Tag: Glenn Gregory (Page 2 of 5)

AFTERHERE Live in London

AFTERHERE are Berenice Scott and Glenn Gregory.

Gregory is best known as the front man of HEAVEN 17 while Scott is a singer / songwriter who is also the Sheffield electronic pioneer’s live keyboardist; she joined their concert set-up in 2011 while releasing her most recent solo album ‘Polarity’ in 2014.

As well as HEAVEN 17, the pair have also been part of HOLY HOLY.

A supergroup led by Spiders drummer Woody Woodmansey and producer Tony Visconti, HOLY HOLY perform the songs of DAVID BOWIE from the period between 1969 to 1973 at concerts around the world and it was while touring that AFTERHERE came into being.

What began as a platform for soundtrack work eventually mutated into songs for their debut album ‘Addict’; “Glenn being part of one of the most innovative electronic bands calls to mind elements of KRAFTWERK and of course HEAVEN 17” Berenice Scott said, “We both love classic, brilliant songwriting such as the HALL & OATES catalogue and one of my favourite singers is Karen Carpenter, and then we kind of end up meeting somewhere in the middle with a shared love of DAFT PUNK.”

For their debut gig at Venue 2 of 229, an underground location in Central London, Scott and Gregory reversed their known roles from HEAVEN 17. Beginning with an introspective instrumental ‘Butterfly’, it was certainly unusual to see Gregory behind two synthesizers.

The soulful electronically assisted pop of ‘After the Night’ had its rainy backdropcomplimented gentle backbeat from Al Anderson on electronic drums,

It showcased how with Scott taking the majority of the lead vocals, AFTERHERE’s songs take on a more personal and emotional level compared with the socio-political animal that is HEAVEN 17.

‘Darkstar’ saw Gregory take the first verse in a duet with Scott, their two very different voices working well in unison and providing enough anguish around a solid bassline, swooping electronics and subtle piano.

Aided by a synthetic rumble and thundering rhythms from Anderson, ‘Unbroken’ was full of emotive drama with Scott exclaiming “I’ll be there for you”. The jazzier overtones of ‘It’s OK’ were disturbed by some solid schaffel beats, although Scott’s terrifically rich voice was not overawed by the dominant percussive backbone.

With a solemn demeanour, ‘I Won’t Cry’ with its mix of piano and synths came over like an electro-FLEETWOOD MAC and was amusingly boosted by Gregory’s BEE GEES inspired falsetto backing vox. Then in a nod to HEAVEN 17 and David Bowie, Scott provided solo piano interpretations of ‘Temptation’ and ‘Wild Is The Wild’ which were both voiced by Gregory.

The haunting overtures of ‘Liar’, which formed part of AFTERHERE’s first soundtrack commission, more than suited the parent TV show’s heavy subject content; “is he dead?” grinned Scott to the audience at the song’s conclusion in a reference to the series one cliffhanger…

The excellent ‘Addict’ album title track dealt with emotional exploration of relationships, but proceeding were injected with a dancey boost, courtesy of the funky GOLDFRAPP of ‘Breaking Rules’; with groovy reminisces of ‘Twist’ and ‘Yes Sir’, the song’s captivating sexually charged seduction almost got Scott up on her feet, although she remained somewhat the reluctant front woman despite having the voice and looks to more than fulfil the role.

The nocturnal atmospheres of ‘A Place To Be’ were perfect as the penultimate song of the evening before Berenice Scott and Glenn Gregory closed with a stark trip-hop styled cover of ‘All Along the Watchtower’.

With an introduction by ‘Liar’ and ‘Vanity Fair’ director James Strong, he explained how he wanted the music for his shows to be slightly darker in tone. A song that has been reinterpreted by many in the past including Jimi Hendrix, Bryan Ferry and U2, authentic guitar sounds emerged from Gregory via his Roland GAIA. Combined with Scott’s spooky air, it came over like MORCHEEBA doing Dylan.

It was an enjoyable debut performance from AFTERHERE with Scott particularly impressing. Gregory had said he was particularly nervous in his new role as a live musician, but he needn’t have worried. Both he and Scott just need to get a bit more confident within their role reversals and everything else will nicely fall into place.


With thanks to Sacha Taylor-Cox at Hush PR

‘Addict’ is released by Manners McDade in CD and digital formats

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http://www.mannersmcdade.co.uk/composer/glenn-gregory-berenice-scott/


Text by Chi Ming Lai
Photos by Chi Ming Lai and Richard Price
8th October 2018

AFTERHERE Interview

AFTERHERE is the brand new project of HEAVEN 17 front man Glenn Gregory and live keyboardist Berenice Scott.

Glenn Gregory along with band mates Martyn Ware and Ian Craig Marsh scored a number of hits including ‘Temptation’, ‘Come Live With Me’, ‘Crushed By The Wheels Of Industry’, ‘Sunset Now’ and ‘This Is Mine’ as HEAVEN 17. Berenice Scott joined their live set-up in 2011 while releasing her most recent solo album ‘Polarity’ in 2014.

As well as HEAVEN 17, the pair have also been part of HOLY HOLY, the supergroup led by Spiders drummer Woody Woodmansey and producer Tony Visconti who perform the songs of David Bowie from the period between 1969 to 1973 at concerts around the world. As AFTERHERE, Berenice Scott and Glenn Gregory got their first commission for the soundtrack of the ITV drama ‘Liar’. With their debut album ‘Addict’ due for release later this month, music from it will feature in another ITV drama ‘Vanity Fair’ due for broadcast in September 2018.

Berenice Scott kindly chatted about the comings and goings of AFTERHERE and more…

You’ve been working live with HEAVEN 17 since 2011, so how did AFTERHERE happen?

Glenn and I started chatting about working together on something a couple of years into my playing with HEAVEN 17. We didn’t really have a firm idea of what that might be, we just kind of started conceptualising things… Glenn would occasionally ping ideas my way, things he was working on for his other film / TV composing projects, or new H17 tracks, things like that.

But it wasn’t until we were touring together with HOLY HOLY that we began to formulate AFTERHERE and what that entity might be. In fact, I remember standing in the corridor of a rehearsal studio in London called The Joint, guitars blaring out David Bowie and both of us deciding on the name. So I guess that’s the moment that it happened!

You began with providing the soundtrack of the TV drama ‘Liar’? How did you find that experience of putting music to moving pictures?

Absolute joy from start to finish. I’d witnessed Glenn at work scoring for a TV film before we started working together and it was enthralling to see the process and also the choices Glenn would use and why he would do particular things in places to aid the pace, mood and story. Since studying piano classically from a young age I’ve always written piano compositions, so when Glenn and I were pitching for ‘Liar’ it was fascinating to combine all these elements. Particularly with a heavy subject content such as ‘Liar’ it was moving to be supporting the storyline whilst retaining that subtlety that’s needed for scoring. With pop music, it’s out and out emotion isn’t it! Glenn and I love building the sometimes long tension and release that’s involved with film composing.

Conceptually, how do you see AFTERHERE differing from your own solo work?

I think I’d say that I find the initial approach to writing very similar; I still try to access the same creative flow and emotion, but that very quickly becomes a joint project, with both our wells of taste and experiences being pooled together. Because we have a very similar work ethic it is a pretty seamless transition from the singer / songwriter world I’ve inhabited to the more cinematic, electro concept we visualise as being ‘us’.

What particular artist influences were each of you bringing to the table?

As the album started taking shape we both started to naturally pick out and identify various influences… Glenn being part of one of the most innovative electronic bands calls to mind elements of KRAFTWERK and of course HEAVEN 17. We both love classic, brilliant songwriting such as the HALL & OATES catalogue and one of my favourite singers is Karen Carpenter, and then we kind of end up meeting somewhere in the middle with a shared love of DAFT PUNK. When we’re asked about what our tracks sound like I think we both agree that those could be our references.

What is the creative dynamic of AFTERHERE with Glenn, was it decided quite early on that you would be lead vocalist?

There’s never a moment before we start writing a song that we decide on who will sing. In fact strangely we just start an idea and write as if we both could sing it, almost as if we might be writing for another singer because it’s the song and story that is most important to us. It’s only when its fully taken shape that the song settles on either one of us. It’s invariably a case of “you do it” – “No you do it!” That kind of thing for a while before we agree on who has to stand up and leave the comfy studio chairs to sing.

But you do duet with Glenn on ‘Dark Star’…

When I get to the studio in the mornings, Glenn will usually have been in a couple of hours before me, brushing up on yesterday’s session, having a fresh listen etc. Often I get there and he’ll play me what he’s been up to and I’m always like “Yes that’s f****** brilliant!!” Well, on one of those mornings he played me ‘Dark Star’ with his vocals and I was blown away. It had to be a duet. The lyrics suddenly made sense and gradually the ending vocal arrangement developed and became a much bigger thing too in the process.

You’ve played around with a few subtle vocal processing techniques on the album, so when do you decide it’s appropriate to use in a recording?

I don’t know really, it shifts and changes for me every day. Some days I’ll wake up and just sing with a morning growly voice and not give a sh*t. ‘Blackout’ was one of those. And then sometimes I’m searching for a precision and particular sound that probably doesn’t exist, but I’m still going to die trying and also test Glenn’s patience in the process ha! It’s all just a choice isn’t it?

What are your views about how it is used in modern mainstream pop?

As long as you know you’re happy to sit down in a room with a piano or guitar and just sing without a mic, effects etc, then I’d say just knock yourself out in the studio – experiment away. Even if you arrive back at a place without any effects. Glenn’s voice for example requires nothing at all! You could leave a channel completely naked with his voice and still have clarity, volume and presence. I’m all for that, I also love creating an almost ethereal atmosphere, but it’s a fine balance.

