Como para recordar aquella memorable presentación en la explanada del Monumental, les estoy dejando la discografia de una de las bandas más emblemáticas de los 0chentas, vendedora de millones discos a nivel mundial y cuyo estilo inicialmente synthpop, derivo hacia un industrial revestido de cierta comercialidad, hasta llegar a la música electrónica actual fusionada con guitarras y baterias reales. Los inicios de Depeche Mode se remontan a 1977 en Basildon – Essex, cuando 2 jovenes estudiantes Vince Clarke (Vincent John Martin 03-07-1960, en voz y guitarras) y Andrew John Fletcher (08-07-1961 en bajo) forman la banda “No Romance in China”, dos años después Clarke formaría otra banda “The Plan” con 2 amigos; Robert Marlow y Paul Langwith; paralelamente Martin Lee Gore (23-07-1961 en guitarra) formaba un duo acústico con un amigo, Philip Burdett “Norman and the Worms”, pero no hubo continuidad.

Para 1979 Vince Clarke, Martin Gore, Robert Marlow y el recién llegado Paul Redmond formarian otra banda “The French Look”; pero no sería hasta el año siguiente que el embrión de Depeche Mode se formaría con Clarke (voz y guitarra), Gore (teclados) y Flechter (bajo) con el nombre de “Composition of Sound” . Esto sucedía en Marzo de 1980; en mayo de ese año, “Compostion of Sound” y “The French Look” tocarían juntos en el St. Nicholas School Youth Club en Basildon.

Poco después el sonido del trio cambiaria al usar sólo sintetizadores, y es en ese momento que entraría otro nombre clave a la banda; Dave Gahan (09-05-1962) entra poco después de que Clarke lo escuchara cantando el cover de de David Bowie “Heroes”; Depehce Mode había nacido.

El nombre de la banda viene  del título de una revista de moda francesa “Dépêche mode”; fue precisamente Gahan quién sugirió ese nombre (erroneamente se le traduce como “moda rápida” o “moda apresurada” , pero el término apropiado es “noticias acerca de moda”).

El debut de Depeche aparece bajo la forma de un tema “Photographic”, grabado para el naciente sello independiente “Some Bizzarre” propiedad del DJ Stephen John Pearce conocido como “Stevo” y que se incluiria dentro del sampler “Some Bizzarre Album” que presentaba además a otros pioneros de la new wave como “Soft Cell”, “The The” y “B-Movie” entre otros. Poco después es el músico y director de Mute Records, Daniel Miller quien pone los ojos en ellos ofreciéndoles la oportunidad de grabar su primer sencillo propiamente dicho en Diciembre de 1980. “Dreaming of Me” aparecido en Febrero de 1981 llega sólo al puesto 51 pero anima a la banda a sacar un segundo sencillo; “New Life” (Junio 1981) consigue un alentador puesto #11 en los charts; pero es con “Just Can’t Get Enough” (#8) que la banda se hace conocida a un nivel más amplio.  El album debut tambien es editado, “Speak and Spell” llega al puesto 10, la banda comienza a presentarse en Top of the Pops y otros programas de TV, hasta se graba el video promocional del tema (dirigido por Clive Richardson), pero la primera separación de la banda empieza. Vince Clarke decide ponerse a un lado en Noviembre de 1981, citando diferencias musicales y como se estaba llevando la música dentro la banda. Poco después Clarke aparecería con la cantante Alison Moyet formando el duo “Yazoo” (o Yaz en América) y 3 años después el duo “Erasure” con Andy Bell.

Después de la separación de Clarke, Gore es forzado a tomar la composición de temas (previamente había compuesto dos temas para el álbum debut). A su vez, la banda pone un aviso anónimo en Melody Maker solicitando un tecladista; Alan Charles Wilder (1-06-1959) un joven músico contestó el aviso mintiendo sobre su edad para poder obtener el empleo. Wilder integra Depeche a partir de 1982 inicialmente como tecladista de apoyo y luego como miembro oficial de la banda. Wilder (el único músico con formación dentro del grupo) sería quién definiria el sónido de Depeche Mode poco a poco.

En Enero de 1982 se edita el primer sencillo de Depeche sin Clarke; “See You” (#6) aunque este y los dos siguientes sencillos “The Meaning of Love” (#12) y “Leave in Silence”  (#18) así como el álbum “A Broken Frame” (#8) serían el material de menos agrado para Martin, ya que para él, “Aún no tenian una dirección definida y arrastraban aún el estilo pop de Clarke”. Cabe agregar que se graban los videos correspondientes a estos sencillos, pero la banda al final mostró su disconformidad con el nuevo director (Julian Temple) por lo que estos videos no se encontraban disponibles comercialmente (incluso se omiten del video compilatorio “Some Great Videos”).

Un año después (Enero de 1983)  se edita el séptimo sencillo de la banda, que no estaría incluido en el siguiente álbum. “Get the Balance Right!” (# 13) presenta ya a Alan Wilder como miembro oficial y co-escritor con Gore del tema “The Great Outdoor”. Poco después aparece el LP “Construction Time Again” (Agosto de 1983) en el cual Wilder se encarga con Daniel Miller y el ingeniero Garreth Jones de la parte de producción; el álbum vendría a ser considerado el primer álbum de sónido mas elaborado, gracias a los arreglos de Wilder y en parte al trabajo de Jones. De este LP se extrajeron 2 sencillos: “Everything Counts” (uno de los primeros temas en incluir samplings)(#6) y “Love in Itself” (#21).  Poco después en setiembre se inicia el “Construction Tour” que empieza en Irlanda y concluye al año siguiente en Alemania.

Finaliza la gira promocional, y como un adelanto del nuevo álbum se edita el sencillo “People are people” (#6) que llegó al puesto 13 en Estados Unidos, siendo el tema más pinchado en las estaciones alternativas. Sire, la compañia encargada de distribuir los albunes de DM en América decide editar el EP compilatorio (#74) que lleva el mismo nombre del sencillo, y que incluye temas de los dos albunes anteriores además de ser el primer LP de la banda editado ahi.

“Some Great Reward” (#5) editado en Julio de 1984  aparece nuevamente grabado con colaboración de Jones y fue realizado en los estudios Hansa en Alemania donde David Bowie y Eno grabaron sus discos conocidos como la “Trilogia de Berlin”.  De este disco se desprenden ademas de “People are People”, los sencillos “Master and Servant” (# 9) y “Blasphemous Rumours/Somebody” (#16). Después de la correspondiente gira,  los miembros de la banda deciden tomarse un tiempo sabático después de haber trabajado 4 años seguidos, y en Octubre de 1985 se edita el primer LP recopilatorio conteniendo los trece sencillos de la banda (además de dos temas nuevos) “The Singles 81-85″  (#6) ; paralelamente se edita un mes después en Canadá y América el LP “Catching Up with Depeche Mode”  (#113) que no es sino la contraparte del “The Singles” pero omitiendo  los temas ya aparecidos en el EP “People are People” además de incluir 2 lados b (“Flexible” y “Fly on the Windscreen”).

