Depeche Mode are an English electronic band that released seven studio albums and a live disc between 1981 and 1990 on Mute and Sire. They launched in 1980 when keyboardists Martin Gore, Andy Fletcher, and Vince Clarke found singer Dave Gahan and linked with Mute founder Daniel Miller, who produced their first five albums. Depeche […]
Soft Cell was an English electro-pop duo from Leeds, composed of singer–lyricist Marc Almond and keyboardist–programmer Dave Ball. They cut multiple singles in advance of their 1981 debut album Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, which spawned the international hit “Tainted Love” and the club staples “Bedsitter” and “Sex Dwarf.” A visual accompaniment to the album, Non-Stop Exotic […]
Gary Numan is an English keyboardist, vocalist, composer, and pilot who has been musically active since the late-1970s. He emerged as the frontman of synth-punks Tubeway Army, which issued two standalone singles and a self-titled album in 1978. After placing his name in front on their 1979 breakthrough release Replicas, he became a solo artist […]
Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark — also known by the acronym OMD — are an English electronic band that released seven albums between 1980 and 1986 on DinDisc and Virgin. Singer–bassist Andy McCluskey and keyboardist–singer Paul Humphreys are the mainstays of the band; joined on successive releases by drummer Malcolm Holmes and saxophonist–keyboardist Martin Cooper. […]
Kraftwerk are a German electronic group formed in Düsseldorf by Ralf Hütter and Florian Schneider, who steered the band from avant-garde krautrock to streamlined machine music. Their early albums (Kraftwerk, Kraftwerk 2, Ralf & Florian) fused analog electronics with flute, violin, and organ in longform instrumental passages. With Autobahn (1974), Kraftwerk embraced motorik rhythm and […]
New Order are an English electro-pop band that made five albums and twenty singles between 1981 and 1990 on Factory Records. They formed in late 1980 when three/fourths of Joy Division — guitarist Bernard Sumner, bassist Peter Hook, and drummer Stephen Morris — carried on after the death of singer Ian Curtis. With added keyboardist/guitarist […]
Yellow Magic Orchestra (YMO) was a Japanese electro/art-pop trio that released six proper albums and a live disc between 1978 and 1983 on Alfa. They were formed by veteran multi-instrumentalist Haruomi Hosono (ex-Apryl Fool, Happy End) and featured drummer Yukihiro Takahashi (ex-Sadistic Mika Band). During YMO’s initial run, singer and keyboardist Ryuichi Sakamoto launched a […]
The Human League are an English synthpop band best known for their 1981 global No. 1 hit “Don’t You Want Me.” Across two incarnations, they released six albums, four EPs, and twenty singles between 1979 and 1990 on Virgin Records. They emerged on the Sheffield post-punk scene with the 1978 DIY release “Being Boiled” (b/w […]
Landscape was an English electronic band that released the 1977–78 jazz-rock EPs U2XME1X2MUCH and Worker’s Playtime, followed by the 1979–82 RCA albums Landscape, From the Tea-rooms of Mars… to the Hell-holes of Uranus, and Manhattan Boogie Woogie. Between their first two albums, they evolved from instrumental fusion to comedic electro–pop. From the Tea-rooms of Mars… […]
Icehouse was an Australian new wave band from Sydney, led by multi-instrumentalist Iva Davies. They first recorded as Flowers but soon renamed after their 1980 first album, Icehouse, noted for the tracks “Can’t Help Myself,” “Walls,” and “We Can Get Together.” After their 1981 single “Love In Motion,” Davies used the Icehouse name as a […]
Thomas Dolby is an English keyboardist, songwriter, producer, and arranger who first appeared on the 1979 album English Garden by Bruce Woolley and The Camera Club. After working for two years as a session musician (Foreigner, Jane Kennaway, Joan Armatrading, Thompson Twins), Lene Lovich charted with his song “New Toy.” Dolby launched his solo career […]
New Musik was an English synthpop band that released the 1980/81 albums From A to B and Anywhere on GTO/CBS, scoring hits with “Straight Lines,” “Living By Numbers,” “Sanctuary,” and “This World of Water.” After their 1982 release Warp, mastermind Tony Mansfield went into production. Early keyboardist Nick Straker left pre-record to front his own […]
A Flock of Seagulls are an English new wave band from Liverpool, best known for the Eighties classics “I Ran (So Far Away),” “Space Age Love Song,” and “Wishing (If I Had a Photograph of You),” all staples of early MTV. Their first two albums (A Flock of Seagulls and Listen) helped spearhead the Second […]
Eurythmics were an English electro-pop duo that released seven studio albums and a soundtrack between 1981 and 1989 on RCA. They scored multiple 1983–85 hits, including “Sweet Dreams,” “Who’s That Girl?” “Here Comes the Rain Again,” and “Would I Lie to You?” The duo consisted of vocalist Annie Lennox and multi-instrumentalist David Stewart. They recorded […]
Chrisma was an Italian synthpunk duo that released the 1977–79 Polydor albums Chinese Restaurant and Hibernation. They respelled their name Krisma for a string of Eighties synthpop albums. Members: Maurizio Arcieri, Christina Moser Background Chrisma formed in Milan in 1976 when Italian pop veteran Maurizio Arcieri (b. April 30, 1941, Milan) formed a duo with […]
Pet Shop Boys are the English electro-pop duo of Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe. They emerged with the 1985 single “West End Girls,” an international hit included on their 1986 debut album Please, which spawned further hits with “Opportunities” and “Love Comes Quickly.” Their 1987 album Actually charted with “It’s a Sin” and “What Have I […]
Heaven 17 are an English electro-pop band, best known for the Eighties classics “Penthouse and Paevement,” “(We Don’t Need This) Fascist Groove Thang,” “Let Me Go,” “Who’ll Stop the Rain,” and the UK hits “Temptation,” “Come Live with Me,” and “Crushed by the Wheels of Industry.” They released five albums between 1981 and 1988 on […]
Visage was an English electronic supergroup that made a 1980 self-titled album and charted with “Fade to Grey” and “Mind of a Toy,” defining hits of the New Romantic movement. Further chart and club hits followed with their 1982 release The Anvil, including “The Damned Don’t Cry” and “Night Train.” Both albums feature then-current members […]
Berlin was an American new wave band from Los Angeles, best known for the synthpop hits “Masquerade,” “The Metro,” “No More Words,” and the 1986 Top Gun ballad “Take My Breath Away.” Bassist-songwriter John Crawford formed the band in 1979 with teenage actress Terri Nunn (Thank God It’s Friday), who cleared for Berlin’s 1980 debut […]
The Fixx are an English modern rock band that released five studio albums between 1982 and 1991. On their early releases, they carried the sonic innovations of producer Rupert Hine to a wider transatlantic audience. The debut Fixx album, Shuttered Room, spawned the early MTV staples “Stand or Fall” and “Red Skies.” Their 1983 second […]
The Buggles were a studio-based English new wave/art pop duo that scored a global hit in 1979 with “Video Killed the Radio Star,” of which the video became the first clip to air during MTV’s premier day of broadcast on August 1, 1981. The duo released two albums — between which they were briefly integrated […]
Propaganda was the German synthpop band behind the 1984 EP Present the Nine Lives of Dr. Mabuse and the 1985 album A Secret Wish on Trevor Horn’s ZTT label. Their second proper album, 1234, appeared in 1990 on Island. Members: Andreas Thein (keyboards, 1982-84), Ralf Dörper (keyboards), Susanne Freytag (keyboards, vocals), Claudia Brücken (vocals, 1983-86), […]
Bruce Woolley and the Camera Club were an English new wave band that released the 1979 Epic album English Garden. Woolley co-founded the Buggles and co-wrote the hit “Video Killed the Radio Star.” The Camera Club also featured keyboardist Thomas Dolby, a subsequent solo star. Members: Bruce Woolley (vocals), David Birch (guitar), Rod Johnson (drums, […]
Dalek I was an English electro/art-pop combo from Liverpool that released two albums and a clutch of singles between 1979 and 1983. Originally called Dalek I Love You — a space-age play on the phrase “darling I love you” — the band distilled from a late-’70s Liverpudlian conglomerate that would also yield future members of […]
