Tag: Futurecop!

2019 END OF YEAR REVIEW

2019 was a year of 40th Anniversaries, celebrating the synth becoming the sound of pop when ‘Are Friends Electric?’ reached No1 in the UK chart in 1979.

While GARY NUMAN opted for ‘(R)evolution’ and two of his former sidemen RRussell Bell and Chris Payne ventured solo for the first time, OMD offered a 7 disc ‘Souvenir’ featuring a whole album of quality unreleased material to accompany a concert tour to celebrate four decades in the business. That was contrary to DEPECHE MODE who merely plonked 14 albums into a boxed set in a move where the ‘Everything Counts’ lyric “the grabbing hands grab all they can” became more and more ironic… MIDGE URE partied like it was 1980 with the music of VISAGE and ULTRAVOX, while SIMPLE MINDS announced an arena tour for 2020 so that their audience could show Jim Kerr their hands again.

HEAVEN 17 announced some special showcases of the early material of THE HUMAN LEAGUE and got a particularly warm reception opening on tour for SQUEEZE as a trailer ahead of their own ‘Greatest Hits’ jaunt next year.

Celebrating 20 years in music, there was the welcome return of LADYTRON with a self-titled comeback album, while Swedish evergreens LUSTANS LAKEJER performed the ‘Åkersberga’ album for its 20th Anniversary and similarly GOLDFRAPP announced a series of shows in honour of their magnificent cinematic debut ‘Felt Mountain’.

Cult favourites FIAT LUX made their intimate live comeback in a church in Bradford and released their debut album ‘Saved Symmetry’ 37 years after their first single ‘Feels Like Winter Again’.

As a result, their fans were also treated to ‘Ark Of Embers’, the long player that Polydor Records shelved in 1985 when the band were on the cusp of a breakthrough but ended with a commercial breakdown.

Modern prog exponents Tim Bowness and Steven Wilson got back together as NO-MAN for their dual suite electronic concept record ‘Love You To Bits’, but an even more ambitious undertaking came from UNDERWORLD with their boxed set ‘Drift Series 1’.

Also making live returns were one-time PET SHOP BOYS protégé CICERO with a charity gig in his hometown of Livingston, WHITE DOOR with JOHAN BAECKSTRÖM at Synth Wave Live 3, ARTHUR & MARTHA and Mute Records veterans KOMPUTER.

After a short hiatus, the mighty KITE sold-out three gigs at Stockholm Slaktkyrkan and ended the year performing at an opera house, while GIORGIO MORODER embarked on his first ever concert tour where his songs were the stars.

Although their long-awaited-as-yet-untitled third album was still to materialise, VILE ELECTRODES went back on the road in Europe with APOPTYGMA BERZERK and THE INVINCIBLE SPIRIT. Meanwhile, Chinese techno-rock sextet STOLEN opened for NEW ORDER on their Autumn European tour and EMIKA performed in a series of Planetariums.

Despite the fall of The Berlin Wall 30 years ago, there were more evident swipes to the right than there had been for a long time, with the concept of Brexit Electro becoming a rather unpleasant reality. So in these more sinister times, the need for classic uplifting electronic pop was higher than ever.

To that end, three superb debut albums fitted the bill. While KNIGHT$ offered quality Britalo on ‘Dollars & Cents’, the suave presence of OLLIE WRIDE took a more MTV friendly direction with ‘Thanks In Advance’.

But for those wanting something more home produced, the eccentric Northern electronic pop of the brilliantly named INTERNATIONAL TEACHERS OF POP continued the artistic lineage of THE HUMAN LEAGUE.

QUIETER THAN SPIDERS finally released their wonderful debut album ‘Signs Of Life’ which was naturally more understated and Denmark had some worthy synthpop representation with SOFTWAVE producing an enjoyably catchy debut long player in ‘Game On’.

On the shadier side of electronic pop, BOY HARSHER achieved a wider breakthrough with their impressive ‘Careful’ long player but as a result, the duo acquired a contemporary hipster element to their fanbase who seemed to lack manners and self-awareness as they romped around gigs without a care for anyone around them. But with tongues-in-cheeks, SPRAY continued to amuse with their witty prankelectro on ‘Failure Is Inevitable’.

Photo by Johnny Jewel

Italians Do It Better kept things in house as CHROMATICS unexpectedly unleashed their first album for six years in ‘Closer To Grey’ and embarked on a world tour. Main support was DESIRE and accompanied on keyboards by HEAVEN singer Aja, the pair took things literally during their cover version of ‘Bizarre Love Triangle’ with a girl-on-girl kiss in front of head honcho Johnny Jewel.

Other ITIB acts on the tour dependent on territory included DOUBLE MIXTE, IN MIRRORS and KRAKÓW LOVES ADANA. But the best work to appear from the stable came from JORJA CHALMERS who became ‘Human Again’.

There were a variety of inventive eclectic works from FAKE TEAK, MAPS, FINLAY SHAKESPEARE, ULTRAMARINE, TYCHO, THE GOLDEN FILTER, FRAGRANCE. and FADER. Meanwhile VON KONOW, SOMEONE WHO ISN’T ME and JAKUZI all explored themes of equality while BOYTRONIC preferred ‘The Robot Treatment’.

But expressing themselves on the smoother side of proceedings were CULT WITH NO NAME and notably SHOOK who looked east towards the legend of YELLOW MAGIC ORCHESTRA.

Dark minimalism reigned in the work of FRAGILE SELF and WE ARE REPLICA while no less dark but not so aggressive, WITCH OF THE VALE cemented their position with a well-received opening slot at Infest.

Touring in Europe with OMD and MIDGE URE, TINY MAGNETIC PETS unleashed two EPs ‘The Politburo Disko’ and ‘Girl In A White Dress’ as fellow Dubliner CIRCUIT3 got political and discussed ‘The Price Of Nothing & The Value Of Everything’.

2019 was a year of electronic instrumental offerings galore from NEULAND, RICARDO AUTOBAHN, EKKOES, M83, RELIEF, FEMMEPOP and OBLONG, although ERIC RANDOM’s dystopian offering ‘Wire Me Up’ added vocoder while BRIAN ENO celebrated the 50th anniversary of the first moon landing ‘For All Mankind’.

The King of Glum Rock LLOYD COLE surprised all with an electronic pop album called ‘Guesswork’ just as PET SHOP BOYS set an ‘Agenda’. HOWARD JONES released his most synthy work for years in ‘Transform’ and while CHINA CRISIS acted as his well-received support on the UK leg of his 35th Anniversary tour, their front man GARY DALY ventured solo with ‘Gone From Here’.

Among the year’s best new talents were IMI, KARIN MYGRETAGEISTE and ALICE HUBBLE with their beautifully crafted avant pop.

And with the media traction of artists such as GEORGIA, REIN, JENNIFER TOUCH, SUI ZHEN, THE HEARING, IONNALEE, PLASMIC, ZAMILSKA, IOANNA GIKA, SPELLLING, KANGA, FIFI RONG and I AM SNOW ANGEL, the profile of women in electronic music was stronger than ever in 2019.

Sweden continued to produce quality electronic pop with enjoyable releases from the likes of MACHINISTA, PAGE, COVENANT, OBSESSION OF TIME and LIZETTE LIZETTE. One of the most interesting acts to emerge from the region was US featuring the now Stockholm-domiciled Andrew Montgomery from GENEVA and Leo Josefsson of LOWE, with the catalyst of this unlikely union coming from a shared love of the late country legend Glen Campbell. Meanwhile, veteran trio DAYBEHAVIOR made the best album of their career ‘Based On A True Story’.

However, Canada again gave the Swedes a good run for their money as ELECTRIC YOUTH and FM ATTACK released new material while with more of a post-punk slant, ACTORS impressed audiences who preferred a post-post-punk edge alongside their synths.

DANA JEAN PHOENIX though showed herself to be one of the best solo synth performers on the live circuit, but artistically the best of the lot was MECHA MAIKO who had two major releases ‘Okiya’ and ‘Let’s!’.