El sónido de Depeche Mode que ahora era influenciado por el industrial, se volveria más oscuro tanto a nivel musical como lírico en los álbunes posteriores.

DISCOGRAFÍA (1981-1985)
SPEAK AND SPELL (UK) (1981) CDSTUMM5 (referencia edición inglesa)
1. New Life – 3:43
2. I Sometimes Wish I Was Dead – 2:14
3. Puppets – 3:55
4. Boys Say Go! – 3:03
5. Nodisco – 4:11
6. What’s Your Name? – 2:41
7. Photographic – 4:44
8. Tora! Tora! Tora!* – 4:34
9. Big Muff *– 4:20
10. Any Second Now (Voices) – 2:35
11. Just Can’t Get Enough – 3:40
12. Dreaming of Me – 4:03+
13. Ice Machine– 4:05+
14. Shout – 3:46+
15. Any Second Now – 3:08+
16. Just Can’t Get Enough [Schizo Mix] – 6:41+

All tracks written by Vince Clarke except * written by Martin L. Gore
Depeche Mode: Vince Clarke, Andrew Fletcher, Martin Gore, David Gahan
Recorded at Blackwing Studios, London
Produced by Daniel Miller and Depeche Mode
Engineered by John Fryer and Eric Radcliffe
Photography by Brian Griffin
CDD Pre-Mastering: WCI Record Group

® 1981 Mute Records Limited

http://rapidshare.com/files/297834930/dmsasuk.rar

Notas:
-El primer álbum de Depeche Mode; de sonido bastante alegre y muy pop para mi gusto sin embrago tiene temas muy buenos; como Tora! Tora! Tora! o Big Muff compuestas por Martin Gore. La edición original en cd tenia una variante de la portada original y presentaba 5 bonus tracks que incluian el primer sencillo “Dreaming of Me” ademas de los correspondientes lados b y un mix de “Just Can’t Get Enough”
- La versión de New life” es la misma del sencillo, pero tanto “Dreaming” como “Shout” tienen finales “secos” y  no fadings como en las versiones 7″

__________________________________________________________________________________________

SPEAK AND SPELL (US) (1987) (referencia edición americana)
1. New Life [Remix] – 3:56
2. Puppets – 3:57
3. Dreaming of Me– 3:42
4. Boys Say Go! – 3:04
5. Nodisco – 4:13
6. What’s Your Name?– 2:41
7. Photographic – 4:58
8. Tora! Tora! Tora! – 4:24
9. Big Muff – 4:21
10. Any Second Now (Voices) – 2:33
11. Just Can’t Get Enough [Schizo Mix] – 6:41

All tracks written by Vince Clarke except * written by Martin L. Gore
Depeche Mode: Vince Clarke, Andrew Fletcher, Martin Gore, David Gahan
Recorded at Blackwing Studios, London
Produced by Daniel Miller and Depeche Mode
Engineered by John Fryer and Eric Radcliffe
Photography by Brian Griffin
CDD Pre-Mastering: WCI Record Group

® 1981 Sire Records Company. Marketed by Warner Records Inc.

http://rapidshare.com/files/297779793/dm_sasus.rar

Notas:
- La versión Americana del primer LP; aqui se omite la versión 7″ de “Just Can’t Get Enough” por el “Schizo Mix” además de incluir una versión diferente de “New Life”

__________________________________________________________________________________________

A BROKEN FRAME (EU) (1982) CDSTUMM9 (referencia edición alemana)
1. Leave in Silence – 4:51
2. My Secret Garden – 4:46
3. Monument – 3:15
4. Nothing to Fear– 4:18
5.  See You – 4:34
6. Satellite – 4:44
7. The Meaning of Love – 3:06
8. A Photograph of You – 3:04
9. Shouldn’t Have Done That – 3:12
10. The Sun and the Rainfall – 5:02

All titles written by Martin Gore and published by Mute Records

Depeche Mode are: David Gahan, Martin Gore and Andrew Fletcher
Produced by Daniel Miller and Depeche Mode
Engineered by John Fryer and  Eric Radcliffe
Recorded at Blackwing Studios, London
CDD Pre-Mastering by WCI Record Group
Photography by Brian Griffin
Design: Martyn Atkins
Calligraphy: Ching Ching Lee
Clothes Stylist: Jacqui Frye

® 1982 Mute Records Limited (UK).

http://rapidshare.com/files/297863841/dm_abfger.rar

_________________________________________________________________________________________

CONSTRUCTION TIME AGAIN (US) (1983) 9 23900-2 (referencia edición americana)
1. Love, in Itself  – 4:27
2. More Than a Party  – 4:30
3. Pipeline  – 6:08
4. Everything Counts – 4:24
5. Two Minute Warning  – 4:10*
6. Shame– 3:50
7. The Landscape Is Changing  – 4:46*
8. Told You So  – 4:25
9. And Then…/Everything Counts (reprise)  – 5:40
10. Everything Counts [Long Version]– 7:23

All titles written by Martin Gore except * written by Alan Wilder

Depeche Mode are: Andrew Fletcher, David Gahan, Martin Gore and Alan Wilder
Produced by Daniel Miller and Depeche Mode
Tonmeister: Gareth Jones
Assistant engineer on “Two Minute Warning”: Corinne Simcock
Recorded at The Garden, London
Mixed at Hansa Mischraum, Berlin
Cover Photography: Brian Griffin
Illustrations: Ian Wright
Design: Martyn Atkins

® 1983 Sire Records Company. Marketed by Warner Records Inc.

http://rapidshare.com/files/297951360/dm_ctaus.rar

__________________________________________________________________________________________

PEOPLE ARE PEOPLE (1984) (referencia edición americana)
1. People Are People [single version] – 3:45
2. Now, This Is Fun [single version] – 3:23
3. Love, in Itself – 4:21
4. Work Hard*[single version] – 4:22
5. Told You So – 4:27
6. Get the Balance Right! [single version] – 3:13
7. Leave in Silence [UK single version] – 4:00
8. Pipeline – 6:10
9. Everything Counts (In Larger Amounts) – 7:20

Written by Martin Gore except* written by Marin Gore and Alan Wilder.
Recorded between 1981 and 1984
Produced by Daniel Miller and Depeche Mode.