Polyphonic Size was a Belgian synthpop project centered on vocalist, guitarist, and keyboardist Roger-Marc Vande Voorde, with lyrics supplied throughout by Dominique Buxin. Between 1979 and 1982 the project released four EPs and a cluster of singles, mostly on the small-press Belgian and French labels Sandwich and New Rose, which also issued the 1982 debut […]
Yazoo (aka Yaz) was an English synthpop duo with (ex-Depeche Mode) keyboardist–songwriter Vince Clarke and soul singer Alison Moyet. They released the 1982–83 albums Upstairs at Eric’s and You and Me Both and charted with “Only You,” “Don’t Go,” “Situation,” and “Nobody’s Diary.” Clarke formed the subsequent synth-duo Erasure. Members: Vince Clarke (keyboards, synthesizer), Alison […]
The Flying Lizards were an English electro/art-pop group that charted with 1979 reinventions of two rock standards: “Summertime Blues” and “Money.” Producer David Cunningham led the project through multiple iterations, first with singer Deborah Lizard and multi-instrumentalist Steve Beresford. Lizards’ 1981 second album, Fourth Wall, features Robert Fripp, Snatch singer Patti Palladin, and Eye to […]
Belouis Some — aka Neville Keighley (b. December 12, 1959) — is an English singer and songwriter who achieved global renown with the 1985–86 hits “Imagination” and “Some People,” the latter tied to the iconic Swatch watch brand. He released two albums on Parlophone/Capitol, each with a hi-tech mix of dance-pop, pastoral art pop, and […]
KaS Product was a French post-punk/minimal wave duo that released two 1980 EPs on self-press Punk Records, followed by the 1982/83 RCA albums Try Out and By Pass and their 1986 swan song Ego Eye. Members: Mona Soyoc (vocals, guitar, piano), Spatsz (electronics, electronic drums, synthesizer) Background KaS Product assembled in January 1980 in Nancy […]
Thomas Leer — aka Thomas Wishart (born 1953) — is a Scottish musician and producer who cut the seminal 1978 DIY minimal-wave single “Private Plane,” followed by The Bridge, a collaborative album with guitarist/keyboardist Robert Rental. In 1981, Leer issued the home-recorded EPs 4 Movements and Contradictions on Cherry Red. His first proper album, The […]
Freur was a Welsh synthpop band that released the 1983–85 CBS albums Doot-Doot and Get Us Out of Here. Drummer Bryn B. Burrows played earlier in the Fabulous Poodles. Freur’s nucleus morphed into Underworld. Members: Rick Smith (keyboards, guitar), Karl Hyde (vocals, guitar), Bryn B. Burrows (drums), John Warwicker (synthesizer), Alfie Thomas (bass) Background Freur […]
Mi-Sex was a New Zealand new wave band that released four albums between 1979 and 1983 on CBS–Epic. Members: Don Martin (bass), Murray Burns (keyboards), Richard Hodgkinson (drums, 1977-1981), Steve Gilpin (vocals, 1977-1984), Kevin Stanton (guitar, 1977-1986), Paul Dunningham (drums, 1981-present), Colin Bailey (guitar, 1983-present) Background Mi-Sex formed in 1977 in New Zealand when vocalist […]
Naked Eyes were an English electro/art-pop duo composed of singer Pete Byrne and keyboardist Rob Fisher. They first appeared in late 1982 with a hi-tech cover of the Bacharach/David classic “There’s Always Something There to Remind Me.” In 1983, they released Burning Bridges on EMI, charting with “Promises Promises,” “When the Lights Go Out,” and […]
Missing Persons were an American new wave band, best known for the hits “Mental Hopscotch,” “Destination Unknown,” “Walking In L.A.,” “Words,” “Give,” and “Right Now.” Between 1982 and 1986, they made three albums and became an early MTV fixture, distinguished by the space-age costumes and colorful hairdos of frontwoman Dale Bozzio. Members: Dale Bozzio (lead […]
M was the recording moniker of English musician, singer, and songwriter Robin Scott, who released three electro/art-pop albums under the name between 1979 and 1982 on Sire. Ten years before M, Scott released the folk album Woman From the Warm Grass on Head Records. In 1981, he collaborated with Ryuichi Sakamoto on tracks for the […]
Yello is a Swiss electro-pop combo from Zürich that emerged on Ralph Records with the 1980/81 albums Solid Pleasure and Claro que Si. In 1983, they scored a crossover hit with “I Love You” from their Stiff release You Gotta Say Yes to Another Excess. Trimmed to the duo of Boris Blank and Dieter Meier, […]
Kissing the Pink was an English synthpop band that released three albums between 1983 and 1986 on Magnet Records. Their first, Naked, spawned five singles, including the UK hit “Last Film.” Members: Nicholas Whitecross (lead vocals, guitar), Jon Kingsley Hall (keyboards, synthesizer, vocals), Stephen Cusack (drums, percussion, vocals, 1980-88), George Stewart (keyboards, vocals, 1980-85, 1988-present), […]
Classix Nouveaux was an English new wave band that released three albums between 1981 and 1983 on Liberty. Noted for their dapper Blitz attire and the theatrics of singer Sal Solo, they charted with the uptempo bass-driven tracks “Guilty,” “Never Again,” and “Is It a Dream?” Members: Sal Solo (vocals), Mik Sweeney (bass), B. P. […]
John Foxx is an English keyboardist, songwriter, and producer who first emerged as the frontman of Ultravox, a pioneering electro-rock band that released three 1977–78 albums on Island Records. In 1980, Foxx debuted as a solo artist with Metamatic, a collection of minimal wave and ambient-vocal cuts on his own Virgin-imprint Metal Beat. Foxx embraced […]
Indians in Moscow were an English electronic new wave group that placed three singles on the UK Independent Singles Chart and released a 1984 self-titled album on Kennick. Members: Pete Riches (synthesizer, keyboards, programming), Stuart Walton (bass, synthesizer, keyboards, guitar, programming), Adele Nozedar (vocals, 1981–85), David Page (drum machine), Martin Gosnold (synthesizer), Richard Hornby (drums), […]
Logic System is a Japanese electronic music project led by synthesizer programmer and composer Hideki Matsutake (松武秀樹, b. August 12, 1951, Yokohama). The project launched in 1981 and released three studio albums on Toshiba-EMI’s Express sublabel over eighteen months. Each album adopted a distinct concept and approach, with the first built from sequenced machine rhythms, the […]
Blancmange was an English synthpop duo that released three albums between 1982 and 1985 on London Records. Composed of Neil Arthur and Stephen Luscombe, they became a prominent fixture of the early 80s electronic music scene. Across their three albums—Happy Families (1982), Mange Tout (1984), and Believe You Me (1985)—they delivered popular hits such as […]
Gina X Performance was a German electronic project led by Gina Kikoine and producer Zeus B. Held, known for merging vocoder textures, sequencer architecture, and performance art into a distinctive synthetic language. Their early tracks “No G.D.M.” and “Nice Mover” became underground club staples across Europe for their clipped rhythms and stylized vocal presence. Between […]
Our Daughters Wedding was an American new wave trio from New York that scored an early synthpop club hit with their 1980 single “Lawnchairs,” included on their 1981 EP Digital Cowboy. Members: Keith Silva (vocals, synthesizer, keyboards, guitar), Layne Rico (synthesizer, vocals, drums, drum machine), Scott Simon (synthesizer, saxophone, vocals, guitar, bass synth), Jim Nevius […]
Vicious Pink was an English electro-pop duo from Leeds consisting of keyboardist Brian Moss and vocalist Josie Warden. Originally dubbed the Vicious Pink Phenomena, the pair released a single apiece on the small-press labels Mobile Suit Corporation and Warehouse circa 1982/83. After shortening their name, the two released a trio of singles on Parlophone between […]
Telex was a Belgian electro/art-pop trio that released the 1979 album Looking for Saint-Tropez on Vogue/RKM, followed by the 1980 international release Neurovision. Two tracks from the former were appended to the latter for a U.S. issue on Sire. In 1981, the trio enlisted the lyrical services of Sparks for the Ariola release Sex. Two […]
Rational Youth was a Québécois synthpop band that released the 1982 album Cold War Night Life on Yul, followed by an EP and the 1985 album Heredity on Capitol. Members: Tracy Howe (vocals, keyboards, guitar), Mario Spezzo (keyboards, 1981), Bill Vorn (keyboards, vocoder, 1981-82, 1996-97), Kevin Komoda (keyboards, 1982-83), Denis Duran (bass, 1983), Angel Calvo […]
