Browsing Tag

80s SynthPop

80s euphoria grooved back around through Electraverb’s debut LP, NEON

Posted on 23 July 2024

In their debut LP, NEON, the synthpop duo, Electraverb, crafted a euphoric gateway to the 80s dancefloors. I Feel the Music, the standout single, ensnares through delicious grooves, neon-dripping chords, and sensuously magnetic vocal lines; each element ties together not just to revisit an aural era but to fuel it with contemporary fervour.

From the ashes of their previous project, Stoneblue, the founding members, Chris and Mazdak, seamlessly transitioned their synergy, catchy melodies and intricate guitar work which resounded through London’s synthpop scene in the 90s into their new project which marks their maturity as earworm architects.

The addition of esteemed backing vocalists Jo Garland and Shirley Lewis, known for their work with icons like George Michael and Elton John, is a testament to Electraverb’s determination to push their sound to the heights celebrated by their influences.

If you envisioned an aural love child of The Human League, Kraftwerk and George Michael, you’d conjure a reflection of the scintillating soul which oscillates through I Feel the Music which delivers hypnotic rhythms as the harsh snares pierce the lush reverb under the harmonised to the nines vocals.

NEON was officially released on June 14th; stream the LP in full via Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Relive your ‘Glory Days’ with Marty Gray’s latest synthpop single

Posted on 8 July 2021

Marty Gray’s latest synthpop album is enough to send you swooning back to the 80s while hanging onto the contemporary components of the mellifluous release that serves nostalgia and futurism side by side.

The single, Glory Days, may run at a slow tempo but the succinctly paced single never gives your mind permission to veer away from the devilishly clever progressions and the constantly evolving vocal timbre. The spatial effect in the synth lines allows you to sink deeper into the dreamy, fiercely passionate single that you’ll want to give plenty of repeat attention.

Glory Days is now available to stream with the rest of Marty Gray’s album via Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Elanor Idlewood sends us back to the golden era of synthpop with ‘Akito’s Madness’.

Posted on 2 June 2021

Bordeaux-based queer, feminist electronic music producer Elanor Idlewood has released her latest single, Akito’s Madness. Hit play to escape the 21st-century and immerse yourself in the golden era of synthpop.

Akito’s Madness provides 5:47-minutes of unadulterated, reverb-swathed synth lines that eclipse the 80s synthpop sound while boasting a sense of cinematic futurism which is prevalent in Idlewood’s distinctive yet immediately accessible production style.

Music became more than just a hobby in 2019 when Elanor Idlewood established herself as an independent artist. If Frankie Goes to Hollywood, Depeche Mode, Orbit, and Kraftwerk are on your playlists, Akito’s Madness should be too.

Akito’s Madness is now available to stream via SoundCloud.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Super Love hit peak relatability with their alt-synthpop track, ‘Bored’.

Posted on 1 May 2021
Super Love

With their tendency to consistently switch up their sound, Super Love’s new releases always explore another facet of their expressively creative talent; their latest single, ‘Bored’, is no exception.

After the scuzzy NIN-reminiscent intro, the soundscape shifts into a funk-brandishing feat of alt-pop that allows Super Love to stay true to their NYC roots. With elements of indie-pop-rock and 80s synthpop, Bored unravels as a refreshingly relatable track that captures the frustration of lockdown boredom without ever resonating as melancholic or piteous. Instead, it speaks to listeners facing brand-new levels of boredom as they realised that the phrase, ‘only boring people get bored’, really doesn’t apply during lockdown times.

Next time you feel like you’re going to be *that* person and complain to your friends, hit play and get the compassion from Super Love instead.

You can hear Super Love on SoundCloud.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Emporers introduce themselves in no uncertain terms with ‘We Are The Emporers’

Posted on 10 April 2021
Emporers

Well, all of a sudden the 1980’s turned up, kicked in the door with a lacy sleeve-cuff and some Adam Ant eyeliner, popped their pixie-booted feet up on the table, and announced their intention to stay with a New Romantic frock-coat thrown firmly onto the back of the sofa. And, with ‘We Are The Emperors’, what an entrance it is; a three-piece electro-pop beaut writ large in gated, reverb-heavy snare beats, chocky guitar, and driving bass.

Drawn together by legendary Killing Joke bassist Martin ‘Youth’ Glover (producer for everyone from Bananarama to Pink Floyd, Edwin Collins, Siousxie and the Banshees, and The Verve), there’s some serious writing skills and musicianship behind the frills and blusher; touches of Pet Shop Boys and Yazoo electronica mixed with Spandau Ballet, Kate Bush, Gary Numan, Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark, and The Human League, but there’s some serious pop sensibilities too – Bananarama, again, Fun Boy Three, Go West, A-Ha, and Duran Duran, for sure. You get the picture – a United Colours of Benetton picture, framed in Black Ash and lit with neon, at the same time bang up to date and spectacular, pop-driven, and absolutely explosive. Make no mistake – there’s a retro-tinged influence here, for sure, but this is no simple regressive homage to the past; it’s cutting edge, stellar, and absolutely right now – with a superb video to match, ‘We Are The Emporers’ is simply a fabulous pop record.

Check out Emporers on Instagram.

Review by Alex Holmes

Exit Spells bring us a perfect slice of sparse Eighties electropop with ‘Bishops’

Posted on 1 March 2021
Exit Spells

Exit Spells – the brainchild of introspective composers Chris Kennedy and David Cantallo – is a wash of vintage synthesisers and sequencing, drum machines and samples, a batch of TR808 and Moog sounds creating ambient textures and soundscapes behind delicate melodies and breathy, semi-spoken vocals.

It’s old-school in all the right ways, a step back from the ‘four sweaty men standing in a rehearsal room’ band approach, melancholic yet hopeful, introspective yet immediate. There’s a big eighties vibe here, swathes of Ultravox, Visage, or Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark, the vocals reminiscent of Ure, Foxx, or Oakey, the track sparse and electronic but optimistic and ultimately uplifting.

Exit Spells’ four track EP – from which ‘Bishops’ is taken – is out now; you can also check out Exit Spells on Instagram.

Review by Alex Holmes

TriPed opens up their amorously romantic soul in “Driving with Tears in My Eyes”

Posted on 10 October 2020

If you thought the title to TriPed’s latest single “Driving with Tears in My Eyes” is candid, just wait until you hear the raw, fraught introspection which acts as a window into the melancholic soul of this exceptional artist.

It’s an organ-tensingly evocative experience which is sweetened by the striking talent on display in the Synth Pop hit.

Driving with Tears in My Eyes will throw you back to the 80s with the throbbing synth notes while simultaneously projecting you into the future, which will undoubtedly be bright for the London-based solo Pop artist.

Whether you’re a fan of the Midnight or still a staunch fan of the Human League, you won’t want to miss this electrifyingly powerful release.

You can check out TriPed’s latest single via Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast