Synth Noir

Human League's _Reproduction and _Travelogue_ ; the first couple of OMD albums; Simple Minds' second to fourth albums; anything by The Associates. Um. Ah. Help me out here peoples.

What was I saying, oh yes - they're both great albums if you can find them - their leader was Dick Witts, a former orchestral percussionist, who layered up some fairly complex synth and percussion patterns along with primitive guitar and edgy vocals to make a pretty unique sound.

And, sorry for going on about this album for about the 10th time, but it is just SO great, Andrew Weatherall's "Nine o- Clock Drop" compilation has some stuff that fits the bill (Gina X, Torch Song, Coil, 400 Blows)

Pretty much everything on that album is fantastic, in fact. Search Shriekback as well (indeed, search the thread which I'm *sure* we had on them for compilation info, no doubt).

Weird that his name should come up now, because someone else recently brought his name up, mentioning that it was kind of interesting that he didn't become more well-known as a solo artist. Of course, FM became a staple with prog fans, but his solo work was pretty interesting too, from a technical perspective (those that don't know him, he liked electrifying instruments that weren't typically electrified, like mandolin, and then distorting them and bowing them. wild, wild sounds).

e,r

As for the thread, yeah, I think a good mix to add is "Are 'friends' electric" coupled with Fad Gadget's "Back to Nature", which sounds quite similar. You know, Tum-Tum-Tuuum, Tum-Tum-Tuuum... And of course John Foxx's "Underpass", which is a fucking classic track (a goth dj still plays it weekly here, he actually made me discover that song. Girls love it, it's hummable and way danceable, while keeping that cold Vienna feel...)

(just did a quick search and there's a discography here:

http://www.rlcrutchfieldsdarkday.homestead.com/Discography.ht ml

which lists available reissues.)

And John Foxx's Tiny Colour Movies, released earlier this year, is a much welcome return to these forms.

Duane is totes OTM re thomas leer. I need that 7"!

I can't believe nobody has mentioned Gary Numan's "Telekon"!

Associates, Fad Gadget, John Foxx, and early Human League are probably the best reference points here.

But it would be really hard to argue against both "Seventeen Seconds" and "Faith" in this thread. When you think about it, they kind of trump everything here.....

'Back To The Future'?
http://www.bbc.co.uk/6music/events/future/

It is funny how the real drum sound was mmore fashionable then, and it isn't fashionable now. The electronic 808 drums probably sounded hokey in 1981, but 30 years later they are the basis of some much electronic music.

YMO can definitely be played along side these records, but I don't think they quite fall into the catagory. They are not dark enough.

Another couple records that I have been pretty geeked about lately are Heartbeat by Chris and Cosey and How Much Are They by Jah Wobble. I haven't heard his Snakedancer LP yet, but I am trying to hunt down a copy. The non dance side of Kelly Polar's Rococo EP falls into this catagory as well. The CR drums fit right into the first Ultravox LP.

May as much be a question of aesthetic when it came to beat. By then, during the heyday of the straight 120 bpm 4/4-beat, the snare drum was the most important part of the beat, whereas the bass drum was more of a background thing just keeping the pulse. In disco, which was very much the blueprint for the synthpop beat too, the snare would often be strengthened by handclaps to give it the right "bang". The snare sounds on the 808 were just to thin to fit into that kind of beat. Today, however, with bass drum being increasingly important, the 808 works better. Generally one could say the 808 fits better for more syncopated hip-hop breakbeats than it does for a straight 20/20 beat.

Organisation with the limited edition 7" today

the real thing?! or the CD repressing? i swapped my copy of the 7" for the inner sleeve of "reproduction" when i was 15 (true story; not an interesting one, though.)

soft cell also be needing an honourable mention here. depeche mode had their moments. and gary nu ... oh, sorry, he's been done. good show.