The Europeans were an English synthpop/art-pop band that released the 1983/84 A&M albums Vocabulary and Recurring Dreams. Guitarist Colin Woore and singer/keyboardist Steve Hogarth formed the spinoff duo How We Live for the 1987 album Dry Land. In 1989, Hogarth joined Marillion as the permanent replacement of their original frontman, Fish. Members: Steve Hogarth (lead […]
Spoons were a Canadian synthpop band that released three albums on Ready Records between 1981 and 1983, followed by two further albums on Anthem during the late 1980s. Members: Gordon Deppe (vocals, guitar), Sandy Horne (vocals, bass), Brett Wickens (keyboards, synthesizer, 1979-80), Peter Shepherd (drums, 1979), Derrick Ross (drums, 1980-86), Rob Preuss (keyboards, synthesizer, 1981-86), […]
Fischer-Z was an English new wave band that made the 1979–81 UA/Liberty albums Word Salad, Going Deaf for a Living, and Red Skies over Paradise. They scored Continental hits with “The Worker,” “So Long,” and “Marliese.” Frontman John Watts broke for two solo albums and a second group venture, The Cry. Fischer-Z resumed with the […]
Mathématiques Modernes were a French minimal wave duo behind the 1981 Celluloid album Les Visiteurs du Soir. Members: Edwige Braun-Belmore (vocals), Claude Arto (keyboards), Hervé Zenouda (drums) Background Mathématiques Modernes formed in 1979 when singer Edwige Braun-Belmore and keyboardist Claude Arto met through the Parisian punk and post-punk circles. Edwige Braun-Belmore (b. February 26, 1957; […]
Dekka Danse was a Scottish synthpop band that cut a 1982 DJM standalone single, followed by the 1984 CBS album Waltz in the Wilderness. The band evolved from an earlier act, The Shapiros, which issued a 1979 one-off single on small-press Now. Members: John Innes (vocals), Alan Morrison (guitar), Jon Smith (keyboards), Eric Grant (bass), […]
Fiction Factory was a Scottish synthpop band that released the album Throw the Warped Wheel Out with accompanying singles on CBS in 1984, followed by Another Story on Foundry Records in 1985. Members: Kevin Patterson (vocals), Chic Medley (guitar), Graham McGregor (bass), Eddie Jordan (keyboards), Mike Ogletree (drums, percussion) Background Fiction Factory had its roots […]
White Door was an English electro/art-pop trio that cut three singles and the 1983 album Windows. They spun from Grace, a later-reactivated symphonic band. Members: Mac Austin (vocals), Harry Davies (synthesiser, flute), John Davies (synthesiser) Background White Door formed in Stoke-on-Trent between singer Mac Austin and synthesist brothers Harry Davies and John Davies. Austin and […]
Industry was an American New Wave/synthpop band from NYC, formed in 1978 as Industrial Complex by ex-Cathedral drummer Mercury Caronia. The initial combo released an eponymous 1980 EP on Metro Records. After a lineup overhaul that roped-in fellow Cathedral alumnus Rudy Perrone, the band issued a second EP, Turning to Light, in 1981 on self-press […]
Bronski Beat was a Scottish–English synthpop band that released two albums and a remix compilation between 1984 and 1986 on Forbidden Fruit. The first album features singer Jimmy Somerville, who released two subsequent albums as one-half of The Communards. Members: Steve Bronski (keyboards, percussion, acoustic guitar, programming), Larry Steinbachek (keyboards, percussion), Jimmy Somerville (vocals, 1983-85, […]
Re-Flex was an English synthpop band that released the album The Politics of Dancing in 1983 on EMI. In 1985, they recorded a second album that later appeared as the archival CD Humanication. Members: John Baxter (vocals, guitar), Paul Fishman (keyboards, computer), Nigel Ross-Scott (bass), Roland Vaughan Kerridge (drums, percussion, programming) Background Re-Flex formed in […]
Mecano was a Spanish synth-pop trio formed in Madrid in 1981, consisting of singer Ana Torroja and brothers Nacho and José María Cano. Their first single, “Hoy no me puedo levantar,” spurred the electro-pop sound of their 1982–84 albums Mecano, ¿Dónde está el País de las Hadas?, and Ya viene el sol. They embraced acoustic […]