‘Blackout’ could be described as “dubstep soul”?

‘Blackout’ started with an early morning after a late night voice, it was all about the feel of the vocal.

I played it to Glenn who loved it immediately, the only danger was would we be able to find that voice again when we finally wrote the finished lyrics!

Glenn did some beautiful work on the backing track, in fact it was ready for a vocal for about 4 weeks, all we had to do was wait for the right time to do it.

We had planned to do it after getting back really late from a gig one night – I stayed over at Glenn’s house with the intention that we both got up at 6AM to go straight into the studio to get the same husky vocal from the guide, but of course that didn’t happen! Waking up late and Starbucks got in the way of that. It was about a week later when I finally did the vocal and thankfully managed to match the vocal from the rough.

And if it’s Dubstep Soul that we created, I’m very happy that we did.

HEAVEN 17 lyrics are often reflecting socio-political concerns, has this been the case with AFTERHERE or have they been much more personal?

It’s more personal, well, universal and personal I’d say, all the songs on the album are emotional and connected both musically and lyrically.

Was the Kim Wilde track ‘Without Your Love’ which you and Glenn did with Gary Barlow for the ‘Fly’ soundtrack souvenir from 2016 originally pencilled in for AFTERHERE?

Well spotted! In a roundabout way it was sort of pencilled in… we actually had a song that Glenn sang, I forget the title now, anyway Gary Barlow happened to hear it as he was in contact with Glenn for a different track for the soundtrack, and somehow we all started working on that original piece to eventually make ‘Without Your Love’. Kim felt like the perfect choice, so Glenn gave her a call and that was that.

So what’s the title track album opener ‘Addict’ all about?

‘Addict’ is all about emotion and emotional involvement, exploration of relationships, it’s about discovering depths, nuance and desire. Sometimes leaving something or someone behind is the only way to discover that you need it, and maybe that you shouldn’t need it! It’s about connection beyond the everyday and the heartache or joy involved in that.

The wonderful ‘Breaking Rules’ is a surprise and appears to have you exploring your inner GOLDFRAPP?

That’s really great to hear, thank you! We always wanted to have a driving track on the album that you could hopefully move your feet to, party to… possibly get in a little trouble! I don’t know, we’re both fans of classic club tracks and I guess as the song is set in a club-type setting it was always going to push towards having that feel.

You’ve done a trip-hop styled cover of Bob Dylan’s ‘All Along The Watchtower’, how did that come together? The song’s been reinterpreted by many people in the past, which version is your own favourite?

Glenn and I were working closely with the director James Strong when we were composing for ‘Liar’, and as he started filming for the new ITV blockbuster ‘Vanity Fair’, he came to us to bat ideas around for a possible theme for the show. He knew he wanted it to be slightly dark in tone, but also to have the lyrical relevance needed for introducing the show each episode.

We all circled around ‘Watchtower’ and let that idea percolate for a bit whilst James continued filming and we were recording our album. At some point it just popped up and sprung itself into shape in the studio as the edits of the opening titles started being sent over to us along with visuals and ideas from James.

In terms of my favourite version I would have to say Jimi Hendrix’s, it’s the version I know most well and I’m sure I’m not alone in that!

Was there any new interesting bits of kit that you found a revelation to work with recording this album, either hardware or software?

Glenn! Haha! No but seriously, when I was laying down vocals something felt very different to any other times I’ve recorded in studios, whether alone with myself engineering or with other artists and producers. We sort of found a zone, I can’t really explain it other than a total trust just being there which allows you that kind of creative freedom.

Equally if something isn’t working it’s fantastic to have that trust so you can set aside ego and move on and try different things.

Are there any plans to take AFTERHERE out live at all?

Yes definitely!


ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK gives its warmest thanks to Berenice Scott

The ‘Addict’ album is released on 31st August 2018 via Manners McDade

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http://www.mannersmcdade.co.uk/composer/glenn-gregory-berenice-scott/


Text and Interview by Chi Ming Lai
4th August 2018, updated 31st August 2018

BACK TO THE PHUTURE: QUESTION MARK at The Union Club

The Union Club in Soho was the location of ‘Question Mark’, a panel discussion hosted by Wall Of Sound and Back To the Phuture’s Mark Jones.

The four guests gathered for the fascinating and extremely good humoured chat about their experiences in the music business were OMD’s Paul Humphreys, HEAVEN 17’s Glenn Gregory, Steve Norman from SPANDAU BALLET and T’PAU vocalist Carol Decker.

A series that has been going for several years, Mark Jones announced this was to be the last free session to which Carol Decker amusingly quipped “Will I have to pay to talk about myself?”

To begin proceedings, Jones asked the quartet about their first record purchases; Carol Decker remembered it was Michael Jackson’s first solo album while for Paul Humphreys, it was ‘Make Me Smile (Come Up & See Me)’ by Steve Harley and Glenn Gregory had ‘Can The Can’ by Suzi Quatro. However, both Humphreys and Gregory agreed that the turning point for them was hearing ‘Autobahn’ by KRAFTWERK in 1975.

When asked about their first instruments, Humphreys confessed that as an “electronics geek”, he built his own sound making device because he initially could not afford to buy a synth. Gregory had an acoustic guitar which he promptly broke while Decker admitted that although she knew her chords and notes, she couldn’t really play the piano very well.

But it was Norman that had the most impressive CV; starting as a drummer before moving to guitar having been influenced listening to Hank Marvin, he then recorded the sax solo on ‘True’ just six months after first taking lessons. All four guests and the host also discussed their adventures in the murky world of synthesizers. When Jones told of how his mother bought him a Yamaha CS01 from the Grattans catalogue, Norman recalled how SPANDAU BALLET used a Yamaha CS10 on ‘To Cut A Long Story Short’ during the Islington quintet’s initial dalliances in synthpop.

Perhaps surprisingly, the more AOR inclined T’PAU did their demos using a synth and its built-in sequencer with Decker telling how she and writing partner Ron Rogers had written their breakthrough hit ‘Heart & Soul’ entirely around a bass synth sequence which ended up in the final mix.

Of course, Humphreys’ and Gregory’s histories with OMD and HEAVEN 17 respectively are well documented. But both found they had to constantly defend their art against those who didn’t consider the use of synthesizers as “real music”.

When questions were opened out to the audience, ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK took the opportunity to remind the pair that the Musicians Union tabled a motion in May 1982 to ban synthesizers from recording and live performance. Having already shared how in the pursuit of a more electronic dominated sound, his first serious band THE ID shrunk from eight members to two in order become OMD, Humphreys gleefully told the story of how the MU kept giving him and Andy McCluskey a hard time over using a tape recorder so mischievously, the Wirral duo “put ‘Keep Music Live’ stickers on the tape reels!”.

Meanwhile when HEAVEN 17 performed on ‘Top Of the Pops’ for the first time in 1981 with ‘Play To Win’, Gregory told of how the heavily unionised show, where MU membership was compulsory, refused to let Martyn Ware and Ian Craig Marsh perform behind synths, insisting that they used a guitar and glockenspiel instead!!

But remembering how T’PAU had used a Fairlight for their orchestral arrangements, Decker expressed that “it did prick my conscience” that she might be putting musicians out of work, with the technology having advanced to such a degree that for the untrained ear, it was difficult to tell the difference. Steve Norman also had a vivid technology nightmare when while using Yamaha WX7 MIDI wind controller connected to a DX7 live, it suddenly changed settings in the middle of a moody solo under the heat of stage lights!

When asked about new music, Gregory admitted he listened to very little. However, recollecting his own experience of how GARY NUMAN looked after OMD when the young duo opened for the electronic pioneer in 1979, Humphreys said OMD tried to help young bands where possible with no buy-on fee for support slots, citing the much-missed pop noir combo MIRRORS as one of the best acts in recent years.

This drew the discussion onto how safe and unadventurous the major record labels had become in recent years with their lack of vision towards artist development, in their quest to protect their dwindling revenue streams.

On the subject of music formats, Humphreys said he still very much believed in the artistic statement of the album and how you could not skip tracks on vinyl, so the less immediate tracks had to be absorbed and accepted in order for the work to grow. Meanwhile, Norman felt the EP was the platform of the future, as a new artist could offer less but more frequently, in order to engage an audience.

While Humphreys still embraced vinyl and CD, he confirmed he was very much against using Spotify, not just due of the poor royalty rates paid to artists but as he also revealed, the major record companies hold shares in the Swedish based concern… so no conflicts of interest there!

Meanwhile Decker loved the convenience of listening to music digitally while expressing a slight, and not unshared, bemusement at the vinyl revival.

To end the evening, Mark Jones amusingly challenged his guests to sing a song without accompaniment. Carol Decker was first up, belting out ‘Little China Girl In Your Hand’, an improvised mash-up of her own hit tune and the Iggy / Bowie classic.

Not known as a vocalist, Steve Norman gamely launched into a rendition of ‘Gold’ to enthusiastic cheers while initially reluctant, Paul Humphreys sang ‘Enola Gay’ after being goaded by Jones, with some audience assistance. Finishing the impromptu sing-song, Glenn Gregory gave a timely and relevant acapella version of ‘(We Don’t Need) This Fascist Groove Thang’.

It was a fabulously entertaining two hours with Carol Decker perhaps stealing the show from the boys with a salt of the earth persona that was akin to your favourite auntie who enjoys a tipple or two at Christmas, like a cross between Julie Waters and Tracey Ullman.

Providing amusing and engaging group conversation that was also educational, the fact that all four guests continue to have successful careers today is testament to their longevity and cultural impact during a more open and therefore competitive musical era.

People are still interested in this music not because of “nostalgia” as one member of the audience suggested, but because of its quality, inventiveness and authenticity.

Now, that really doesn’t happen that much these days… and that’s why people go Back To The Phuture 😉


ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK gives its sincerest thanks to Mark Jones

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Text and Photos by Chi Ming Lai
29th June 2017

A Beginner’s Guide To CLAUDIA BRÜCKEN

Photo by Patrick Lichfield

With her distinctive ice maiden delivery, Claudia Brücken is the undoubted queen of cinematic avant pop.

She first came to prominence with PROPAGANDA and the Trevor Horn produced film noir drama of ‘Dr Mabuse’. Together with Susanne Freytag, Michael Mertens and Ralf Dörper, the Düsseldorf based quartet released their acclaimed album ‘A Secret Wish’ on ZTT in 1985. But despite the album being a favourite of musical figures such as Quincy Jones, Martin Gore, John Taylor and Jim Kerr, PROPAGANDA split following business and creative tensions as a result of their deal with ZTT.

Remaining with ZTT, Brücken formed ACT with early electronic pioneer Thomas Leer and released an album ‘Laughter Tears & Rage’ in 1988 which featured an array of lush synthetic dynamics glossed with a touch of starlet glamour. Not one to rest on her laurels, her first solo album ‘Love: & A Million Other Things’ came in 1991 on Island Records before she took a career break.

There was a brief reunion of PROPAGANDA in 1998 with ‘Ignorance’, ‘No Return’, ‘To The Future’ and ‘Turn To The Sun’ among the songs demoed. Although a video for ‘No Return’ was produced, the title proved poignant so when that came to nought, Brücken spent much of the new millennium’s first decade working and touring with OMD’s Paul Humphreys in ONETWO, supporting ERASURE and THE HUMAN LEAGUE along the way.

Since then, she has released two further solo albums and more recently been spotted in the studio with Susanne Freytag and Stephen J Lipson, while a new collaborative project with Jerome Froese is also in progress.

Although her catalogue is wide and varied, Claudia Brücken is perhaps still very much regarded as a cult figure on the music scene. In 2011, she celebrated her career with a special show at The Scala in London with various friends and collaborators, all captured on the live DVD ‘This Happened’.

Certainly, she deserves greater recognition so with a restriction of one track per release of a very impressive collaborative portfolio, here is a 20 track Beginner’s Guide to her work…


TOPOLINOS Mustafa (1982)

TOPOLINOSBrücken and Freytag first met at Die Ratinger Straße; “There was this interaction between art and music happening and everyone kind of knew one another” she said. Together they formed TOPOLINOS, literally translated as ‘The Mickey Mouses’! Using a rhythm unit, electric organ lines and Middle Eastern flavoured vocal phrasing, ‘Mustafa’ appeared on ‘Partysnäks’, the soundtrack to ‘Die Tanzbeinsammler’.

Available on the compilation album Electri_City 2 (V/A) via Grönland Records


PROPAGANDA p: Machinery (1985)

Propaganda ‎– pMachineryAt the suggestion of Freytag, Brücken was recruited into PROPAGANDA and they were marketed as “ABBA in Hell”! ‘p: Machinery’ captured their Teutonic edge and the charm of state-of-the-art technology. Produced by Stephen J Lipson, the song also had an unexpected contributor as Brücken recalled: “It was amazing when David Sylvian came in. On ‘p: Machinery there is this line he wrote on a little keyboard…”

Available on the PROPAGANDA album ‘A Secret Wish’ via Union Square


GLENN GREGORY & CLAUDIA BRÜCKEN When Your Heart Runs Out Of Time (1985)

Glenn+Claudia When Your HeartBrücken and the HEAVEN 17 vocalist met during the video shoot for ‘Dr Mabuse’ as Gregory’s then-wife did the make-up. Written by Will Jennings, best known for ‘My Heart Will Go On’ from ‘Titanic’ and ‘Up Where We Belong’ from ‘An Officer & A Gentleman’, ‘When Your Heart Runs Out of Time’ was recorded for the film ‘Insignificance’ and produced by Midge Ure under the pseudonym of Otto Flake Junior.

Available on the compilation album ‘The Art Of The 12 Inch’ (V/A) via Union Square


ACT Absolutely Immune (1988)

ACT Absolutely ImmuneAfter PROPAGANDA fragmented, Brücken formed ACT with Thomas Leer in 1987. Working again with Stephen J Lipson, there came a more playful, decadent glamour with some political flirtations. ‘Absolutely Immune’ was a commentary on the “I’m alright Jack” selfishness of the nation. The sentiment lost unfortunately on a British public still drowned in blue emotion…

Available on the ACT album ‘Love & Hate’ via Union Square


JIMMY SOMERVILLE Run From Love (1990)

jimmy_somerville-the_singles_collection_1984-1990The acclaim and respect that ‘A Secret Wish’ attained led to Brücken being offered many opportunities to collaborate. One of the first came from Jimmy Somerville. ‘Run From Love’ was a lesser known BRONSKI BEAT number reworked in a more house fashion by S’EXPRESS producer Pascal Gabriel for the diminutive Glaswegian’s greatest hits collection and Ms Brücken provided backing vocals in the chorus.

Available on the JIMMY SOMMERVILLE album ‘The Singles Collection 1984/1990’ via London Records


CLAUDIA BRÜCKEN Absolut[e] (1991)

Claudia Brucken Absolut(E)Brücken signed a deal with Island Records for her debut solo album produced by Pascal Gabriel. ‘Absolut[e]’ was very much dominated by Gabriel’s dancefloor instincts. But all was not well within. “The MD from Island suddenly left and all the people who worked on my album left as well” she remembered, “A new guy came in and already I could sense what would happen, so Pascal and I decided to get really experimental”.

Available on the CLAUDIA BRÜCKEN album ‘Love: & A Million Other Things’ via Cherry Red Records


CHROME SEDUCTION Light The Way (1993)

Claudia+SusanneBrücken took a career break to bring up her daughter Maddy, emerging only occasionally to record the odd guest vocal. ‘Light The Way’ with CHROME SEDUCTION was a percussively frantic club number that also saw a reunion with former partner-in-crime Susanne Freytag. The project of Magnus Fiennes, brother of actors Joseph and Ralph, it was independently released by Mother Alpha Delta.

Available on the CLAUDIA BRÜCKEN album ‘ComBined’ via Union Square


THE BRAIN I’ll Find A Way (1996)

THE BRAIN I'll Find A WayThe project of Düsseldorf based DJ Dietmar Andreas Maier, ‘I’ll Find A Way’ was typical of the frantically paced Euro-Trance of the period. Co-written with Michael Mertens, the seed of a PROPAGANDA reunion began with a number of songs demoed but Brücken later announced: “The reunion was worth a try, but did not work out.”

Available on THE BRAIN single ‘I’ll Find A Way’ via BMG


OCEANHEAD Eyemotion (1997)

OCEANHEAD EyemotionContinuing to contribute the occasional guest vocal, ‘Eyemotion’ was a co-write with John Etkin-Bell which coupled a shuffling drum loop with some beautifully chilled out atmospheres. Brücken’s breathy whispers and a muted synthetic brass motif à la PET SHOP BOYS provided the colourful sonics on an elegant piece of downtempo electronica.

Available on the OCEANHEAD single ‘Eyemotion’ via Land Speed Records


CLAUDIA BRÜCKEN & PAUL RUTHERFORD This Is Not America (2000 – not released until 2011)

Joining Paul Humphreys on his solo tour of the US, one of the first recorded fruits of their partnership was a cover of ‘This Is Not America’ featuring a duet with FRANKIE GOES TO HOLLYWOOD’s Paul Rutherford  A beautifully crafted synthesized tribute to David Bowie & Pat Metheny, it had been intended for a film soundtrack but shelved.

Available on the CLAUDIA BRÜCKEN album ‘ComBined’ via Union Square


APOPTYGMA BERZERK Unicorn – Duet Version (2002)

APOPTYGMA BERZERK HarmonizerA collaboration with Norway’s cult electronic body merchants APOPTYGMA BERZERK, Brücken returned to the more Teutonic overtones that had been evident in PROPAGANDA. In an electronic rework of the heavier guitar focussed original, the combo provided a suitably aggressive but accessible backing track for her to duet with frontman Stephan Groth on ‘Unicorn’.

Available on the APOPTYGMA BERZERK album ‘Harmonizer’ via WEA


ONETWO Cloud 9ine (2004)

ONETWO ItemBrücken formalised her musical partnership with Paul Humphreys and together they named themselves ONETWO. They dusted off a track that had been demoed during the aborted PROPAGANDA reunion. The song in question was ‘Cloud 9ine’, a co-write with Martin Gore which also featured the guitar of DEPECHE MODE’s main songwriter.

Available on the ONETWO EP ‘Item’ via https://theremusic.bandcamp.com/


ANDY BELL with CLAUDIA BRÜCKEN Delicious (2005)

ANDY BELL Electric BlueBrücken joined ERASURE’s Andy Bell to sing on two tracks for his debut solo album ‘Electric Blue’. More club oriented than ERASURE, the long player was produced by THE MANHATTAN CLIQUE who were also part of the ONETWO live band. The call-and-response Hi-NRG stomp of ‘Delicious’ saw Brücken in her most playful mood since ACT despite the bittersweet reflective lyrical nature of the song.