Despite making some good music in 2019 with their ‘Destroyer’ two-parter, the “too cool for school” demeanour of TR/ST might have impressed hipsters, but left a lot to be desired. A diva-ish attitude of entitlement was also noticed by ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK to be disappointingly prevalent in several fledgling acts.

Synthwave increased its profile further with the film ‘The Rise Of The Synths’ narrated by none other than John Carpenter. MICHAEL OAKLEY released his debut album ‘Introspect’, BETAMAXX was ‘Lost In A Dreamworld’, COM TRUISE came up with a ‘Persuasion System’ and NEW ARCADES were ‘Returning Home’.

Scene veteran FUTURECOP! collaborated with PARALLELS, COMPUTER MAGIC and NINA prior to a hiatus for the foreseeable future, while there were promising new talents emerging in the shape of POLYCHROME, PRIZM, BUNNY X and RIDER.

However, several of the sub-genre’s artists needed to rethink their live presentations which notably underwhelmed with their static motions and lack of engagement.

While promoters such as Outland developed on their solid foundations, others attempted to get too big too soon like the musical equivalent of a penis extension, leaving fans disappointed and artists unpaid. Attempting to turnover more than 10 acts during in a day with a quarter of an hour changeover has always been an odious task at best, but to try 15?!? One hopes the headliners were well paid despite having to go on at midnight when most of their supporters went home so as not to miss the last train…

Now at times, it was as if a major collective midlife crisis had hit independent electronic music in the UK during 2019. It was not unlike how “born again bikers” have become a major road safety risk, thanks to 40somethings who only managed Cycling Proficiency in Junior School suddenly jumping onto 500cc Honda CMX500 Rebel motorcycles, thinking they were Valentino Rossi.

Something similar was occurring in music as a variety of posturing delusional synth owners indulged in a remix frenzy and visions of grandeur, forgetting that ability and talent were paramount. This attitude led to a number of poorly attended events where attendees were able to be counted on one hand, thanks to clueless fans of said combos unwisely panning their video footage around the venue.

Playing at 3:15pm in an empty venue is NOT performing at a ‘major’ electronic festival… “I’ll be more selective with the gigs I agree to in the UK” one of these acts haplessly bemoaned, “I’ve played to too many empty rooms!” – well, could that have been because they are not very good?

Bands who had blown their chance by not showing willingness to open for name acts during holiday periods, while making unwise comments on their national TV debut about their lack of interest in registering for PRS, said they were going to split a year in advance, but not before releasing an EP and playing a farewell show in an attempt to finally get validation for their art. Was this a shining example of Schrodinger’s Band?

Of course, the worst culprits were those who had an internet radio show or put on gigs themselves so that they could actually perform, because otherwise external promotors were only interested in them opening at 6.15pm after a ticket deal buy on for a five band bill. Humility wouldn’t have gone amiss in all these cases.

It’s a funny old world, but as ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK comes up to concluding its tenth year as an influential platform that has written extensively about not one or two or three or four BUT five acts prior to them being selected to open on tour for OMD, luckily the gulf between good and bad music is more distinct than ever. It will be interesting to see if the high standard of electronic pop will be maintained or whether the influx of poor quality artists will contaminate the bloodline.

So ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK ends the decade with a complimentary comment by a punter after attending two of its live events: “You don’t put on sh*t do you…”

May the supreme talent rise and shine… you know who you are 😉


ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK Contributor Listings of 2019

PAUL BODDY

Best Album: UNDERWORLD Drift Series 1
Best Song: MOLINA Venus
Best Gig: RAMMSTEIN at Milton Keynes MK Bowl
Best Video: SCALPING Chamber
Most Promising New Act: SCALPING


IAN FERGUSON

Best Album: NO-MAN Love You To Bits
Best Song: NO-MAN Love You To Shreds
Best Gig: RAMMSTEIN at Stadion Slaski Chorzow
Best Video: RAMMSTEIN Deutschland
Most Promising New Act: IMI


SIMON HELM

Best Album: PAGE Fakta För Alla
Best Song: PAGE Fakta För Alla
Best Gig: LAU NAU at London Cafe OTO
Best Video: LAU NAU Amphipoda on Buchla 200 at EMS Stockholm
Most Promising New Act: THE HIDDEN MAN