The Twins was a German synthpop duo that released four albums on Hansa International between 1981 and 1985, followed by a fifth release on CBS in 1987. Members: Ronny Schreinzer (vocals, drum machine, synthesizer, electronic drums, vocoder), Sven Dohrow (synthesizer, computer, sequencer) Background The Twins took shape in West Berlin after Sven Dohrow (b. 1957) […]
Snowy Red was the performance moniker of Belgian coldwave musician Marcel Thiel. He released two self-contained albums — Snowy Red and The Right to Die — circa 1981/82 on small-press Dirty Dance. The moniker represented an actual band on two subsequent ’80s releases, Vision and The Beat Is Over. Thiel briefly resurrected the Snowy Red name […]
Cybotron was an American synthpop combo from Detroit that issued a pair of singles on self-press Deep Space in 1981/82. All sides are included on the album Enter, released on Fantasy Records in 1983. Members: Richard Davis, Juan Atkins (1980-85) For the 1970s Australian electronic duo headed by Steve Maxwell Von Braund, click here. Background […]
Starter was a Swiss minimal-wave synth trio from Bern that released a 1981 self-titled album on Repertoire Records. A change in lineup yielded three 1985–87 singles on Bariton Records and a final 12″ on Atina Records in 1989. Members: Francis Foss (keyboards, vocals), Claudine Chirac (saxophone, keyboards, 1981-84), Jet Harbour (keyboards, 1981-84), Pauchard (1985-89), Reto […]
Silvia Nemanic is a German minimal-wave singer who cut a 1982 album under her forename, written and produced by Der KFC synthesist Tommi Stumpff. Credits: Rainer Assmann (backing vocals), Ferdinand Mackenthun [aka Käpt’n Nuss] (guitar), Sylvia Nemanic [aka Silvia Senff] (vocals), Tommi Stumpff (guitar, producer, synthesizer, vocals) Background Stumpff (b. Thomas Peters; February 1, 1958) […]
Men Without Hats are a Québécois new wave band led by Ivan Doroschuk. They debuted with the 1980 EP Folk of the 80’s, noted for “Antarctica,” an early Canadian synthpop classic. Their 1982 album Rhythm of Youth contains some of their best-loved material: “Ideas for Walls,” “Things in My Life”,” “The Great Ones Remember,” “Cocoricci […]
The Expression was an Australian new wave electro-pop band from Sydney that released two 1983–85 albums on Mushroom Records and charted with “With Closed Eyes.” Members: Dowling Neville (keyboard, vocals), Haran Tom (vocals, guitar, percussion), Henkenberg Bill (drums), Hopes Steve (drums), Lumsdaine Tim (bass), Manassah Stephen (bass), Slingerland Guy (drums), Wong-Yen Andrew (guitar) Background The […]
Strange Advance was a Canadian new wave band that released the 1982–85 Capitol albums Worlds Away and 2WO, followed by the 1988 Current release The Distance Between. Members: Darryl Kromm (vocals, guitar), Drew Arnott (keyboards, drums, vocals), Paul Iverson (bass, backing vocals, 1982-84) Formation They assembled in 1980 when singer–guitarist Darryl Kromm and keyboardist–drummer Drew […]
Hard Corps were an English coldwave/synthpop band from London that released a standalone single on Survival Records in 1984, followed by a pair of singles on Polydor in 1985 and a fourth on Sonoscope in 1987. The singles were collected with additional recordings on two compilations by specialty archivists Minimal Wave during the 2010s. French-born […]
Henry Badowski (born Oct. 3, 1958) is an English New Wave/synthpop songwriter and multi-instrumentalist from North Kensington who released a standalone single on Deptford Fun City in 1979, followed by the album Life Is a Grand… on I.R.S. in 1981. He played with a sequence of acts beforehand, each on a different instrument: Chelsea (bass, […]
Ensemble Pittoresque was a Dutch coldwave band that made the 1983 album For This Is Past on Clogsontronics, followed by the 1984 Vip release Frequenz. In 2007, their 1982 forty-minute demo surfaced on the U.S. specialty label Minimal Wave. Members: Richard Neumöller (vocals, guitar, tapes), Paulus Wieland (synthesizer, piano), Marion Prinz (vocals, synthesizer, 1983-84), Le […]
Drinking Electricity was a Scottish coldwave/art-punk band that released three 1980 singles on Pop Aural. They followed with “Subliminal” and the 1982 album Overload on Survival Records. Members: Anne-Marie Heighway (vocals), David Rome (guitar, vocals), Paul Edgley (bass) Background Drinking Electricity formed in 1980 when synthesist–guitarist David Rome and singer Anne-Marie Heighway, office coworkers, teamed […]
Kuruki was a Belgian coldwave/electro-pop combo that released five shortplayers and one album between 1981 and 1984. The band included veteran Flemish-rock journeyman Alain Bureau, who released a praised 1975 solo album under the modified surname Buro. Members: Gerry D’Haeyer, Alain Bureau Kuruki Kuruki was a Belgian minimal-synth/electro-pop project formed in Ghent by percussionist-producer Gerry […]
Jeff & Jane Hudson are an American husband/wife minimal wave duo from Boston that cut two 1979 singles as The Rentals on self-press Rent/Rental. Under their own names, they issued two 1981 shortplayers on Manhattan small-press Infidelity. One further single and the 1983 album Flesh appeared on eponymous-press J & J Records. Members: Jane Hudson […]
Cee Farrow (Sept. 4, 1956 — May 7, 1993) was a US-based German singer who scored a club hit with “Should I Love You” from his 1983 MCA album Red and Blue. Background Cee Farrow was born Christian Frede Kruzinski on Sept. 4, 1956, in Frankfurt, West Germany. Farrow moved to the United States in […]
November Group was an American new wave band from Boston, named after the 1910s German expressionist group. They made the 1982/83 synthpop EPs November Group and Persistent Memories, followed by the 1985 A&M mini-album Work That Dream. Members: Ann Prim (vocals, guitar, songwriter, arranger), Kearney Kirby (synthesizer, bass, backing vocals, songwriter, arranger), Alvin Long (drums), […]
Dial M were an American New Wave/synthpop duo from Los Angeles that released a self-titled album on small-press D&D Records in 1983. Multi-instrumentalist Mark Maierhoffer had a creative hand in albums by the Village People (Renaissance, 1981) and Cher (I Paralyze, 1982). Keyboardist/singer Mike Kapitan subsequently worked with Thomas Dolby. Members: Mike Kapitan (Lead Vocals, […]
Dramatis was an English electro/art-pop band that released the 1981 album For Future Reference on the Rocket Record Company. The album yielded four singles with non-album b-sides; three further standalone singles followed in 1982. Dramatis coalesced from the 1979/80 backing band of Gary Numan. Drummer Cedric Sharpley recorded two albums circa 1975/76 with symphonic-rockers Druid. […]
Oppenheimer Analysis was the English coldwave duo of singer Andy Oppenheimer and keyboardist Martin Lloyd. The pair self-released the cassette-album New Mexico — credited to the reverse-namesake vocalist — in 1982. Songs from that release were combined with unreleased early-’80s material on the 2005 self-issued CD Songs from the Atomic Age. That same year, an […]
Organ was a Finnish synthpop unit that evolved from Argon, the duo behind the 1981 album Kone Kertoo. As a quartet, Organ made two singles and the 1982 album Nekrofiilis on Poko Rekords. Members: Pekka Tolonen (synthesizer), Mikko Saarela (synthesizer), Tapani Lahtinen (synthesizer), Seppe Parkkinen (synthesizer, percussion) Background Organ formed in late 1981 in Helsinki when […]
The Actor were a Dutch coldwave duo that released two albums on Trumpett between 1982 and 1984. Members: Marcel Reimer (vocals, synthesizer, drum programming), Sander Horsthuis (backing vocals, synthesizer) Discography: Exploded View (1982) A New Concept Every Day (1984)
Denis & Denis were a Yugoslav male/female synthpop duo from Rijeka in modern-day Croatia. They made the 1984 album Čuvaj Se! and the 1985 EP Ja Sam Lažljiva, both on Jugoton, after which vocalist Marina Perazić left for a solo career. Keyboardist Davor Tolja enlisted fellow synth player Edi Kraljić for the 1988 album Budi […]
Twice a Man were a Swedish coldwave/synthpop trio that debuted with the album Music for Girls on Silence in 1982. Between 1983 and 1988, the band released seven albums on Xenophone. Members: Dan Söderqvist (guitar, vocals), Karl Gasleben [Ingemar Ljungström] (synthesizer, vocals), Lars Falk (guitar, 1981-82), Jocke Söderqvist (synthesizer, 1983-86) Discography: Music for Girls (1982) […]
