80s bands most people don't know are still making new music in 2015

I made this playlist today of newish (2010 or later, mostly) songs by bands that became famous during mid-80s New Wave (mostly), but then got less famous and probably lots of people who liked them then don't realize they have kept making records at all.

spotify:user:glennpmcdonald:playlist:4pq4adiU97fBgPIf4q3EbP

Artists in the list so far: Big Country, Simple Minds, Blondie, Berlin, Nena, Ultravox, New Model Army, OMD, Prefab Sprout, Paul Buchanan (of the Blue Nile), The Waterboys, Lloyd Cole, The Lilac Time, Adam Ant, The Fixx, Gary Numan, Thomas Dolby, Bryan Ferry, The Dream Academy, Howard Jones, Men Without Hats, Alphaville, Shriekback, Erasure, Duran Duran, Missing Persons, Nik Kershaw, Blancmange, Martha & the Muffins and Pet Shop Boys.

Who else am I forgetting?

Martha & the Muffins?

Wang Chung

Except that shitloads of people know that Simple Minds, Blondie, Ultravox, OMD, Gary Numan, Bryan Ferry, Erasure, Duran Duran, Blancmange and Pet Shop Boys are still making new music.

Yep, I didn't know about that new Wang Chung stuff, thanks!

To be fair, the "people" I mean are probably mostly people who kind of stopped following music around 1989 and so wouldn't necessarily know that Tom Petty is making new records, either. But whatever, I think you get the vibe I'm going for.

The Human League

currently playing "Echo Beach"; I have never heard this song

wouldn't necessarily know that Tom Petty is making new records

to be fair, i think the only person who is aware that tom petty still makes records is bob lefsetz.

the motels apparently have a new album in the works.

section 25, the human league

Limahl
The Human League

currently playing "Echo Beach"; I have never heard this song

― DJP, Monday, March 30, 2015 8:53 PM (5 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Seriously!?!

The Church

Seriously! That song made the US dance chart in 1980 (peaking at #37) and made zero impression on the Hot 100; I have no idea in what context I would have heard it aside from my older brother.

Mike Oldfield.

Toto

Huey Lewis and the News

The Stranglers

(and Hugh Cornwell's solo work)

Squeeze

Mari Wilson

Jimmy Sommerville and The Blow Monkeys both have new albums, China Crisis have one on the way, and Holly Johnson released an album last year.

Most of these acts I can imagine sustaining a small but devoted fanbase (possibly a big one in the case of eg Toto) but for the life of me I have no idea what sort of people go out and buy new Huey Lewis & The News material in 2015.

Kid Creole and the Coconuts

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51S1xdNFJcL._SY355_.jpg

Mike + The Mechanics

Have enjoyed recent stuff by Eyeless in Gaza and the Wolfhounds, but maybe they weren't exactly on Huey Lewis levels of fame the first time around

he was probably never quite 'famous' exactly, but Bill Nelson has been pumping out an average of four albums a year for over a decade now

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Nelson_%28musician%29#Discography

Spoons

This is great, thanks! A few of those are not what I mean by New Wave, but I'll admit that I listened to that whole new Toto album the other day, after originally intending to just scan ironically through the first couple songs.

Famous in Europe only I guess but 'Nits', from Holland, are still making great records.

I guess Herbert Grönemeyer doesn't really count, does he

I'm doing this very unscientifically, so basically my metric was "bands my friends and I knew when I was 16". Although I don't think I had heard of Section 25, but I added them anyway because the new song sounded so CHVRCHESy.

The Fabulous Thunderbirds put out an album in 2013.

Their one-time producer Dave Edmunds has an instrumental album out soon.

It's from 2009, but Nick Heyward put out a pretty great twee-pop album with India Dupre called "The Mermaid and the Lighthouse Keeper."

Hmmm, maybe it's 2006. Spotify says 2009 but I think it may be wrong.

Golden Earring are still making records, although founded in 1961 they're hardly an 80s band, Twilight Zone notwithstanding. They've also had the same lineup for 45 years now which surely must be a record of some sorts.