This compilation ® 1984 Sire Records Company. Marketed by Warner Records Inc.

http://rapidshare.com/files/300251571/dm_pap.rar

Notas:
-Primer LP editado en América y Canadá de DM, contiene material del “Broken” y “Construction Time” además de algunos lados B y el tema homónimo del álbum.
-Las primeras ediciones del álbum no incluian el nombre de la banda; con las re-ediciones esto se corregiría.

__________________________________________________________________________________________

SOME GREAT REWARD (1984) CDSTUMM19 (referencia edición inglesa)
1. Something to Do – 3:47
2. Lie to Me – 5:03
3. People Are People – 3:52
4. It Doesn’t Matter – 4:44
5. Stories of Old – 3:13
6. Somebody – 4:27
7. Master and Servant – 4:12
8. If You Want (Alan Wilder) – 4:41
9. Blasphemous Rumours – 6:22

All titles written by Martin L. Gore except as indicated

Produced by Daniel Miller, Depeche Mode, and Gareth Jones
Assistant Engineers: Ben Ward, Stefi Marcus, and Colin McMahon

Recorded at Music Works, London and Hansa Mischraum, Berlin
Mixed at Hansa Mischraum, Berlin

Photography: Brian Griffin
Assisted by: Stuart Graham
Clothes Stylist: Jacqui Frye

® 1984 Mute Records Ltd. (UK)

http://rapidshare.com/files/298412372/dm_sgr.rar

__________________________________________________________________________________________

THE SINGLES 81-85 (1985) CDMUTEL1 (referencia edición inglesa)
1. Dreaming of Me* – 3:46
2. New Life*– 3:45
3. Just Can’t Get Enough*– 3:44
4. See You – 3:57
5. The Meaning of Love – 3:05
6. Leave in Silence -4:02
7. Get the Balance Right! -3:59
8. Everything Counts -4:00
9. Love, in Itself– 3:55
10. People are People-3:46
11. Master and Servant – 3:47
12. Blasphemous Rumours – 5:09
13. Somebody – 4:22
14. Shake the Disease – 4:49
15. It’s Called a Heart– 3:51

All titles written by Martin Lee Gore except* written by Vince Clarke
Tracks 1-7 and 15 Produced by Daniel Miller and Depeche Mode.
Tracks 8-14 Produced by Daniel Miller, Depeche Mode, and Gareth Jones.
Photography by Eric Watson

This compilation ® 1985 Mute Records Limited (UK)

http://rapidshare.com/files/298864265/dm_s81-85.rar

__________________________________________________________________________________________

CATCHING UP WITH DEPECHE MODE (1985) (referencia edición americana)
1. Dreaming of Me*– 3:44
2. New Life*– 3:44
3. Just Can’t Get Enough* – 3:36
4. See You – 3:53
5. The Meaning of Love – 3:04
6. Love, in Itself– 3:55
7. Master and Servant – 3:50
8. Blasphemous Rumours – 5:04
9. Somebody – 4:21
10. Shake the Disease – 4:46
11. Flexible – 3:09
12. It’s Called a Heart– 3:48
13. Fly on the Windscreen – 5:05

All titles written by Martin Lee Gore except* written by Vince Clarke
Tracks 1-5, 12 and 13 Produced by Daniel Miller and Depeche Mode.
Tracks 6-11 Produced by Daniel Miller, Depeche Mode, and Gareth Jones.
Photography by Eric Watson

This compilation ® 1985 Sire Records Company. Marketed by Warner Records Inc.

http://rapidshare.com/files/299348497/dm_cuwdm.rar

Notas:
- La contraparte americana a “The Singles 81-85″ incluye 2 lados b (“Flexible ” y “Fly on the Windscreen”, este último reaparecería como una versión final en el LP “Black Celebration” de 1986)
- Según Alan Wilder, “Fly” debió haber sido el lado A de “It’s Called a Heart”, pasando este como lado B; pero la directiva en Mute vetó la canción.

__________________________________________________________________________________________

]]> http://robinbrown.wordpress.com/2009/10/24/erasure-the-innocents-21-years-on/ Sat, 24 Oct 2009 00:13:08 +0000 Robin Brown http://robinbrown.wordpress.com/2009/10/24/erasure-the-innocents-21-years-on/

Amazingly it’s the 21st anniversary of the release of Erasure’s The Innocents, with Phantom Bride re-released as an EP and a remastered album to celebrate.

It’s one of my favourite albums and a high watermark in synth pop, thought its release was pretty much the last hurrah for the scene, and its anniversary coincides with a mini series on BBC4 on electronic music.

The Innocents is probably one of the first albums I ever bought and, in that way that early albums do, it really has the ability to take me back to where I was at the time. Like any new album bought in those days, it was listened to again and again.

It’s a class of music that’s always been easy to sneer at, but as is mentioned in the BBC4 documentary Synth Britannia, it’s basically soul music on electronic instruments.

It’s an album stripped of a lot of the outrageous campery, posturing and pretension in similar material in the early half of the decade.

Still, it takes some of the social aspects of Depeche Mode, the pop sensibilities of the Pet Shop Boys and the hot-cold duality of Clarke versus a romantic chanteuse – and in doing so creates something greater than the sum of those parts.

Vince Clarke’s driving beats, clever chord changes and impeccable pop hooks contrast with Andy Bell’s soaring, slightly gospel voice – itself juxtaposed with the bleakness of the lyrics.

It’s all bedsits, heartbreak and unrequited love, but there’s a funny symbiosis between the grim and uplifting in most of the songs.

Hallowed Ground, Ship of Fools and Phantom Bride as downbeat as pop music ever gets, Witch in the Ditch is a strange off-beat carnivale effort but overlooked tunes like Yahoo and Weight of the World are well-crafted sweet little songs that match soulful melodies with synth production.

Chains of Love and A Little Respect mine rich gospel seams to stunning effect, but it’s hard to imagine such songs in the charts these days.

Later Erasure albums failed to recapture the same delicate mix between hope and despair, joy and melancholy, Clarke and Bell – and seemed unbalanced as a result.

Inevitably The Innocents was a product of its time, the album is coated in a grimy late 80s melancholy, but it’s aged extremely well and puts the recent synth revival firmly in its place.

That it’s still relevant and fresh is testament to the quality of a duo so often overlooked in British music. The Innocents isn’t just Erasure’s best, it’s one of the best in the entire genre.

Watching the Synth Brittania documentaries on BBC4 today, put me in a nostalgic mood. Seeing all my heroes like Daniel Miller, Vince Clarke, Depeche Mode, OMD, Eurythmics and the Human League made me realize – again- the importance of those artists on me and the effect they’ve had on my career as a DJ/Producer.

I already was attracted by electronic music by the likes of Giorgio Moroder and Bobby Orlando, but these artists still used conventional drums and percussion, based on disco. Unlike most of my peers I wasn’t that interested in Kraftwerk though. To me it lacked that swing that I find so attractive. Even though I was way too young to enter a club or discotheque I longed for the dance factor. So when I heard Yazoo’s ‘Don’t Go’ for the first time I went berserk. From that moment on, I knew what I wanted to do.

That record and Divine’s ‘Step By Step’ , or ‘Native Love’ (By producer Bobby Orlando) hinted at the fact that I could actually produce music without learning a traditional instrument. So I bought a Casio VL-1. The rest is, as they say, history.

In 2003 I was offered to do a remix of Yazoo’s ‘Don’t Go’. It took me almost a year to actually finish that. Most time was spent thinking ‘I’m not worthy!’  This track couldn’t, no, shouldn’t be remixed. I came up with the solution to my problem, by creating a remix in a remix. When you listen to it you do hear those famous synth stabs. And Alison Moyet’s voice.

But the basis came from Donna Summer’s ‘I Feel Love’ which was produced by Giorgio Moroder and remixed by another hero of mine; Patrick Cowley. At the same time I wanted to keep the production basic, as it was in the ’80’s. I only used the Roland TR-808 drum sounds in an old fashioned ‘boom – clap’ style. (Further down the track you can also hear the sampled percussion by Divine’s ‘Native Love’). Basically the remix was meant to be a tribute to my fave Electronic Dance Music from that period in time.

When finally finished it took the label months to release it. They just didn’t get it. Neither did I by the way, so I didn’t blame them. In fact, I wasn’t all too happy about it either. Things changed however when it was heard in a club, loud, and  see the people react to it. In hindsight it could somewhat be seen as a frontrunner for what is now known as Minimal. That same year I did the lush production/remix of Girl Nobody’s ‘Cages’. And lush and rich productions where all the fashion. This was just too different. It soon changed and because it was released as a bootleg it is still very much sought after. It grew on me too.

Still, nothing beats the original. As with many originals. Even though I’m a remixer by profession, I still find remixes nothing but a commercial tool. It rarely adds anything substantial from an artistic point of view. But that’s a whole other topic. I’ll save that for later.

In the meantime, should you have never heard it, you will find the unreleased dub version here, along with other music and remixes.

I’m in Glasgow, Scotland, and I just had the opportunity to watch the debut screening of Synth Britannia on BBC Four tonight!

It’s very well done and utterly brilliant. It’s a well financed, respectful film that traces the evolution of its subject matter in a full 90 minutes, starting really from the scene created by The Human League and Cabaret Voltaire in 1978 to the debut of the Pet Shop Boys in 1984. It stretches a little earlier to mark some of the influences widely respected by UK synth bands, particularly the soundtrack to A Clockwork Orange, the bands Kraftwerk and Roxy Music (to a lesser extent), and the novel Crash by JG Ballard.

From there, it kicks off a wonderfully told interweaving of separate pockets of synthpop or synth-driven bands across the United Kingdom popping up in the late ’70s. The major narrators and thus characters of the piece quickly become Phil Oakey of The Human League, Martyn Ware of Heaven 17, Gary Numan, Andy McCluskey of OMD, and Vince Clarke of Depeche Mode and Yazoo–with Richard Kirk of Cabaret Voltaire serving as sort of a dark contrast to a lot of the work the other bands were doing.

Along the way, we also have great conversations with the likes of Bernard Sumner of New Order, John Foxx and Midge Ure (both about Ultravox and their other work), Andrew Fletcher of Depeche Mode, David Ball of Soft Cell, and Neil Tennant of the Pet Shop Boys as well as Daniel Miller of Mute Records and others.

Two things that really stand out in my mind at the moment is the mad respect the document gives to OMD, who were incredibly prolific and generated a massive amount of catchy and terrific tunes. McCluskey is a great storyteller and you really warm to his anecdotes and pontifications on the times. (Regarding, the misinformed concept that synthesizers made making music easy from critical music journalists “If there were a hit single button the thing, I would have pressed it every opportunity that I could.”)

You also really get the impact of what an amazing bolt of enlightening Gary Numan represented, breaking through from a punk band to a full-blown synth sensation with “Are Friends Electric?”, demonstrating that synthesizers could make hit records and putting everyone inside and outside of the music world on notice. Detractors ravaged Numan so badly in his early years that it contributed to an early retirement for the crimes of actually wanting to be a pop star and wanting to make great synthpop. (Thankfully, his retirement was short but unfortunately he never fully embraced synthesizers as much again.)

My brief criticisms? The Eurythmics are mentioned only briefly with a reference to the success of “Sweet Dreams Are Made of These.” And they totally avoided New Romanticism, leaving zero mention of great synth-driven bands like Duran Duran and Spandau Ballet and only the briefest mention of Visage and their hit “Fade to Grey.”

All in all, Synth Britannia was an amazing piece of work by the BBC. Bravo!

Jill EP

MULE ELECTRONIC

Ambient, how it used to be Cameras & Camcorders

If you’ve heard Lawrence’s downbeat techno before you’ll know what to expect from the spacey ‘Jill’ and ‘Hamtramck’ – but it’s the beatless ‘Reprise’ of the lead track, and particularly the gorgeous ‘Sunrise’, that we’re concerned with here. Gentle, melodic and totally weightless, this is what ‘ambient house’ always used to be about: blissed-out and perfect for very special moments.

POLLY SCATTERGOOD

Other Too Endless

MUTE

■ Intense singer-H songwriter

From the Essex countryside,  Car Video Polly Scattergood’s personality easily transcends the Coldplay-ish production on the folk-influenced indie lead track here – and a rare solo remix from Depeche Mode/Erasure/Yazoo song-writer Vince Clarke, who shows the flexibility of Polly’s songwriting by making big, frosty electro-pop from it. Home Theater Systems There’s clearly a massive talent here, with the promise of a lot more to come. In fact, her eponymous debut album will be in stores next month. 0000

§<m \ EDITED BY JoeMuggs

T_ Push those i boundaries at: experimentaira.mixmag.net

HIGAMOS HOGAMOS

Major Blitzkrieg

The best New Wave album in at least 2 years is the self-titled debut from UK duo La Roux–finally released in the United States only yesterday.

After being delighted with three powerful singles, it is reassuring to see now that a powerful album stands behind them as well.

