Although best known for his work with Sally Shapiro, Swedish musician and producer Johan Agebjörn has always maintained a parallel solo umbrella for his various arctic ambient, piano, instrumental, dance and remix projects.
‘Southern Forest’ is his first solo album of new material from Johan Agebjörn since ‘Notes’ a decade ago. It is a collection of nature-themed electronic chill-out set in a glorious cinematic space with an immersive sense of escapism. Inspired by the deep forests of Sweden, the album features collaborations with ambient legend Dr Atmo, Cate Brooks of THE ADVISORY CIRCLE, German synthwave queen NINA and fellow Swedes Miranda Magdalena and Mikael Ögren.
Featuring honest vocal ad-libs from Miranda Magdalena, ‘Where Earth & Heaven Meet’ offers rich and warm tones over subtle midtempo dance beats that reflect the spirituality of the title. The covers of THE ORB’s ‘Little Fluffy Clouds’ is Agebjörn’s musical “thank you” for its 30 years companionship in his life with NINA’s reprise of the original Ricki Lee Jones monologue adding a dreamy alluring quality to the organic beatless interpretation of the track.
One can imagine the ambient house of ‘Their Shadows’ with Mikael Ögren being turned into a full blown dance excursion but its pulsing hypnotism suits the mood of ‘Southern Forest’ perfectly. Their other collaboration ‘Shorefront’ evokes sunsets and seas but avoids those beach music clichés often found in chill-out. ‘On The Ground’ with Miranda Magdalena has this jazzy feel with busy if unobtrusive pulsations while on ‘Dusk’, Agebjörn provides a gentle melodic lattice for Miranda Magdalena’s subtle high vocals melt into the soundscape.
With Dr Atmo in the building, ‘By Lake Ruidh’ is swathed in breezy atmospheres and keyboard melodics but the drifting moods of ‘Starwoven’ provide a harp-like hypnotism in a collaboration with English electronic musician Cate Brooks. ‘Scars’ strips things down to piano while the fittingly titled ‘Closure’ takes on a rainy synthy backdrop.
A wonderful Nordic sonic tonic, ‘Southern Forest’ is an aural relaxant brimming with Agebjörn’s melodic sensibilities exuding throughout. Despite being electronic, it is extraordinarily earthy downtempo accompaniment suitable for both perking up in the morning or unwinding at night.
Based in Lund, Swedish producer Johan Agebjörn studies psychology but makes music from time to time.
While involved in a variety of arctic ambient, piano, instrumental, dance and remix projects, he is best known for the Italo-inspired duo Sally Shapiro featuring an anonymous singer who has become known as “Sally”. Following the lead of Italo acts such as Valerie Dore and Katy Gray which were actually fronts for producers promoted under the names of fictional solo singers, Sally Shapiro would become worldwide cult favourites with their wispy melancholic synth swathed disco-friendly pop.
The journey began when Agebjörn demoed what would become ‘I’ll Be By Your Side’ and remembered a gathering in 2004 with everyone singing Christmas carols by the piano: “I asked a friend of mine whom I noticed had a sweet singing voice if she wanted to sing on it, and she gave it a shot. After hearing and mixing her recording, I felt ‘this is really something’ and posted it to various Italo disco and electro forums on the web. I quickly got a few offers to release it on 12” single and the Sally Shapiro project was born.”
Despite a publically announced retirement in 2016, Sally Shapiro has released 5 full-length albums with corresponding remix collections since 2006. In parallel, Johan Agebjörn has maintained solo career and worked with Samantha Fox, Ryan Paris, Fred Ventura, Tom Hooker, Lisa Barra and many more, along with fellow enigmatic duos such as ELECTRIC YOUTH and R. MISSING.
In 2025, there has already been a new Sally Shapiro long player ‘Ready To Live A Lie’ which proved to be the duo’s darkest yet, while coming in late September is a new nature-themed downtempo album from Johan Agebjörn called ‘Southern Forest’ which features Dr Atmo, Miranda Magdalena, Mikael Ögren, Cate Brooks and NINA.
Johan Agebjörn presented his personal stories and insights on 20 career highlights selected from his various musical projects over the years by ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK
SALLY SHAPIRO I’ll Be By Your Side (2006)
“I remember writing this track being in an inspirational mood after having listened to Valerie Dore ‘Get Closer’” said Johan Agebjörn of the breakthrough Sally Shapiro track, “The track opened a lot of opportunities for us and maybe more importantly, it made me think that I could maybe actually write pop songs”. It attracted the attention of the Austrian label Diskokaine who would go on to release the debut album ‘Disco Romance’.
Available on the SALLY SHAPIRO album ‘Disco Romance’ via Paper Bag Records
With the cult success of Sally Shapiro came remix commissions from all over the world for Agebjörn including this from a Spanish indie band: “This was one of the first remixes I made” he remembered, “I was amazed that someone would actually pay me money to remix something. I really liked the band and I was happy with the remix, I’ve played it quite often when I DJ-ed. Jaime of SOUVENIR later played the backing guitar on Sally Shapiro’s ‘What Can I Do’”.
Available on the SOUVENIR EP ‘Extras 64’ via Jabalina Música
JOHAN AGEBJÖRN featuring SALLY SHAPIRO Spacer Woman From Mars (2008)
Filled with vocoder, “This is one of the recordings from the ‘Disco Romance’ sessions but we didn’t think the track fitted on the album, leaning more towards spacesynth than Indiepop-Italo” recalled Agebjörn, “Actually, Sally refuses to sing any songs about space, this was the only exception, so we released it under my name as the primary artist. I sent it to Lo Recordings who loved it and included it on their ‘Milky Disco’ compilation”
“One of my favourite tracks from Sally’s second album, ‘My Guilty Pleasure’” said Agebjörn of this starry eyed dance number, “The shuffled arpeggiated bass was inspired by Skatebård’s ‘Vuelo’. My friend and frequent collaborator Roger Gunnarsson wrote the lyrics, they are actually about the memories from his dead grandmother. FM ATTACK later made a really beautiful remix out of it”.
ANORAAK Don’t Be Afraid featuring SALLY SHAPIRO (2010)
“Anoraak invited us to collaborate on a track from his debut album. My role here was to write the melody and the lyrics, I remember sitting at the library of Lund University writing it” said Agebjörn of this collaboration with the DJ from the French Valerie Collective, “Anoraak then re-made the backing track for his album version, but we later released the original version on Sally’s third album ‘Somewhere Else’ – so the version labelled ‘Alternative Version’ is actually the first version”.
JOHAN AGEBJÖRN Swimming Through The Blue Lagoon – Original Casio MT-52 Instrumental (2011)
“I got the idea for this track in a dream back in 2005” said Agebjörn, “The drums and the “electric guitar” are lead sound from a Casio MT-52 keyboard that I borrowed from Sally. To my joy, it was playlisted on some channel on Sirius XM radio and also included in the background of many TV programs around the world. We had also made a short version with some Sally vocals on it, as an opener to Sally’s second album”.
JOHAN AGEBJÖRN & ERCOLA featuring QUEEN OF HEARTS The Last Day Of Summer (2011)
“I asked Ercola to collaborate on a track after hearing his banger ‘Follow Me’ with Annie on vocals” said Agebjorn, “He sent me a loop that we developed into this instrumental. I asked QUEEN OF HEARTS if she wanted to sing on it, and she made a terrific job. Finally Ercola and I finished the mix in in Helsinki. This is one of very few tracks I’ve had playlisted on Swedish national radio P3”; QUEEN OF HEARTS would co-write the 2025 Sally Shapiro song ‘Hard To Love’.
Available on the JOHAN AGEBJÖRN album ’Casablanca Nights’ via Paper Bag Records
A track recorded with the acclaimed Canadian synth duo, “Sally and I asked ELECTRIC YOUTH if they wanted to collaborate on a track, since we think they are pop geniuses” recalled Agebjörn, “We sent them this instrumental and they came back with ‘Starman’. After recording Sally’s vocal, it was selected as one of the singles from Sally’s third album ‘Somewhere Else’. There’s also a cool Miami Nights 1984 remix of it”.
Available on the SALLY SHAPIRO album ‘Somewhere Else’ via Paper Bag Records
YOUNG GALAXY were a haunting dream pop duo from Montreal comprising who were label mates of Sally Shapiro at Paper Bag Records. Agebjörn reworked ‘In Fire’ from their fourth album ‘Ultramarine’ with a brooding gothic groove. “I met them once in Linköping, the city where I grew up and I DJ-ed before their live show” he recalled, “We made a remix swap with each other and I think this remix became quite dark and cool”.
Available on the YOUNG GALAXY album ‘Ultramarine’ via Paper Bag Records
ANNIE featuring BJARNE MELGAARD Swedish Kiss – Johan Agebjörn Remix Of Russian Kiss (2014)
Norwegian pop artist Annie is known for her Richard X produced hits ‘Chewing Gum’ and ‘Songs Remind Me Of You’ but one day, Agebjörn got an important call: “I’m a big Annie fan so I was really happy when she asked me to remix this pro-HBTQ rights, anti-Putin track. I turned it from what was kind of a monotonous acid house-inspired track produced by the genius Richard X to more of a chord-driven Italo disco track with lots of vocoder work.”
Available on the ANNIE featuring BJARNE MELGAARD single ‘Swedish Kiss’ via Totally
JOHAN AGEBJÖRN & LONEY DEAR The Leftovers – Mikael Ögren Remix (2015)
“Loney Dear is a skilled and likeable Swedish musician, whom I contacted for singing this song from my album ‘Notes’” said Agebjörn, “Paper Bag wanted to make a remix contest around it, and I encouraged everyone to turn in remixes of it. One remix came in under a pseudonym, I loved it and we decided it was the winner out of some 70-80 entries. It then turned out it was made by friend and soon-to-be frequent collaborator Mikael Ögren.”
Available on the JOHAN AGEBJÖRN & LONEY DEAR single ‘The Leftovers’ via Paper Bag Records
JOHAN AGEBJÖRN featuring TOM HOOKER Have You Ever Been In Love? (2018)
“I was asked by Swedish director Kristian Söderström to make some tracks with various legendary Italo disco singers for his movie ‘Videoman’, as one of the characters listened a lot to Italo disco” said Agebjörn of this notable soundtrack commission, “This is one of the results, with vocals by Tom Hooker, the voice behind Den Harrow. It was also included on a CD compilation on the legendary Italo disco label ZYX.”
Another track from ‘Videoman’, Kristian Söderström suggested that Agebjörn ask Samantha Fox or Sabrina to sing on ‘Hot Boy’: “I sent it to Samantha on her official web site and her manager replied that she wanted to sing on it! Samantha recorded the vocals in London and I later met her in Gothenburg when we recorded a music video to it with the ‘Videoman’ team, it was an unforgettable day”; the track recently got its first vinyl release on Keytar Records as 12″ picture disc.
Available on the SAMANTHA FOX single ‘Hot Boy’ via Fox 2000 / Keytar Records
JOHAN AGEBJÖRN featuring RYAN PARIS & SALLY SHAPIRO Forget About You (2020)
Agebjörn had produced a Ryan Paris vs Sally Shapiro duet called ‘Love On Ice’ for ‘Videoman’ and ‘Forget About You’ was its follow-up song: “It was fun to work on Ryan Paris on a few tracks, in return for the vocals on this track, Sally also recorded some backing vocals to Ryan’s track ‘Je Veux T’aimer Encore Une Fois’. Later, we turned ‘Forget About You’ into a Sally Shapiro solo track for the comeback album ‘Sad Cities’”.
JOHAN AGEBJÖRN & MIKAEL ÖGREN A Tribute To Florian Schneider (2020)
“Mikael thought we should make a tribute track, since we are both KRAFTWERK fans” remembered Agebjörn when hearing about the sad passing of Florian Schneider, “Mikael had a basic idea for the groove using the analog Toraiz AS-1 synth. We tried to make the track as close as possible to the KRAFTWERK sound between 1975 and 1981. The vocoder lyrics are about Florian’s sounds continuing to vibrate in the universe”.
PET SHOP BOYS The Man Who Has Everything – Johan Agebjörn & Mikael Ögren Re-edit (2020)
“I’m a huge PET SHOP BOYS fan and this track is one of my favourites from their “underground” album ‘Relentless’ included with the limited edition of ‘Very’” confirmed Agebjörn, “I was so thrilled when I found a copy of it in a record shop in the small city in Sweden where I grew up. I felt this track could benefit from a more modern sound and I asked Mikael if he wanted to join me on this re-edit. It’s an unofficial edit only with all proceeds going to UNHCR.”
“This was the first Sally Shapiro single in 5 years, our comeback after having announced that we ended the project, but then we changed our minds” said Agebjörn on Sally coming out of ‘retirement’, “It was also our first single on Italians Do It Better. Mikael Ögren co-produced the track, his most notable input is the beautiful pads from the Roland JD-800. This was my first attempt to make a ‘proper’ synthwave production, whatever that means.”
Available on the SALLY SHAPIRO album ‘Sad Cities’ via Italians Do It Better
“I really had fun working with Yota for our EP released last year, and this was the last track we recorded for it” said Agebjörn of this collaboration with the Paris-based Swede, “Basically it’s a track that was born because I was playing around with the Korg Polysix for the bass and arpeggio. Yota liked the instrumental and got some nice vocal ideas for it. The intro and ending is Yota originally singing in a lower key, pitched up in some weird 90s Eurodance way!”
“I worked several months on the groove of this track, it took a while but it had this very deep bass and hypnotic loop that I kept returning to” said Agebjörn, “Finally with an Italo disco beat, I felt it was worthy to present to some singer, and I thought it would suit the dark approach of R. MISSING whom I had worked with earlier mixing one of their tracks ‘Verónica Pass’. Sharon Shy really turned it into a great song, I’m really happy about it.”
JOHAN AGEBJÖRN featuring NINA Little Fluffy Clouds (2025)
Agebjörn paid a visit to Berlin to work with the Queen Of Synthwave: “THE ORB’s original has been a companion in my life for over 30 years, it never sounds too old. I was playing around with the harmonies without any serious intention to develop it into a finished track, much less having it be the lead single from my new ambient album. But with NINA‘s spoken word on it, the track became a quite dreamy and organic beatless interpretation of the track.”
Available on the JOHAN AGEBJÖRN album ‘Southern Forest’ via Constellation Tatsu
Since their first album ‘Disco Romance’ in 2006, vocalist Sally Shapiro and producer Johan Agebjörn have had their brand of Italo-tinged melancholic pop enjoyed by the music cognoscenti all over the world.
After two more albums ‘My Guilty Pleasure’ and ‘Somewhere Else’ as SALLY SHAPIRO, the duo retired and Agebjörn embarked on a variety of solo and collaborative work including with Samantha Fox, Ryan Paris, Yota and Mikael Ögren. Although Sally had made guest appearances on Agebjörn’s solo tracks, perhaps unexpectedly they signed to Italians Do It Better in 2021 and returned with an album ‘Sad Cities’ the following year; it was almost like they had never been away.
However, this new long player ‘Ready To Live A Lie’ is possibly the duo’s darkest yet. The dreamy moonshine optimism of first love on ‘Disco Romance’ has shifted towards a midlife narrative that encompasses struggles in long-term relationships, love triangles, boredom, resentment and loneliness. While the words have a bittersweet weariness, sonically the music remains supreme. As on ‘Sad Cities’, Italian Do It Better head honcho Johnny Jewel joins Agebjörn at the mixing desk in keeping with the label’s house aesthetic.
The album gets an energetic yet atmospheric start with ‘The Other Days’. But with syndrums and piano runs as well as a SALLY SHAPIRO twist, ‘Hard To Love’ co-written with one-time Agebjörn collaborator QUEEN OF HEARTS offers that breezy melancholic air of PET SHOP BOYS; and speaking of whom, the cover of ‘Rent’, which came out as a single in 2023, provides a first person account of its relationship dependency narrative with a Nordic wispiness.
‘Purple Colored Sky’ provided an effervescent pop statement but as Sally would be ‘Happier Somewhere Else’, this gets reflected in the latter’s paced back tone. The marvellous ‘Guarding Shell’ though explores post-relationship trust issues and drops in the same D-50 preset used on OMD’s ‘Big Town’ in the intro before hitting classic SALLY SHAPIRO mode.
With looser jazzier rhythms while planted firmly in disco, ‘Hospital’ offers something a bit different as its keyboard lines get caught in a wonderful spin while ‘Did You Call Tonight’ borrows a topline from RÖYKSOPP ‘Remind Me’ for some sparkling goodness and vocodered responses to the chorus call.
The Euro-house drive of ‘Oh Carrie’ bangs on the album’s home straight complete with ivory stabs, gently spoken verses and uplifting sung choruses before closing with two ballads. The love lament ‘He’s Not You’ is the synthier of the pair while ‘Rain’ goes the full piano room with suitably forlorn vocals before the appearance of choir samples, Rhodes and field recordings.
Johan Agebjörn said of the album’s darker demeanour “We live in the era of lies. We deceive ourselves, our partners, and those around us”, but despite the tales of deceit running throughout the album, ‘Ready To Live A Lie’ paradoxically comes as a rather uplifting listening experience in its relatable themes. As Sally put it “Perhaps, at times, we need these deceptions to get by. Maybe loneliness is somehow inescapable and we simply do our best to navigate life.”
ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK has always preferred a cover version over a remix any day of the week…
But if you are going to do a cover in an electronic fashion, then try to be original! Don’t be bleeding obvious, retreading a Numan track unless something fresh can be offered or recording a Depeche song weeks after it is released as some did with ‘Ghosts Again’… maybe pick an obscure country, folk or soul number and make it your own with an otherworldly synth-laden treatment…
A follow-up to the 25 CLASSIC SYNTH COVERS and 25 21ST CENTURY SYNTH COVERS 2000 to 2014 articles, this listing features recordings made since 2015 up to the present day. So here selected by ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK are ANOTHER 25 SYNTHY COVERS 2015 & BEYOND, with the list restricted to one song per artist moniker, presented in yearly and then alphabetical order …
MARSHEAUX Monument (2015)
The MARSHEAUX reworking of DEPECHE MODE’s second album ‘A Broken Frame’ shed new light on Martin Gore’s first long form adventure as songwriter and affirmed that ‘My Secret Garden’ and ‘The Sun & The Rainfall’ were just great songs. But ‘Monument’ was an example of a cover outstripping the original and given additional political resonance with the economic situation close to home that the Greek synth maidens found themselves living in at the time of its recording.
Available on the MARSHEAUX album ‘A Broken Frame’ via Undo Records
Needing to be heard to be believed, this rather inventive and charming cover of THE CURE’s ‘Close To Me’ by Belgium’s favourite passengers METROLAND utilised a selection of male and female computer voice generators to provide the lead vocal, in a move likely to upset the majority of real music purists. Meanwhile, the hidden melodies shone much more brightly than in the goth-laden original, thanks to its wonderful and clever electronic arrangement.
A song by mulleted Canadian rock musician Lawrence Gowan, ‘Moonlight Desires’ was first released by him in 1987 and featured Jon Anderson on backing vocals! Fellow Canadians PARALLELS fronted by Holly Dodson gave the hook-laden song a more nocturnal synthpop-oriented twist which wouldn’t have sounded out of place on the soundtrack a Brat Pack movie.
Available on the PARALLELS album ‘XII’ via Marigold Productions Ltd
Hannah Peel’s first release was ‘Rebox’, a covers EP using an antique music box as accompaniment. For her second instalment, she added analogue electronics to the musical palette with some original instrumentals accompanied the reworkings. ‘Heaven How Long’ was originally performed by EAST INDIA YOUTH, but Miss Peel’s version stripped down the arrangement to a music box and synth for a less frantic but more forlorn outcome.
Available on the HANNAH PEEL EP ‘Rebox2’ via My Own Pleasure
Manchester-based Ross Tregenza is an experienced hand having co-written ‘Diaries Of A Madman’ with Dave Formula and Steve Strange when he was a member of VISAGE II in 2007. He surprised electronic music audiences with a Spartan cover of ‘The Partisan’, a song made famous by Leonard Cohen. While some may despair at the very mention of the droll Canadian, his work has strong parallels with Gothic veined musical forms, especially with this harrowing tale of La Résistance.
Available on the TREGENZA album ‘Into The Void’ via Tregenza Music
One of DAILY PLANET’s main inspirations was cult UK synth trio WHITE DOOR. So when their chief synthesist Johan Baeckström was needing tracks to include on his ‘Like Before’ EP, the almost choir boy overtures of ‘Jerusalem’ was a natural choice for a cover version. Of course, this was not the first time Baeckström had mined the WHITE DOOR back catalogue as the more halcyon ‘School Days’ adorned the flip of his debut solo single ‘Come With Me’.
Available on the JOHAN BAECKSTRÖM EP ‘Like Before EP’ via Progress Productions
From the Cold War Night Life curated ‘Heresy: A Tribute To Rational Youth’, one of the highlights from the collection was PSYCHE’s take on ‘Ring The Bells’ from appropriately, RATIONAL YOUTH’s ‘Cold War Night Life’ debut. The clattering 808 beat and elegantly haunting sweeps combined with Darrin Huss’ mournful vocal provide an atmospheric reworking that betters the original and reflects the decades long kinship between RATIONAL YOUTH and PSYCHE.
Originally on the album ‘Heresy: A Tribute To Rational Youth’ (V/A) via Cold War Night Life, currently unavailable
The mysterious HEAVEN first came to wider attention with the release of the ‘Lonesome Town’ EP. Caked in reverb and virtually unrecognisable, the funereal paced title song cover of the Ricky Nelson ballad captured the fragility of the broken heart as conveyed by the forlorn vocals of Aja Emma. Closer scrutiny revealed that HEAVEN was another project helmed by the ubiquitous musician and producer Johnny Jewel, best known a member of CHROMATICS.
Available on the HEAVEN EP ‘Lonesome Town’ via Italians Do It Better
Moody electronic duo KALEIDA first came to wider attention opening for Róisín Murphy in 2015. Covers have always been part of Christina Wood and Cicely Goulder’s repertoire with ‘A Forest’ and ‘Take Me To The River’ being among them. Their sparse rendition of ‘99 Luftballons’ by Nena earned kudos for being very different and included in the soundtrack of the Cold War spy drama ‘Atomic Blonde’, hauntingly highlighting the nuclear apocalypse warning in the lyric.
What happens when you cross anthemic Scottish indie with cinematic Swedish synth? You get US, now known as UNIFY SEPARATE. A cover of a 2001 song with an acoustic but modern flavour by Swedish singer-songwriter Stakka Bo aka Bo Johan Renck, this was perfect for Andrew Montgomery of GENEVA and Leo Josefsson of LOWE to showcase their different musical sensibilities in a more electronic setting as their debut single.
The biggest surprise on the second IONNALEEalbum ‘Remember The Future’ came with the cover of ‘Mysteries Of Love’, the iconic Angelo Badalamenti ‘Blue Velvet’ song with lyrics by David Lynch, originally performed by Julee Cruise. Co-produced by RÖYSKOPP, Jonna Lee stole the moment with her angelic voice while big synth leads and widescreen atmospheres were reminiscent of Vangelis.
Unwittingly reflecting the Covid crisis, KID MOXIE soundtracked the film ‘Not To Be Unpleasant, But We Need to Have a Serious Talk’. The plot centred around a womanizer who finds out he is a carrier of an STD, lethal only to women! She said of ‘Big In Japan’: “It didn’t feel right to necessarily use drums because I did want to take a departure from the ALPHAVILLE original. There was already a strong rhythm element with the synth bass and it takes it to a different place by having a woman sing it.”
Available on the KID MOXIE album ‘The Covers’ via Minos EMI
NATION OF LANGUAGE front man Ian Devaney was in an alternative rock band THE STATIC JACKS, but his interest in synths was sparked by hearing OMD’s ‘Electricity’ in his father’s car for the first time in years. In NATION OF LANGUAGE, he combined his past and future interests into an excellent electronic cover of PIXIES’ ‘Gouge Away’ which managed to maintain the frustration, aggression and menace of the original within a new blippy machine driven setting.
More machine than metal, DIE ROBO SAPIENS is the more purely electronic sideline of Düsseldorf industrialists DIE KRUPPS. In honour of their home city which spawned KRAFTWERK, NEU! and DAF, they covered the less internationally well-known RHEINGOLD in tribute their late leader Bodo Staiger; Given the subject matter, his powerful DAF-influenced 1982 statement on toxic fandom ‘FanFanFanatisch’ was reworked into something where the body was strong.
Recorded for a SIOUXSIE & THE BANSHEES covers album, this superb take by Jorja Chalmers on ‘Rhapsody’ off their ninth album ‘Peepshow’, made use of an intriguing electronic warble within its stripped down arrangement; from its claustrophobic cocoon, Chalmers sounds trapped in an unsettling icy soundscape of synthetic strings and choirs. The album also included covers of THE DOORS ‘Riders On The Storm’ and Enya’s ‘Boadicea’.
Available on the JORJA CHALMERS album ‘Midnight Train’ via Italians Do it Better
Making her name in the duo SINK YA TEETH, Norwich-based Gemma Cullingford made her debut as a solo artist with the ‘Let Me Speak’ album. Utilising a minimal programmed backdrop, a stark spoken word reading of Bobby Gentry’s ‘Ode To Billie Joe’ proved to be a highlight. “I loved the melody, the fact that it was quite a happy sounding song but the lyrics seemed quite dark” she said, “Then I read the lyrics and saw just how dark they are, and I kinda jokingly said I’d do a cover of it!”
Available on the GEMMA CULLINGFORD album ‘Let Me Speak’ via Outré Disque
Italians Do it Better were named after a legend emblazoned on a T-shirt Madonna was wearing in the ‘Papa Don’t Preach’ video and would later release a tribute compilation featuring their roster of artists. Exiled from their homeland of Belarus, DLINA VOLNY alternated a detached deepness with an unexpected pop register on their take of ‘Hollywood’ that presented the song as a much harsher warning to those seeking stardom.
Available on the DLINA VOLNY album ‘Dazed’ via Italians Do it Better
PSY’AVIAH featuring MARI KATTMAN Monoculture (2022)
PSY’AVIAH is the electronic rock vehicle of Belgian Yves Schelpe and in a collaboration featuring Mari Kattman of HELIX on vocals, the B-side to their ‘Can We Make It Rhyme’ single was a cover of Monoculture’ which came from the first reunion of SOFT CELL in 2002. Her voice fitted perfectly to the heavier backdrop with the Marc Almond’s original commentary on the world’s cultural mediocrity as relevant as ever.
Available on the PSY’AVIAN featuring MARI KATTMAN maxi-single ‘Can We Make It Rhyme’ via Alfa Matrix
Not known for his vocal work as SCANNER, Robin Rimbaud recorded a covers EP of his late mother’s favourite songs as a tribute to her memory. Using vocoder and synths, his take on ‘Alone Again (Naturally)’, Gilbert O’Sullivan’s introspective hit song reflecting on loss and bereavement, was particularly poignant and perhaps unexpectedly given the robotic backdrop, emotional. The other songs featured were ‘Da Ya Think I’m Sexy?’ and ‘When I Need You’.
With a vampiric intro recalling David Bowie’s ‘Cat People’, DURAN DURAN’s take on ‘Bury A Friend’ was much more direct and propulsive compared to the minimal Billie Eilish original. Swathed in jagged synth and guitar sounds as well as Simon Le Bon’s histrionic vocals, it more than fitted in with the Halloween theme of the ‘Danse Macabre’ album which was primarily made up of cover versions and darker re-recordings of Duran faves.
Available on the DURAN DURAN album ‘Danse Macabre’ via BMG / Tape Modern
Always adept at doing covers having had hits with ‘Tainted Love’ and ‘What’, SOFT CELL presented a brilliant electro tribute to Poly Styrene with ‘The Day The World Turned Day-Glo’. Taking a musical leaf out of ‘Sex Dwarf’ with Dave Ball making his syndrums and synths sound so menacing yet accessible, while Marc Almond delivers a vocal recalling the anguish of ‘Martin’ with sleazy sax passages resonating with the dystopian lyrics.
A fabulous cover of the Italo flavoured Kim Wilde B-side to ‘The Second Time’ from 1984, the throbbing ‘Lovers On A Beach’ saw NINA sounding sexier than ever before. Ricky Wilde said “I just thought there was a little bit more that it needed that I maybe wanted to add back in the day”. With sharp spikey edges boosting the trancey template, he provided a superb extended end section that paid homage to Giorgio Moroder in the best way possible.
Available on the RICKY WILDE X NINA album ‘Scala Hearts’ via New Retro Wave
Covered by acts as diverse CARTER THE UNSTOBBALE SEX MACHINE and Liza Minnelli, the latest interpretation of PET SHOP BOYS stark narrative of a kept woman came via this wispy account by Swedish duo SALLY SHAPIRO. Keeping the relationship dependency theme close to its heart but offering an icier Nordic vision from a female perspective, the sax of Steve Moore provided extra sleaze to the NICOLAAS remix.
Available on the SALLY SHAPIRO single ‘Rent’ via Italians Do It Better
NIGHT CLUB The Lunatics Have Taken Over The Asylum (2024)
‘Masochist’ was the highly appropriate title for the fourth NIGHT CLUB album, a dystopian prophecy that came true! Written by FUN BOY THREE in 1981 as a metaphor by to the dangerous posturing games played by Ronald Reagan aka “The Cowboy” during The Cold War, the inclusion of a cover of ‘The Lunatics (Have Taken Over the Asylum)’ became even more sinister with the ultimate lunatic duo of Donald Trump and JD Vance now given control of the nuclear button…
Available on the NIGHT CLUB album ‘Masochist’ via Gato Blanco
PROPAGANDA Wenn Ich Mir Was Wünschen Dürfte (2024)
Starting a new chapter of PROPAGANDA, Michael Mertens and Ralf Dörper recruited young German singer Thunder Bae. Her talent shined with a superbly enticing performance in a haunting cover of ‘Wenn Ich Mir Was Wünschen Dürfte’, a Weimar-era song written by Friedrich Hollaender in 1930 that was made famous by Marlene Dietrich. The song had been also used for a controversial scene in the 1974 film ‘The Night Porter’.
Available on the PROPAGANDA album ‘Propaganda’ via by Bureau B
New York-based duo R. MISSING finally issued their first full-length album ‘Knife Shook The Hand’ at the end of 2024 having debuted in 2017 with the mini-album ‘Unsummering’.
Comprising of the enigmatic Sharon Shy and the even more elusive Toppy Frost, the pair originally bonded over their shared dislikes. With a shadowy brand of understated electronic pop noir characterised by Sharon Shy’s sad forlorn vocals and Toppy Frost’s ethereal synthesized backdrops, R. MISSING have focussed on standalone songs with ‘Crimeless’, ‘New Present City’, ‘All Alone With Seas’ and ‘Verónica Pass’ among the fine examples of their portfolio.
