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Early 1980s
- After the breakthrough of Gary Numan in the UK Singles Chart in 1979, large numbers of artists began to enjoy success with a synthesizer-based sound in the early 1980s. In Japan, Yellow Magic Orchestra introduced the TR-808 rhythm machine to popular music, and the band would be a major influence on early British synth-pop acts.
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Synth-pop reached its commercial peak in the UK in the winter of 1981–2, with bands such as OMD, Japan, Ultravox, Soft Cell, Depeche Mode, Yazoo and even Kraftwerk, enjoying top ten hits. The Human League's and Soft Cell's UK number one singles "Don't You Want Me" and "Tainted Love" became the best selling singles in the UK in 1981.
- 1977–80 in West Germany, Japan, and United Kingdom
- Techno-pop
Mar 21, 2021 · The result was Synth-Pop, a style of popular rock that ruled the airwaves for about ten years beginning in 1977. Synth-pop had its origins and most sustained popularity in the UK. Preceded by the likes of Kraftwerk in Germany and the Berlin sound of David Bowie, there emerged a generation of artists whose compositions revolved around the use of ...
Oct 9, 2009 · Simon Reynolds. Fri 9 Oct 2009 19.15 EDT. T he synth-pop era really kicked off in June 1979, when Tubeway Army's Are 'Friends' Electric? hit No 1. The sound and visuals owed a substantial debt to...
- Simon Reynolds
- Tom Eames
- Spandau Ballet - 'To Cut a Long Story Short' Spandau Ballet - To Cut A Long Story Short. Before Spandau Ballet went down the ballad route with 'True', they were one of the leading moody New Romantic bands around.
- Duran Duran - 'Rio' Duran Duran - Rio (Official Music Video) If you’re looking for a stylish 1980s music video, look no further than 'Rio'. The vivid promo features iconic images of the band singing and playing around on a yacht speeding over the crystal blue Caribbean Sea.
- M - 'Pop Muzik' M - Pop Muzik (Official Video) One of the greatest one-hit-wonders of all time, you might not know the song by name, but you'll definitely have it in your head all day.
- Dead or Alive - 'You Spin Me Round (Like a Record)' Dead Or Alive - You Spin Me Round (Like a Record) (Official Video) This bombastic synthpop anthem gave Stock, Aitken and Waterman their first number one in the UK in 1984.
- Japan – Tin Drum
- Kraftwerk – The Man-Machine
- Depeche Mode – Violator
- New Order – Power Corruption and Lies
- Talk Talk – It’S My Life
- Eurythmics – Sweet Dreams
- Simple Minds – New Gold Dream
- Gary Numan – The Pleasure Principle
- Yazoo – Upstairs at Eric’s
- Blancmange – Mange Tout
South London synth-pop heroes Japan kept the good ship of David Bowie’s glam-era androgyny afloat in the late 1970s. The 1978 debut album Adolescent Sex garnered Japan a strong following, mostly thanks to its popular eponymous single. After the similarly guitar-driven Obscure Alternatives, Japan turned a corner with the synth-heavy Quiet Lifein 197...
German synth pioneers Kraftwerk had been tinkering away since the early 1970s, bringing their innovative electronic music to the masses with such releases asAutobahn and Radioactivity, but it wasn’t until 1978’s The Man-Machinethat they truly set the tone for the 1980s and the synth-pop takeover. The Man-Machine brought a more accessible edge and d...
In 1990, Essex gothic synth maestros Depeche Mode saw the synth-pop epoch out with a bang. Throughout the 1980s, Depeche Mode withered from the light of saccharine hits like ‘Just Can’t Get Enough’ to venture melancholic and more complex themes. Music for the Masses arrived in 1987 to widespread acclaim and appeared insurmountable until its 1990 fo...
Following Ian Curtis’ tragic suicide in 1980, the remaining members of Joy Division reunited as New Order. After dabbling with synthesisers for their underrated yet unbalanced Joy Division hangover album, Movement, New Order returned triumphant with a seminal classic and quite possibly their masterpiece in 1983’s Power Corruption and Lies. The albu...
Led by the meticulous creative Mark Hollis, Talk Talk blossomed through a series of stylistic changes throughout the 1980s. The sound they eventually landed on in 1988’s Spirit of Eden and 1991’s Laughing Stockwas simply breathtaking, but one would be hard-pressed to describe them as synth-pop. Each of Talk Talk’s five studio albums bettered the pr...
Eurythmics was formed by vocalist Annie Lennox and multi-instrumentalist Dave Stewart from the ashes of The Tourists in 1980.In the Garden, the duo’s debut effort of 1981 was poorly received both critically and commercially, but they more than redeemed themselves in 1983 with the masterpiece follow-up Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This). The album is u...
Simple Minds formed in the late 1970s as a post-punk outfit and gradually folded synth into their sound. After breaking through with Sons and Fascination/Sister Feelings Call in 1981, the band, led by Jim Kerr, soared to higher heights with New Gold Dream (81–82–83–84), the band’s first album classifiable as synth-pop. In spite of its remarkably un...
Gary Numan released his most consummate and critically revered album, The Pleasure Principle, in 1979. Just by looking at the album cover, one can tell Numan was almost singularly inspired by Kraftwerk. The record marked Numan’s debut solo effort following a successful run of two albums fronting Tubeway Army. Like much of Kraftwerk’s seminal materi...
Yazoo – or Yaz, as they were known in North America for legal reasons – was a duo comprised of singer Alison Moyet and former Depeche Mode member Vince Clarke. It was a transient project boasting only two studio albums, but what they lacked in longevity, they more than compensated for in enduring impact. Upstairs at Eric’s arrived in August 1981 as...
Blancmange consisted of Neil Arthur on vocals and Stephen Luscombe on keyboards. The pair significantly impacted the early 1980s synth-pop scene, but a lack of chart longevity has seen them retrospectively eclipsed by many of their peers. The first two of their three 1980s albums, Happy Families and Mange Tout, are true gems and determining which w...
Jul 21, 2023 · One could say that the electronic movement is having a renaissance in 2023—as it seems like every artist working today is experimenting with synthesizers—but I’d argue that the frenzy of ...
Aug 14, 2020 · The ever-illusive and evolving scene of synth-pop, rooted in the new-wave style that was crafted by up-and-coming bands in the late 1970s, still remains as prevalent today as it did back when it first hit the mainstream.