CHI MING LAI

Best Album: KNIGHT$ Dollar & Cents
Best Song: OMD Don’t Go
Best Gig: KITE at Stockholm Slaktkyrkan
Best Video: NIGHT CLUB Your Addiction
Most Promising New Act: IMI


RICHARD PRICE

Best Album: KNIGHT$ Dollar & Cents
Best Song: OMD Don’t Go
Best Gig: MIDGE URE + RUSTY EGAN at The London Palladium
Best Video: IMI Margins
Most Promising New Act: PLASMIC


MONIKA IZABELA TRIGWELL

Best Album: MECHA MAIKO Let’s
Best Song: KANGA Burn
Best Gig: DANA JEAN PHOENIX, KALAX + LEBROCK at London Zigfrid von Underbelly
Best Video: IONNALEE Open Sea
Most Promising New Act: PRIZM


Text by Chi Ming Lai with thanks to Ian Ferguson
16th December 2019, updated 29th Janaury 2021

FM ATTACK + FUTURECOP! Live in London

Outland presented an enticing synthwave double billing with Vancouver’s FM ATTACK and Manchester’s FUTURECOP! at Electrowerkz in London.

The London-based promoters have had a busy year where they undertook their most ambitious undertaking yet in Toronto during the summer featuring DANA JEAN PHOENIX, MECHA MAIKO, PARALLELS, MICHAEL OAKLEY, KALAX, TIMECOP1983 and FM ATTACK.

It was the success of FM ATTACK’s appearance at the event that led to mainman Shawn Ward’s visit to London and Dublin.

But to start proceedings in an already packed Electrowerkz was FUTURECOP! The musical vehicle of synthwave stalwart Manzur Iqbal, his most recent album ‘Voltrana’ featured the vocals of PARALLELS and COMPUTER MAGIC.

In a set more akin to a DJ styled experience and accompanied on stage by Will Cunningham on visuals, Iqbal presented pre-prepared song-based material wispily vocalised by the likes of Holly Dodson and Danz Johnson such as ‘Edge Of The Universe’, ‘We Belong’ and ‘Star’.

‘1988 Girls’ from ‘The Movie’ drew the biggest cheers while musically cut from a similar cloth, ‘Starworshipper’ showcased Iqual’s Sci-Fi mysticism.

As a show, FUTURECOP! did lack a live element, but the audience happily danced throughout and Iqbal did a good job of warming everyone up in anticipation of FM ATTACK. While there was no sign of the new NINA voiced single ‘Against the Tide’, there was a closing playback of the Giorgio Moroder-produced ‘Never Ending Story’ by Limahl, a song now being enjoyed by a new younger audience thanks to its inclusion in the final episode of ‘Stranger Things 3’.

Sporting a gold lame suit and with a Roland Juno 60 taking centre stage, Shawn Ward was grinning as he took his position to play his first London gig as FM ATTACK. With ‘Drive’ star Ryan Gosling a notable FM ATTACK admirer, Ward has concocted a unique hybrid electronic sound combining Gino Soccio and Giorgio Moroder with Italo disco, French house, new wave and post-punk.

From 2009’s ‘Dreamatic’ album although in instrumental form, the groovy electro-disco of ‘Yesterday’ opened up the gates, but the funkier ‘I Saw Her Dancing’ saw Ward delightfully take to vocoder. With some lovely synth keys and rhythmic fervour, ‘Dreamer’ kept up the neon-lit robotic pace while ‘A Million Miles Away’ added some mood to go with the dance.

Another number from ‘Dreamatic’, ‘Sleepless Nights’ did what it said on the tin, crossing arpeggios with octave lilts for an Italo flavoured romp before the comparatively recent bleep bop of ‘Little Angel’. ‘Shadows’ closed the main set with a gloriously filmic synth laden space journey, but Ward got a well-deserved encore and came back from ‘A Million Miles Away’ with a sparkling tune that was swathed in an enigmatic gothic allure, thanks to his obvious affection for THE CURE.

With regards FM ATTACK’s live presentation, Shawn Ward deserved full kudos for accepting his limitations as a one-man synth act and therefore, selecting material to suit the format. He could have so easily relied on playback to virtually recreate the presence of the numerous guest vocalists on his albums, but he chose not to and that must be applauded.

With another well-attended event under their belt, Outland are steadily building their community. Always exuding a warm friendly atmosphere, any serious synth enthusiast should pay them a visit, even if only out of curiosity.


Special thanks to Stuart McLaren at Outland

FM ATTACK ‘New World’ is released by Starfield Music in vinyl LP, cassette and digital formats, available from https://fmattack.bandcamp.com/

https://www.facebook.com/fmattackmusic/

https://twitter.com/fmattack

FUTURECOP! ‘Voltrana’ is released by New Retro Wave Records as a download album, available from https://newretrowave.bandcamp.com/album/voltrana

https://www.futurecop.info/

https://facebook.com/futurecopofficial/

https://twitter.com/futurecopx

The next Outland events feature OLLIE WRIDE at London Camden Assembly on Saturday 16th November 2019 and Glasgow Classic Grand on Friday 29th November 2019

https://www.weloveoutland.com/

https://www.facebook.com/outlandsynth/

https://twitter.com/OutlandSynth


Text and Photos by Chi Ming Lai
28th October 2019

FUTURECOP! Voltrana

Mancunian producer Manzur Iqbal is the man behind FUTURECOP!

Since 2006, the project has grown in popularity, having gained audiences across the globe, sitting comfortably in the niche of synthwave and synth revival circles.

Iqbal, despite having had no previous musical experience, started experimenting with sound to bring back the charm of his youth and FUTURECOP! was born. Known for his collaborations, FUTURECOP! is back with his brand new album ‘Voltrana’, where more synthwave household names are present.

From ambient to spiritual, the album is full of surprises, all cinematically realigned to achieve a shiny retro gem which is bound to bring in the long awaited Spring.

Canada’s PARALLELS delight the album with Holly Dodson’s charming vocals and this opus welcomes back the synthwave princess copiously, starting with the sweet notions of ‘We Belong’. With a thoroughly modern approach interwoven with retro beats and scrumptious arpeggios, the track is a perfect intro to the colourful world of ‘Voltrana’.

Canada is followed the US with the clever changes of texture on ‘Star’, which welcomes COMPUTER MAGIC. New Yorker Danielle Johnson, the sole brains behind COMPUTER MAGIC has made it “big in Japan” thanks to her ethereal approach to vintage pop, often described as “cosmic”. And here, with FUTURECOP! she enters the realms of the otherworldly once again.

PARALLELS chase back again with the delicious ‘Leslie Cheung’, a tribute to the late much loved Cantopop star and actor. Dodson’s candied vocals bring an aura of childhood reminiscence over sugar coated melodies created as a fine example of modern dance music.

Going East, will Iqbal succeed in ‘Finding Shaolin’? Seemingly so, accompanied by heavier synth arpeggios and Moroder-esque templates, while ‘Breeze (Behind Waterfalls)’ eases the journey with the drum extravaganza leading the way further into the unknown.

PARALLELS return with the previously released single ‘Edge Of The Universe’.

“Inspired by a mix of 80s Japanese pop culture, eighties American Teen movies and Retro Space Adventure Japanese-Western cartoons” as described by Iqbal, the track is yet another easy listening beauty, inspiring peace and hope all the way “at the edge of the universe”.

Going back to the tender years of youth, ‘Forgotten Summer’ brings back the sounds and smells of the pivotal formative era, while Ayumi Sasaki joins FUTURECOP! on ‘Shinjinmei’; ‘信心銘’ is a sweet acoustic flavoured ballad, filled with nostalgic emotion that weaves in and out of J-Pop awareness.

Continuing the nod to eastern cultures ‘Zen 4040’, ‘Whispers of Tao’ and ‘Only From Mud (Can A Flower Bloom)’ enter the higher consciousness of pictorial qualities.