Available on the ANDY BELL album ‘Electric Blue’ via Sanctuary Records


CLAUDIA BRÜCKEN & ANDREW POPPY Libertango (2005)

ANOTHER LANGUAGEBrücken teamed up with former ZTT label mate Andrew Poppy to record a number of stripped back cover versions for her first long form release since 1991. The songs came from bands such as RADIOHEAD and ASSOCIATES, as well as divas like Marianne Faithfull and Kate Bush. One highlight was a suitably dramatic take on ‘Libertango’, better known as ‘I’ve Seen That Face Before’ made famous by Grace Jones.

Available on the CLAUDIA BRÜCKEN & ANDREW POPPY album ‘Another Language’ via http://theremusic.bandcamp.com/


ONETWO Anonymous (2007)

Humphreys and Brücken finally released an album as ONETWO in 2007 and from it was ‘Anonymous’, a song that began life as a demo from the aborted PROPAGANDA reunion co-written with Andy McCluskey. The pretty ringing melodies and elegiac atmospheres were reminiscent of OMD. The collaboration had been unusual as at the time of conception as Humphreys had not yet rejoined his old band.

Available on the ONETWO album ‘Instead’ via https://theremusic.bandcamp.com/


BLANK & JONES Don’t Stop (2008)

BLANK & JONES The Logic of PleasureIn between the aborted PROPAGANDA reunion and ONETWO, Ms Brücken guested with the popular German dance duo on ‘Unknown Treasure’, a most gorgeously shuffled electrobeat ballad. While ‘Unknown Treasure’ was in Brücken’s words, “a real collaboration”, “’Don’t Stop’ was in reverse, they gave me all the music and then I did the words and sent it back to them”.

Available on the BLANK & JONES album ‘The Logic Of Pleasure’ via Soundcolours


CLAUDIA BRÜCKEN & THE REAL TUESDAY WELD The Things I Love (2011)

=LA NoireRockstar Games wanted a German singer for a new game called ‘LA Noire’ soundtracked by THE REAL TUESDAY WELD’s Stephen Coates who in a jazzy cabaret-style music with subtle electronica dubbed Antique Beat. “I thought: why not?” said Brücken, “I found it a really good challenge doing something I hadn’t done before”. ‘The Things I Love’ was the alluring highlight of three songs recorded.

Available on the soundtrack album ‘L.A. Noire’ (V/A) via Rockstar Games


CLAUDIA BRÜCKEN One Summer Dream (2012)

Claudia Brucken One Summer DreamThe B-side to ELECTRIC LIGHT ORCHESTRA’s ‘Mr Blue Sky’, ‘One Summer Dream’ was the first song to emerge from Brücken’s reinterpretations project with producer Stephen Hague which also included songs by Julee Cruise and David Bowie. It built to a dreamy John Barry influenced ‘Felt Mountain’-era GOLDFRAPP string arrangement.

Available on the CLAUDIA BRÜCKEN album ‘The Lost Are Found’ via There (there)


OMD Kissing The Machine (2013)

OMD-English-ElectricAlthough this co-write by Andy McCluskey and Karl Bartos first appeared in 1993 on the ELEKTRIC MUSIC album ‘Esperanto’, Paul Humphreys completely reworked ‘Kissing The Machine’ from scratch for OMD. “Paul had the idea of asking Claudia to do the vocal in the middle eight” remembered McCluskey… the result was electronic magic.

Available on the OMD album ‘English Electric’ via BMG


CLAUDIA BRÜCKEN Time To Make Changes (2014)

CLAUDIA BRUCKEN Where ElseThe biggest surprise musically on Brücken’s third solo album was her adoption of the acoustic guitar. Working with producer John Owen Williams, the songs dealt with “emotion, beginnings, endings, past life and future hopes”. Like ABBA meeting THE SMITHS in a lush organic backdrop, ‘Time To Make Changes’ very much reflected her personal mindset following the end of her relationship with Paul Humphreys.

Available on the CLAUDIA BRÜCKEN album ‘Where Else…’ via Cherry Red Records


For further information on the upcoming projects of Claudia Brücken, please visit her official website and Facebook page

http://www.claudiabrucken.co.uk

https://www.facebook.com/ClaudiaBruckenMusic

https://twitter.com/ClaudiaBrucken1

https://www.instagram.com/claudiabrucken/


Text by Chi Ming Lai
30th July 2016

Fly – Songs Inspired By The Film Eddie The Eagle

‘Eddie The Eagle’ is a biopic by ‘X-Men: First Class’ director Matthew Vaughn about Eddie Edwards, who represented Team GB in ski-jumping at the 1988 Winter Olympics in Calgary.

It was the same Olympics which inspired the Disney film ‘Cool Runnings’ about Jamaica’s first bobsleigh team entry!

Based on true events, the film stars Taron Egerton as Eddie Edwards and Hugh Jackman as Edwards’ fictional trainer.

Whereas ‘Cool Runnings’ had artists performing cover versions for the soundtrack, ‘Fly – Songs Inspired by the film Eddie The Eagle’ differs in having a collection of original songs curated by Gary Barlow, each recorded by British artists who are now usually seen frequenting retrospective events such as Rewind, Here & Now and Let’s Rock.

