with ‘Brilliant’, Billy Currie spoke to ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK and MARSHEAUX headlined a sold out second event with The Blitz Club’s legendary DJ Rusty Egan as its special guest. EDM was also becoming big news internationally. But ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK stood its ground and showed little interest in this largely repetitive sub-genre as parties within the industry desperately tried to centralise synthpop and dance music with misguided promotional campaigns such as ‘Electrospective’. It was quite obvious the industry was struggling to come to terms with a changing marketplace, as well as failing to distinguish between dance music and electronic pop.

Contrary to general perception that music using synthesizers was 80s, ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK maintained a stance that electronic pop music didn’t start in that decade and certainly didn’t end there either. In fact, there was even an editorial diktat that banned its writers from using that horrific and lazy term of reference.

80s is neither an instrumentation style or a genre of music… tellingly, several PR representatives told ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK that one of the site’s main appeals was that it avoided the whole nostalgia bent as represented by events such as ‘Here & Now’ and other media, both virtual and physical.

What ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK did in 2013 would take up a whole article in itself… 2013 turned out to be one of the best years for electronic pop since 1981.  Interviews with ALISON MOYET, GARY NUMAN, KARL BARTOS, MARNIE, ADULT. and MISS KITTIN confirmed the site’s impact. There was even a radio show with Rusty Egan which ran for 25 programmes on dance station Mi-Soul.

Meanwhile new releases from OMD, NINE INCH NAILS, BEF, PET SHOP BOYS, GOLDFRAPP, MESH, MARSHEAUX, SIN COS TAN, POLLY SCATTERGOOD and VISAGE reflected the vibrancy of the modern electronic scene.

But the biggest recognition of how influential the site had become was when VILE ELECTRODES were chosen to support OMD after being spotted by Andy McCluskey while he was perusing the site’s webpages.

Over the years, ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK has written about a number of talents whose promise was never fully realised despite producing great music… THE SOUND OF ARROWS, SUNDAY GIRL, KATJA VON KASSEL and THE VANITY CLAUSE all featured several times, but timing and in the cases of the first three, record company interference stifled potential. Whether signed or independent, nothing can be guaranteed in the today’s music world.

Although the year started tremendously with an invitation to ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK to meet KARL BARTOS and WOLFGANG FLÜR in Cologne, 2014 suffered next to quality of 2013.

But  more key figures from the Synth Britannia era were  interviewed including MIDGE URE, ex-CABARET VOLTAIRE frontman Stephen Mallinder and the often forgotten man of the period JO CALLIS, who was a key member of THE HUMAN LEAGUE during their imperial phase.

For the 25th Anniversary of DEPECHE MODE’s ‘101’, Alan Wilder spoke exclusively to ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK about how that live document became a major game changer for the band. And at his autobiography launch in London, Bernard Sumner revealed that NEW ORDER’s next album would be more electronic than the band’s last couple of offerings. Meanwhile, SUSANNE SUNDFØR’s various collaborations with RÖYKSOPP and KLEERUP enhanced her profile in readiness for ‘Ten Love Songs’, her most accomplished work yet. Also riding high were Glasgow’s ANALOG ANGEL with their third album ‘Trinity’ and a support tour with Swedish veterans COVENANT in 2015 was their reward.

The live circuit was vibrant and there was a third event which had a DEPECHE MODE flavour thanks to tribute band SPEAK & SPELL playing ‘Speak & Spell’ and ‘101’ sets. There was also a DJ set by Sarah Blackwood plus a special memorabilia exhibition curated by Deb Danahay, co-founder of the first official DM Information Service. At the same event VILE ELECTRODES celebrated the first anniversary of their debut album ‘The future through a lens’ having snapped up two Schallwelle awards in Germany for ‘Best International Album’ and ‘Best International Artist’.

As 2015 settles in, highly regarded acts within the electronic community continue to engage with The Electricity Club. German trio CAMOUFLAGE used an edit of ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK’s career retrospective on the band as liner notes for their CD ‘The Singles’. Meanwhile studio legend John Fryer, who worked with FAD GADGET, DEPECHE MODE, COCTEAU TWINS and NINE INCH NAILS, also stopped by for a chat as did BLANCMANGE’s Neil Arthur, securing a site record with his fourth interview for the site.

Newer artists over the last few years as varied as FEATHERS, KID MOXIE, HANNAH PEEL, I AM SNOW ANGEL, TWINS NATALIA, NIGHT CLUB, PAWWS, MACHINISTA, QUIETER THAN SPIDERS, PRIEST and TRAIN TO SPAIN have proved that electronic music is still very much alive. ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK appears to have reflected the interests of people who love the Synth Britannia era and have a desire to hear new music rooted in that ilk. 🙂

While things cannot carry on for ever, there is a belief that there is much more excellent music still to be created and discovered.

ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK gives its warmest thanks to all who have contributed over the last five years, be they writers, musicians, commentators, photographers, artists or models And a big thank you to everyone who has taken the time read an article on the site

Text by Chi Ming Lai
14th March 2015

« Older posts Newer posts »

© 2017 ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK | Email: [email protected]
Privacy Policy

Up ↑