10,000 Maniacs
Cowboy Junkies

the godfathers

new album couple of years back, recording material at moment for next one

the the

supposedly making stuff that not just for film soundtracks

people are so unaware that Tom Petty makes new music that he scored a #1 album last August.

Jason & The Scorchers

Chrissie Hynde made her first solo album last year, which got zero notice despite a fantastic single, Dark Sunglasses.

I know The Effigies surprisingly made a record in 2007, but I still haven't heard it yet.

Didn't know Jason & The Scorchers were back again. My sister saw one of the 'Farewell' shows back in the mid-2000s.

B-52s last album surprisingly good IMO.

And The Suburbs just made a new album, 25+'years after their last one? Maybe primarily of interest to MPLS new wavers.

Robyn Hitchcock

I was checking some stuff on the amg the other day, and was surprised to see John Hiatt's done like 4 albums this decade alone.

Killing Joke
Wire
Public Image Ltd
David Sylvian
Peter Murphy
They Might Be Giants

There seems to be some greatly slowed down 30th Anniversary version of "Echo Beach."

Dan, might have thought you would have come across and enjoyed it since it sort of sounds vaguely like "Primary" or something.

The good thing for bands like Toto is that there will probably always be a running supply of enough Lukather and Porcaro nerds out there no matter how old they get

Re. Huey Lewis, the bigger problem is for those acts who had the hits back then but have no other real selling point now beyond being older - journeymen with no flamboyance or no particular EVH-style virtuoso cred.

Oh, and Cindytalk!

a-ha released an album in 2009 and supposedly have a new one coming out later this year.

Saw Cindytalk at a festival last year - I wasn't really into them before, but found them very involving even though it was only in front of a tiny handful of people in the corner of a country meadow in broad daylight

Neneh Cherry, Echo & The Bunnymen, New Order, The Smithereens, The Bangles, Dramarama, Pat Benatar, Loverboy, on and on.

Basically if any band can get a quorum of members together, they're touring and making new music.

The Monochrome Set

New Order haven't "made" new music in over a decade, wait and see

really getting tense that Dan hasn't told us he loves Echo Beach yet

for the life of me I have no idea what sort of people go out and buy new Huey Lewis & The News material in 2015

http://i753.photobucket.com/albums/xx179/whatsmynomdeplume/Gifs/sw75344032.gif

I think Huey Lewis has gone purist blues and 50s r&b

Yello
Marc Almond

Portion Control to thread!

In The Nursery as well

Tracey Thorn & Ben Watt (Everything But The Girl), but those aren't so under the radar.

various '80s metal bands. Dokken, Night Ranger, Winger, Tesla, Ratt, Poison, etc etc

Young MC (the "Bust A Move" guy) released albums in 2007 and 2008.

really getting tense that Dan hasn't told us he loves Echo Beach yet

haha yes, I did like the song

And The Suburbs just made a new album, 25+'years after their last one? Maybe primarily of interest to MPLS new wavers.

Didn't they win a Grammy for it?

Public Enemy

John Oates

Think there's probably a good amount of hoary old goth bands still gamely battling on: the Mission, Fields of the Nephilim, the Danse Society, Gene Loves Jezebel, And Also The Trees, must be loads more

Suburbs win a Grammy?! Naw, they were just a locally beloved new wave band that happened to reunite and release a new record in 2013.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zLzRUFt5JEI

if vocalists count, maggie reilly

Roddy Frame (Aztec Camera)

chuck e. posted his top singles of the year so far and feedtime, pop group, and the leather nun made his top ten. kinda curious!

It appears Nu Shooz CAN wait - wait around indefinitely while they tour off the back of their 1986 hit (which was a remix anyway).

The Leather Nun has a single out???

Think there's probably a good amount of hoary old goth bands still gamely battling on

Clan of Xymox too.

If the question was "making GOOD new music", this list would be much shorter unfortunately.

but then an all-erasure playlist would be kinda dull