The best track, in my opinion, remains “In for the Kill,” the slick synthpop serenade that kicks off the album. While nothing else is quite as good, the adrenaline-building tune gets you primed for the first-rate dancefest that follows.

And with the sexy “Tigerlilly,” the funky “Bulletproof,” and the disdainful “I’m Not Your Toy,” there are plenty of fully developed dance tunes to occupy your attention.

This is easily the best New Wave album since The Sounds’ Dying to Say This to You, but it’s much more exciting in its own way. Taking its cues totally from the early work of Vince Clarke, La Roux has given us a modern New Romantic epic. They have totally captured the ethereal atmosphere, the feelings of loss, the impetuous need to dance. Even the name La Roux, adapted from La Rousse, shows the New Romantic interest in things passionately French.

Ben Langmaid is a brilliant composer and Elly Jackson delivers heartfelt and powerful lyrics in the same crooning manner of the bands that came before them–Yaz, Heaven 17, Human League, and even Blancmange.

La Roux absolutely has become a instant and strong favorite here at Secret Circuits.

Hay canciones que marcan una época, en la historia de la música, en lo personal…

Por su innovación, por su composición, por la voz del cantante, por la letra, por el momento en que la escuchas por primera vez…

Only you fue compuesta en el año 1982 por Vince Clarke, como regalo de despedida a sus antiguos compañeros de grupo Depeche Mode. Así que me pilló con unos 18 años. Por su sencillez en la composición, por su letra, y sobre todo, por esa voz maravillosa de Allison Moyet, siempre me ha parecido una de las mejores canciones que se han escrito.

Un año después, en 1983, se hizo una versión magnífica por los Flying Pickets, una versión “a capella”.

Y después se hizo una remezcla en 1999, intentando modernizar su producción y que no sonara tanto a tecno pop. Y aunque la voz de Allison Moyet sonara igual de espléndida, perdía el encanto de la versión original.

Yo me quedo con la primera.

Looking from a window above
Is like a story of love
Can you hear me ?
‘Came back only yesterday
We’re moving further away
‘Want you near me

All I needed was the love you gave
All I needed for another day
And all I ever knew…
Only you

Sometimes when I think of her name
When it’s only a game
And I need you
Listen to the words that you say
It’s getting harder to stay
When I see you

All I needed was the love you gave
All I needed for another day
And all I ever knew
Only you

This is gonna take a long time
And I wonder what’s mine
Can I take no more ?
Wonder if you’ll understand
It’s just the touch of your hand
Behind a closed door

All I needed was the love you gave
All I needed for another day
And all I ever knew…
Only you

Erasure

Formado en 1985 por Vince Clarke en los sintetizadores, antiguo co-fundador y ex-integrante de Depeche Mode y el cantante Andy Bell.

Cuenta Ricardo Fernandez Barrueco que Vince Clarke después del éxito obtenido al lado de Depeche Mode, abandonó el proyecto para pasar a formar una sociedad con la cantante Alison Moyet, Yazoo, y The Assembly con Feargal Sharkey y Paul Quinn.

Clarke puso un anuncio en el periódico musical Melody Maker de Londres donde decía que buscaba un vocalista para su nueva producción. Entre las personas que respondieron al aviso se encontraba Andy Bell, quien audicionó en el número 42. Vince Clarke quedó sorprendido por la voz de Bell, quien previamente había cantado en un grupo de efímera existencia llamado The Void. Rápidamente entraron al estudio de grabación bajo la batuta del señor Mark Ellis, conocido en el mundo musical como Flood y con el apoyo de Daniel Miller (Mute Records) crearon su álbum debut Wonderland en el que se plasma la originalidad de Erasure por hacer un estilo propio de música. De este álbum debut, los singles Who Needs Love Like That y Heavenly Action sólo consiguieron posiciones muy bajas en el chart de UK, aunque Oh L’Amour, el tercer single, se posicionó algo mejor y permitió vislumbrar lo que podía avecinarse para este dúo. Después de esta primera gira, Andy y Vince regresaron al estudio de grabación para producir su segundo trabajo.

Agrega Ricardo Fernandez Barrueco que en el año 1987 sale a la venta su nueva producción The Circus, con el mismo productor Flood y Erasure sabe que es momento del despegue, Sometimes, It Doesn’t Have to Be, The Circus y Victim Of Love son los singles que se cortaron de esta producción y que hicieron bailar a miles de seguidores y al público de los clubes internacionales.

Katy and I are going to the land of milk and honey Ohio and Kentucky for almost a week, so there will not be an episode next week.  But that time off will give me an opportunity to plan out the next episode.  You see, I want to take suggestions for that show.

For every tenth episode, I have decided to do a themed show.  Please leave suggestions for episode ten in the comments portion of this post.  I will consider any idea, but please refrain from the trite (love, peace, abortion) or the absurd (make it sound like a jar of dill pickles).  The more creative you are, the better the results will hopefully be.

This week, I pulled off the gloves and made my best mix yet.  Hopefully you have room to dance in your cubicle.

1. Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark – If You Leave (1986)
2. New Order – Perfect Kiss (1985)
3. Franz Ferdinand – No You Girls (Vince Clarke remix – 2009)
4. Radiohead – Blow Out (1993)
5. The Violet Burning – We Close Our Eyes (2001)

Radio Free Raytown – Episode Nine (9/5/09)

Only You 1982

Excerpt ~ Def 1000 songs: This is where you can find Alison Moyet before she became Alison Moyet [huh?] As founder member and main songwriter for Depeche Mode, Vince Clarke had already made his mark with such classic pop songs as “New Life” and “Just Can’t Get Enough”, yet arguably it was with his next band that he firmly worked his way deep into the living rooms of Britain. Departing from Depeche Mode swiftly …… more

Number 951 - Yazoo – 1982 – ENG – Genre: Pop - Play Song

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On Red Bull Music Academy Radio Vince Clarke (Depeche Mode, Yazoo, The Assembly, Erasure, Clarke/Ware project) does an hour-long interview segment that is a must-listen to Clarke fans. Clarke is Softsynth’s musical idol so this is a real treat (thanks to Side-Line for the heads-up). Clarke waxes poetic about his musical journey through his various musical incarnations (sadly leaving out mention of The Assembly and his very worthy one-off single with Paul Quinn). The piece, one of Red Bull’s Fireside Chats, includes a number of Clarke songs and a nice treat in the form of Clarke’s awesome remix of Franz Ferdinand’s “No You Girls”.The piece also hears Clarke discussing his very interesting work with Martyn Ware (Human League, Heaven 17), news of a new Erasure album to be recorded in the fall (and one can only hope it’s an improvement on the dreadful Light at the End of the World), and Clarke explaining why he has been using softsynths but now has his analogue library back together which should bode well for the next album. Even the casual electronic fan should check it out.

I’ve often been asked, “what’s your dream concert? Who would you kill to see/to have seen?” The answer has always been immediate and without hesitation – Yazoo. They only properly toured once and never in North America, plus they disbanded in 1983. Yet, this odd mixture of Vince Clarke’s propulsive, driving electronics with Alison Moyet’s big soulful, bluesy voice worked as few acts have since, electronic or otherwise.

Softsynth has discussed Yazoo before, and full disclosure, their debut album, Upstairs at Eric’s is our all-time favourite album, bar none. Their follow up, You and Me Both wasn’t as original or as compelling, but was still chock a block with memorable keepers. 

Yazoo, formed when Clarke left Depeche Mode at the end of 1981, and he needed a singer to help him record the last song he ostensibly wrote for DM, “Only You”, was expert at something we don’t see much these days, even in electronic music, the keyboard riff. Back in that day it was commonplace for electronic songs to be built around powerful riffs; now songs tend to be richer, more densely produced, less dependent on the riff (though ironically, when they do use riffs these days it’s as often as not using riffs from the Golden Era, lifted from Soft Cell {Rhiana}, Depeche Mode {Hilary Duff} or even Yazoo, themselves {the odious Shawn Desman}). The riffs from “Only You”, “Don’t Go”, “Situation”, or “Nobody’s Diary” are instantly recognizable, even today and even lesser-known songs like “(Didn’t I) Bring You Love Down”, “Walk Away From Love”, or “Sweet Thing” stand up as unmatched in terms of the catchy memorable riff. 

But it was Moyet’s voice and aura that made Yazoo something special, something different from any band before or since. Just listen to “Winter Kills”, her piano-based ballad, or best of all, “Midnight”, one of the most emotionally powerful songs ever written and you get a sense of the full power of her voice and her larger-than-life presence. It was a perfect combination – the emotion hidden within the electronic soundscape yanked out for the world to see by Moyet’s delivery; the powerful energy behind Moyet’s soul stylings yanked out by Clarke’s unparalleled synth prowess. It just worked and no one ever again quite managed to bottle the formula quite so well. Even Clarke and Moyet themselves – they split in 1983 after just two albums, unable to sustain the combustible energy these two different personalities and styles balanced – they never quite reached those highs again. Moyet would go on to have a successful debut, Alf, and a series of less successful, but occasionally winsome albums. Clarke would go on to record a hit single, “Never Never’ with Eric Radcliffe and Feargal Sharkey as The Assembly, and form the enduring Erasure with Andy Bell, which would make its own indelible mark on the music scene with a number of classics of their own, but it just wasn’t Yazoo. Often great, but never quite so…”special”. Never quite so unique. Moyet and Clarke would team again in the mid 90s on her song “Whispering Your Name”, which Clarke remixed in his own style and it was the closest thing we’ve had to a new Yazoo song, and while it was kind of awesome in it’s own way, it still lacked the punch of their earlier, magical material. 

Strangely, after being asked for years who we would most have liked to seen in concert, Clarke and Moyet re-teamed last year to launch a tour that finally took them to North American shores. Financial and timing reasons prevented this writer from attending, even as they played New York, a not-unreasonable trip from here, and the regrets begin anew. Will there be another chance? Will they one day record something new to see what could have been? Might there be another Yazoo moment yet to come? Who knows, but in the meantime, we miss them still. 

Watch: Don’t Go

Elbow also won last year’s Mercury Music Prize last year

Indie band Elbow are celebrating a double win at the Ivor Novello awards, including the main award for best song.

The group, who claimed last year’s Mercury Prize, triumphed with One Day Like This while Grounds For Divorce won best contemporary song.

The Ting Tings and Duffy also picked up Ivor Novello awards, which honour excellence in music writing.

Winners of special achievement awards included electro pioneer Vince Clarke and Motown legend Smokey Robinson.

Dance music veterans Massive Attack and Scottish singer-songwriter Edwyn Collins also won special awards.

‘Fierce opposition’

Picking up Elbow’s first award for best contemporary song – beating songs by Dizzee Rascal with Calvin Harris, and The Ting Tings – lead singer Guy Garvey said: “It’s a great honour against fierce opposition with some great songs.”

Returning to the stage at London’s Grosvenor House Hotel for the main prize, he added: “This is really something else.

“I’m gonna talk about being in the band for a moment.

“We’ve got this great support surrounding us from our friends and family but, on a personal note, I’d like to say that, if nothing else ever happens to me in my life, these four boys have made the whole thing worth every single second.”

Picking up her award for most performed work Mercy alongside co-writer Steve Booker, Duffy thanked those who had helped shape her career.

“I was a girl from Wales, I did not know what music was.

“I knew I had a set of pipes and that would get me a frigging long way.”

‘Quite scary’

Eg White, who co-wrote hits including Adele’s Chasing Pavements and Warwick Avenue by Duffy, said it was “very exciting” to win the award for the “fun, fast, quite scary” art of songwriting.

I think creativity is a gift from god – some people get gifts from god Smokey Robinson

Manchester band The Ting Tings could not pick up their award because they were touring Europe, while Coldplay were unable to claim their best-selling British song gong for Viva La Vida because they are on tour in the US.

Radiohead’s Jonny Greenwood, who won best original film score for There Will Be Blood, was also absent.

It was left to the veterans, instead, to show how to deliver a speech.

Smokey Robinson, 69, told the audience he had flown to the UK for one day to pick up his special international award.

“I think creativity is a gift from god – some people get gifts from god.

“For everybody in this room, creativity is your gift and it’s what you get.”

He said song writing “just happens”.

“It could be in your car or in the toilet and something comes. Sometimes it’s a song.”

‘Pretty arrogant’

Meanwhile, Vince Clarke, who has had hits with acts including Depeche Mode, Yazoo, The Assembly and Erasure, simply said it was “a real honour to get this award”.

Organisers said it was the first time in his 30-year career that Clarke, 48, who won the outstanding song collection gong, had turned up to pick up an award.

Massive Attack’s hits include Karmacoma and Teardop

The biggest applause of the ceremony was reserved for Edwyn Collins, 49, formerly of 1980s Glaswegian band Orange Juice and best known for 1994 hit A Girl Like You.

Collins, who walked to the stage with a walking stick to pick up the inspiration award, suffered two brain haemorrhages in 2005 before spending a further six months in hospital after a surgical scar became infected with the MRSA bug.

He said that when he was in Orange Juice he was “a pretty arrogant man, but not any more”.

He added: “I’m writing away, 10 new songs at the moment and it truly is fantastic.