PARALLELS feature one more time on the delightful ‘This Moment Forever’, before the German princess of pop NINA finds herself as one of the family on ‘Fade Away’.

Grandiose arpeggios, “perfectly planned”, canvas the fresh sounding vocals from the alluring London-based songstress.

Comfortably at home alongside PARALLELS with whom she toured the US last year, NINA brings a calmer quality into the mix, not too dissimilar from the “mellow Magic” on Magic Radio.

The final collaboration comes from SIAMESE YOUTH, a synthwave duo from Berlin, also in form of a more demure offering, calming the senses and smoothing the rough with delicate melodies and soothing vocals.

The return of FUTURECOP! is a grand one. Twinning with the cream of synthwave artists from around the globe, this Eastern-inspired proposition helps to bring back the days of youth with charm, poise and melancholy.

Not all happy go lucky, yet uplifting and hopeful, ‘Voltrana’ is the perfect easy listening positive affirmation. Namaste.


‘Voltrana’ is released by New Retro Wave Records as a download album, available from https://newretrowave.bandcamp.com/album/voltrana

https://www.futurecop.info/

https://facebook.com/futurecopofficial/

https://twitter.com/futurecopx

https://www.instagram.com/futurecopofficial/


Text by Monika Izabela Trigwell
25th March 2019

FUTURECOP! featuring PARALLELS Edge Of The Universe

Featuring the delightful vocals of Holly Dodson from Canadian synthpop trio PARALLELS, ‘Edge Of The Universe’ is the new single by FUTURECOP!

The project of Mancunian Manzur Iqbal and his first new material since 2014, ‘Edge Of The Universe’ is a synthetic burst of Manga colour not far off the catchy sweetly flavoured ‘Metropolis’ album which gained PARALLELS some well-deserved momentum internationally. Iqbal says ‘Edge Of The Universe’ was “inspired by a mix of 80s Japanese pop culture, eighties American Teen movies and Retro Space Adventure Japanese-Western cartoons” and probably wouldn’t have sounded out of place on the soundtrack of an Anime remake ‘Pretty In Pink’ or ‘Some Kind Of Wonderful’.

A new album is pencilled in for 2019 to follow-up 2014 ‘Fairy Tales’, although ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK sincerely hopes that the FUTURECOP! declaration of Bruce Hornby as an influence is just an idle threat…

Meanwhile, the tune comes suitably dressed in a soft-focus visual presentation filmed in Osaka, Japan which is directed by Anise Mariko who has previously given her mikineko productions video treatment to the likes of COMPUTER MAGIC and SHOOK.

“Manzur first approached me about a year ago about co-writing some of their tracks. I’ve been a big fan of FUTURECOP! for so long so it was really cool to get to join our worlds. I feel like we both share similar influences, so the lyrical themes came through quite clearly for the instrumentals he sent.” Holly Dodson told ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK, “We worked over email, Manzur sent me demos, I recorded the vocals at my studio here in Toronto then he finished the productions in the UK”.

She continued, “Luckily we had some great synergy happening, when I heard the instrumentals I basically knew what I wanted to write upon first listen and Manzur was totally on board. I felt completely comfortable going dreamy and adventurous with them, a bit spiritual as well… even so far as to the edge of the universe 🙂 “

For PARALLELS, the RADIO WOLF remix of ‘The Last Man’ and the enjoyable ‘Golden’ recorded with Chris Huggett (not the WASP synth designer!) had been their only releases in 2018 so far.

But following a superb debut at Zigfrid Von Underbelly in London at Easter, their live double billing with German songstress NINA has just recently completed its American leg to great success and acclaim.


‘Edge Of The Universe’ is released by New Retro Wave Records as a digital bundle with four additional remixes

https://www.futurecop.info/

https://facebook.com/futurecopofficial/

https://twitter.com/futurecopx

https://www.instagram.com/futurecopofficial/

http://www.iloveparallels.com/

https://www.facebook.com/Parallels/

https://twitter.com/iloveparallels

https://www.instagram.com/iloveparallels/


Text by Chi Ming Lai
Photo by Hayley Stewart
26th November 2018