So, a concept album based around the legend of a bespectacled plasterer, featuring contributions from members of FRANKIE GOES TO HOLLYWOOD, SOFT CELL, SPANDAU BALLET, ULTRAVOX, ERASURE and OMD, in collaboration with a member of TAKE THAT? On paper, this is a terrible idea!

But Gary Barlow has long been an admirer of ULTRAVOX in particular; his 2010 interpolation of ‘Vienna’ for the track ‘Eight Letters’ on TAKE THAT’s Stuart Price produced album ‘Progress’ resulted in the rather unusual writing credit of Barlow / Donald / Orange / Owen / Williams / Ure / Cross / Cann / Currie. The TAKE THAT track ‘Love Love’ for the film ‘X-Men: First Class’ also indicated Barlow’s interest in electro forms.

The era in which ‘Eddie The Eagle’ reigned has been symbolised by both aspiration and fighting against the odds, and that comes across in the song titles.

As a side note, it is interesting how with the political climate that existed during this time, this project has gathered musicians whose politics cover the whole colour spectrum, from the Jeremy Corbyn supporting Martyn Ware to the self-confessed Tory boy Tony Hadley. While some say politics should be kept separate from music, many would argue music is an artistic reflection of the incumbent environment. So what of the music?

Holly Johnson’s ‘Ascension’ is typically epic, recalling a steadily building uptempo reboot of ‘The Power Of Love’, while ‘Out Of The Sky’ sees Marc Almond tackling his most overtly electro number for many years. Having previously shared a stage with Gary Barlow and earned some extra royalties too, Midge Ure’s ‘Touching Hearts & Skies’ stands quite ably within the concept as a tune reminiscent of ULTRAVOX’s classic synth rock.

Having found success outside of OMD with the first incarnation of ATOMIC KITTEN including a No1 in ‘Whole Again’, Andy McCluskey has a proven pedigree in mainstream pop spheres. He does a good job in co-writing with Barlow on ‘Thrill Me’, which is sung by the film’s two stars.

Taron Egerton won ‘The Stephen Sondheim Society Student Performer of the Year’ while at RADA and Hugh Jackman of course appeared in the musical epic ‘Les Misérables’; so their combined capabilities in the vocal department stop the song from becoming an ironic novelty. According to McCluskey, Egerton and Jackman’s vocals were recorded without his knowledge! Unsurprisingly ‘Thrill Me’ does sound like ‘Sugar Tax’ era OMD, crossed with imperial ‘Everything Changes’ phase TAKE THAT. Who’d have thunk it eh?

Nik Kershaw is another with a songwriting career outside of his own, penning ‘The One & Only’ for Chesney Hawkes back in 1991; ‘The Sky’s The Limit’ is an archetypical MTV friendly ballad that could have been made back then, with hints of A-HA and SAVAGE GARDEN.

One of the songs not part of the original ‘Fly’ concept is HEAVEN 17’s ‘Pray’; previously released by Messrs Ware and Gregory in 2014, it’s a terrific hybrid of the early avant phase of THE HUMAN LEAGUE and ‘Young Americans’ era Bowie. This slice of prime electronic soul is a stand-out on the collection and proof that the Sheffield masters still have it.

But members of the HEAVEN 17 crew do contribute to the energetically synthy engine room of Kim Wilde’s ‘Without Your Love’. It’s an enjoyable homage to her earlier sound, co-written by Glenn Gregory and live H17 keyboardist Berenice Scott in collaboration with Barlow.

Tony Hadley does his overblown Foghorn party piece on ‘Moment’ and Spandau fans will be more than happy with the end result, others perhaps not so.

The often under rated Howard Jones delivers the enjoyable modern schaffel stomp of ‘Eagle Will Fly Again’, while the blue-eyed soul offerings from ABC and GO WEST will satisfy their existing fans. However, Paul Young appears to have lost his voice on the vintage widescreen AOR of ‘People Like You’. Meanwhile on the autotuned ‘Fly’, Andy Bell actually starts to sound more like Tony Hadley than Alison Moyet!

Like with the music from back in the day, some of it is brilliant, some of it is likeable and some of it you’d rather not hear again.

But that in an essence, is why music derived from this period still resonates today… it was about songs and melodies, not tuneless dance excursions or ultra-fast talking supposedly passing for vocals. ‘Fly – Songs Inspired By The Film Eddie The Eagle’ is an interesting curio as a “Where Are They Now?” snapshot. Whatever your tastes, there is a good reason why all of the artists featured on this album still have a career performing.


‘Fly – Songs Inspired by the film Eddie The Eagle’ is released as a CD and download by Universal Music Enterprises

http://www.foxmovies.com/movies/eddie-the-eagle

https://www.facebook.com/EddieTheEagleMovie/


Text by Chi Ming Lai
18th March 2016

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