“It’s good to be back. Cheers for the special award.”

Bristol dance music collective Massive Attack won the outstanding contribution to British music award.

Founding member 3D – real name Robert Del Naja – said it was “dishonest” to stand on the stage without the many singers they had collaborated with.

They include Shara Nelson, on anthemic 1991 hit Unfinished Sympathy, and Everything But the Girl singer Tracey Thorn on 1995’s Protection.

This year’s fellowship award went to veteran lyricist Don Black, 70, who co-wrote hits including Born Free and Diamonds Are Forever, as well as musicals including Aspects of Love and Bombay Dreams.

An audience of songwriters, record company executives and pop stars included Damon Albarn, Sophie Ellis Bextor and Rolf Harris.

and they covered up the sun… zu recht?

vince clarke ist ein gott.

Hello once again peeps, no post yesterday as I was very busy stripping! Yes you heard me correctly. So why was I stripping you might well ask and who the hell would want to see me with my kit off anyway? If you have asked those questions or something similar then all I can say is….. how rude! I’ve been stripping paint from the windowsills and as the house was built in the 1880’s it seems like there is more than 100 years of accumulated paint on there, or at least there was. The amount of different colours has surprised me too; red, brown, yellow, green, black, cream and white were all spotted. It took an absolute age to get the old stuff off too, thank you to those nice people at Nitromors for their wonderful product ‘All Strip Mousse‘ I really don’t like DIY, but this stuff is great.

But enough of that, it’s not why we’re here after all is it? we’re here for music right? Well while I was stripping this weekend I was thinking of stripper songs, not songs to strip to, although you could to some of these. But songs that are or indeed could be loosely related to stripping. So here they are in no particular order;

“The Stripper“- The David Rose Orchestra

“Stripped” – Depeche Mode

“Patricia The Stripper” – Chris De Burgh

“I’m In Love With A Stripper” – T Pain

“The Stripper Song” – Wyclef Jean featuring Hope

So before I give just a few trivia tidbits about these artists let me apologise to anyone who has arrived at this post looking for pictures of strippers, but stay and read a while, give your right arm a rest!

David Rose is probably most famous for his tune “The Stripper”, you know it I’m sure… da na na na, da na na na etc. Anyway he also wrote music for ‘Bonanza’ and ‘The Little House On The Prairie’ Also from 1941 to 1944 he was married to Judy Garland. Rose composed and recorded the tune in 1958, but it didn’t become a big hit until it was used in the film ‘Gypsy’ in 1962. Click here to see the wonderfully funny sketch of the late great (l’s and g’s reporting for strip duty!) Morecambe and Wise making breakfast to it, go on you’ll love it!

That's a bit risque for 1962. Still it might help the visitors to the blog who are currently resting their right hands

Depeche Mode hail from Basildon in Essex in the UK and Vince Clarke was an original member before he went on to great success with Yazoo and Erasure amongst others. The remaining ‘Mode’ boys were pretty successful to, particularly in the US. Girl band the Saturdays took their version of Depeche Mode’s “Just Can’t Get Enough” into the charts earlier this year in aid of Comic Relief. There will be a new Depeche Mode album, ‘Sounds Of The Universe’ available in just a few weeks.

The Depeche boys swore that the first thing they would buy when this months royalty cheque arrived would be a new car

It would be fair to say that Chris De Burgh’s “Lady In Red” is one of my least favourite songs, perhaps because I’ve played it so many times as a mobile DJ. So I won’t talk about it here! As for “Patricia The Stripper” that was on Chris’ 1975 album “Spanish Trains And Other Stories”. There is also a song of the same title, but not the same song, on the Wombats album ‘The Wombats Proudly Present: A Guide To Love, Loss And Desperation’

He looks a bit cross doesn't he?

T-Pain or Faheem Rasheed Najm as he is known to his folks started his rap career in the group the Nappy Headz. He currently resides on Akon’s label Konvict Muzik. He was injured in a Golf Cart accident last month and had to have emergency dental work after losing four teeth. “I’m In Love With A Stripper” also features Mike Jones.

T-Pain nearly strangled himself trying to complete the Bling version of Cat's Cradle

Wyclef Jean is Haitian and is also a Rastafarian. He continues to do an awful lot to support the less privileged in Haiti, setting up a trust fund after the devastation caused by Hurricane Jeanne in 2005. He first came to fame as a member of the rather excellent Fugees, who remain one of my favourite bands and one I’d certainly like to see reform too.

Wyclef thought that no-one was watching when he let one rip

And finally the first stripper I ever saw as a relatively innocent 17 year old danced to a brilliant reggae version of the Curtis Mayfield song “Gypsy Woman” by Milton Henry. In your view what is the ideal stripper song?

Apparently ‘Wrong’ is the name of their latest single, but ever since Vince Clarke left in disgust 27 years ago, I think it works best as a description of the band.

Honesty in advertising. Their follow-up single will be called ‘Trite. Pretentious. Wankers.’

This is where seduction begins – Simulacra & Simulation

Where to begin… well, as Lewis Carroll put it, “Start at the beginning, and when you’re done, stop.” So, this is a blog about music and all things considered. It’s about the world. Everything is going so fast, “music is changing like the wind” to quote the great Frankmusik track ‘In Step’. So is this change real? Are these just changes in fashion ultimately empty, corporate, calculated? Or is there something bigger at work. Well, funny you ask, I believe there is, I call it the New Alternative. I’ve written about this before, and it got too intellectual, so now I’m cutting through the BS and giving you the music and the meaning I find in it. I hope you find yourselves too.

Here’s just a taste of some of the artists I’ve been into over the last month, and of whats to come for 2009 (in no particular order). Frankmusik, Chrome Kids, Beat Torrent, Mongrel, Troublemaker, Adam Tensta, Little Boots, Jaokim, Silverlink, Max Tundra, Pocketknife, The Shoes vs. Primary One, Boss in Drama, Fagget Fairys, Beyond the Wizard’s Sleeve, Zombie Nation, Crookers, Flight Facilities, Sneaky Sound System, Spruce Lee, Vince Clarke, Alex Metric, Amplified Orchestra, Filthy Dukes, Adam Freeland, Ashley Beedle, Keinemusik, Alex Gopher, Cagedbaby, Discodeine, Dog Tags, SCNDL, Escort, Frederick Carlsson, Gods of Fashion, Grand Theft Disco, Joe and Will Ask, Leg-No & Emma, Que, Tepr, WhoMadeWho, AC Slater, Aniki, Congorock, CSY, Dirty Monkeez, DJ Primecuts, Herve, Fake Blood, Jokers of the Scene, Flosstradamus, Keith, Kolombo, Lifelike, Nic Sarno, Night Drugs!, Solo, Strip Steve, This is Kokuz, Lazy Jay, WoNK, Zodiac Cartel, Bart B More, Divide Kreate, DJ DNA & Lazyboi, Don Rimini, Don Diablo, Fukkk Off, Hey Today!, R!M!E, Ryan Riback, Sinden, A1 Bassline, Aaren San, Bass Kleph & Stella, Blatta & Inesha, MSTRKRFT, Bodybangers, Chew Fu, Der Die Das, Dirty Funker, Discotech, Dopamine & James Cocozza, Foamo, Jack Beats, Gunstar, Hot Pink Delorean, Jack Tennis, Justin Faust, LA Riots, LMFAO, Nadastrom, Rolf Honey, Spencer & Hill, Stuart Ramsey, Stupid Fresh, TADT, The R.O.A.R., Timothy Marc, True Psuedo, Vektorkat, Yolanda Be Cool, Mark Phatzoo, ULTRNX, Bass Weazel, Benny Benassi, DJ Barletta, DJ Chaos, DJ Kue, FnDannyBoy, DJ Milenko, Gigi Barocco, Grafton Primary, Jaymo & George, Kolt13, LAZRtag, Le Castle Vania, Loose Cannons, Mad Kids, Mansion, Proper Villains, Teen Wolf, The Count, The Crow, Tommy Sunshine, Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs, Calvin Harris, Heavyfeet, Blackfinger, Trouble & Bass, Nic Sarno, Kavsrave, Curses!, Hostage, Wall Street Riots, Mightyfools, Mr Miyagi, Villains, Designer Drugs, DJ Manaia, Heavyfeet, Stereoheroes, La Roux, Foreign Beggars, Level 67, Plastic Gangsters, 16bit, Biome vs. Subliminal, Jakes, Oh Snap!!, Thrills, Thrilla & Dean Tynan, Caspa, Stagga, Raffertie, Dub Fiend, The Horrors, The Teenagers, Pheonix, Bird Peterson, and the Mr. Rogers Theme Song.

Yah, that’s a lot… that’s why you read this blog.

Erasure
Total Pop! The First 40 Hits

Andy Bell and Vince Clarke, the electropop duo better known as Erasure, have just released their new singles compilation, Total Pop! The First 40 Hits. It’s all a bit tongue in cheek really, as if a volume of another forty hits is likely. The past decade has seen Erasure seemingly taking a long, winding road to retirement with some definite strange turns. Their golden age lasted from the late 80’s to the mid-90’s and it’s been an odd career trajectory since; the Loveboat album (which was more like Titanic, career-wise), an ill-advised covers album titled Other People’s Songs, and Union Street, their very odd hardcore fans-only album of country and western versions. To be sure, these releases have not added up to critical acclaim. Erasure’s music has not necessarily become bad per se; it just seems to stand still in time with no noticeable forward progression. Claims of being creatively stagnant are not far off the mark, with their last challenging, interesting release being 1995’s self-tiitled ambient project produced by Thomas Fehlmann of The Orb. Andy Bell’s recent solo outing Electric Blue was a fantastic effort, which perhaps only served to highlight the musical prison that Erasure has become.

It’s just as well. Erasure have always been a singles band anyway, and compilations are where they shine. Pop! The First 20 Hits was the first in this pop compilation series, which saw the light of day in 1992; it summed up their heyday quite nicely. Total Pop: The First 40 Hits is essentially the original 20 hits, remastered and repackaged with a companion disc of a further 20 hits. I use the term ‘hits’ loosely; their first disc contains their real, bona fide megahits such as the ubiquitous “A Little Respect,” anthem “Chains Of Love” and the sonic perfection of “Chorus” and “Love To Hate You.” The “hits” on the second disc are more a sad collection of flop singles, save for one of their biggest hits and best ever moments, the hauntingly beautiful “Always.” But despite them being flops, it’s Erasure, and they can still write a damn fine pop tune when they set their minds to it. Listen to “Fingers And Thumbs” or “Sunday Girl” for proof. They just don’t get noticed much.

It may not be their fault though. Much like that other pop duo Pet Shop Boys, the world seem to have lost interest in the synthesizer duo. It’s a shame, because the synth duo have proven to be one of pop’s most successful arrangements. It’s purely a generational thing though; synth duos are just so 80’s, aren’t they? Wisely, Erasure have simultaneously released a rather good dance mini-album called Pop! Remixed which contains some brilliant and contemporary versions of their biggest hits, including “A Little Respect,” remixed by Avantara, “Always” mixed by Manhattan Clique, and “Drama” mixed by JC & Andy Bell. If you’ve never before invested in an Erasure compilation, Total Pop won’t let you down; It’s worth its weight in pop gold, a hook-filled package that will have you tapping your toe and singing along for days.

Essential Erasure Discs:

The Innocents (1988) / Chorus (1991) / Erasure (1995) / Nightbird (2005)

To Be Avoided:

Wild! (1989) / Cowboy (1997) / Other People’s Songs (2003) / Union Street (2006)

Любимият ми ремикс от 2009 засега е Franz Ferdinand – No You Girls (Vince Clarke Remix).

Junior’s searing assessment of Vince Clarke’s last Depeche Mode hurrah was “Baaa” – which at least makes the sentence rhyme. I pressed further, asking if she actually liked it, and was hit with the hammer blow: “No. I like The Beatles and Girls Aloud.” So we’re closing the blog.

Before I go, I’ll make some grand claims about this irrepressible little number being the Essex root of Detroit techno, and mention how Vince left the band after penning it because he didn’t like the direction they were headed in. Presumably he’d seen Martin Gore’s leather skirt. As he wavered at the door he wondered if they’d like to record his new tune ‘Only You’, but – for better or worse – we were spared Dave Gahan attempting to emote on us. It would’ve been funny at least.

Dear me: I almost forgot The Saturdays, when the poor girls have got at least another couple of months in the public conscious. It’s a breathtakingly faithful cover, somehow tinnier than the original and all for good causes. Will that do?

Slippin’ and slidin’:

Okay, someone woke Vince up and decided that he needed to be a bit more visible in the industry. Besides the Erasure hits package and last year’s Yaz(oo) tour, Vince recently took on remixing duties for the Saturdays’ vastly improved remix of “Issues”, and now another remix has surfaced for Franz Ferdinand’s “No You Girls”, which I talked about last week. The single drops officially on April 6th in the UK, but I don’t have US release info. I’ve heard the single, and it’s pretty cool how it takes the FF vocals, and makes them sound just like they would have fit into the mid-80s.