However, while releasing singles to streaming platforms has been very much the norm these last few years, the low profile presence of R. MISSING has meant they have passed many listeners by despite the quality of their work. However, ‘Knife Shook The Hand’ has now provided the long playing focal point that their music deserves; among the collection’s highlights were Party Fade Into Air’, Make It Starry Most’, ‘The Down That Creeps’ and ‘Sleep Will Darken It’.
Never sitting still for long, R. MISSING’s start to 2025 has been heralded by a wonderful new song ‘Fakesnow’ in collaboration with Johan Agebjörn; and it was via an introduction by the Swedish producer that ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK was able have a virtual chat across the Atlantic with Sharon Shy…
R. MISSING have finally released a full length long player ‘Knife Shook The Hand’, this might sound a silly question but does it now feel “proper”, like things have got “real” as a band? How has the audience response been?
The aim was just to create a fast way to locate all of our most recent releases. We feel no more or less “real” than before. The audience response has been nice.
‘Knife Shook The Hand’ is a striking title but I can’t help but notice that its cover artwork looking at you from behind staring at greenery is like the photos which THE KNIFE used around the time of ‘Shaking The Habitual’, was this a homage to the sibling duo?
No – but that sounds very interesting. I should have a look…
‘All Alone With Seas’ was a fine track but ultimately didn’t end up on the album, so how did you go about selecting which songs would form ‘Knife Shook Your Hand’?
‘Knife Shook Your Hand’ is a collection of songs released in 2024. ‘All Alone With Seas’ came out the year prior.
How would you describe your creative dynamic with Toppy Frost in R. MISSING, is it working in a room together or much more remote? Do you have specific roles?
We typically work remotely, although there are exceptions. I usually start with concepts and Henry then makes things come to fruition.
CHROMATICS are often cited in reviews of R. MISSING, but which artists have been key in influencing the sonic palette of R. MISSING?
It changes day after day, week after week. One day it might be French yé-yé, the next, Eurodance or Virna Lindt, then THE FUTURE SOUND OF LONDON or something else entirely. I’m generally more inspired by books than by other music, too.
Since the debut mini-album ‘Unsummering’ in 2017, R.MISSING had been following a “singles only” strategy, what was the thinking behind this? Was this to maximise the streaming algorithms or was it more down to practicality?
We change very quickly and often feel almost disconnected to a song soon after its completion. Releasing quickly sends out the message when it’s still very new and pertinent. I wait every evening for a world that’s fast, quiet and calm.
Would you say that ‘Crimeless’ released in 2021 helped R.MISSING achieve a wider profile breakthrough? What was it about the song do you think that made it so appealing?
That I don’t know. I can’t say for certain that it appeals to anyone. All I can say is that it’s a moment in time.
With ‘New Present City’, you went as far as commissioning a video to accompany it, did you work with the video director on the storyline or did you allow them total artistic freedom to interpret the music as they saw fit?
The director had a vision for the concept of the video that he made come to life all by himself. We cannot take any credit for that.
For ‘Sleep Will Darken It’ with its brilliant synth solo, you self-produced a very effective DIY video for it; with R. MISSING having projected an enigmatic image, how was it to perform in front of the camera?
Fast and unstudied. Just another starless night in the underpass parking somewhere.
So what is ‘The Down That Creeps’?
It’s the disquiet you might feel at Club Altair when the music stopping times up with the windows jamming.
With songs like ‘Jane Four’, ‘Get Careful Darker’, ‘Maryhead’, ‘Cry Quicker’ and ‘Imagination To Be Sad’, R. MISSING don’t mess about and all clock in under three minutes? Was it intentional to keep these songs short?
Not intentional. Concision is just my automatic feeling.
Do you have any favourite songs on the album and if so, why those particular ones?
No. The truth is I never really think about anything once it’s alive.
Since the album ‘Knife Shook The Hand’ came out, there has been a new single ‘Fakesnow’ with Johan Agebjörn, how did this come about and what was the writing process between you like?
Johan created an elegant dark Italo disco instrumental that luckily worked extremely well with a concept and lyrics we had floating in our brains for a while.
There was the 2023 collaboration ‘ Wear The Night Out’ with CAUSEWAY which was very fitting and they also made a ‘My Time As A Ghostly Someone Else’ remix. Are there anymore collaborations planned for the future with other producers and artists?
Quite possibly. Although I’m not the best at guessing the future, I’ve always wanted to be a sci-fi side character.
R. MISSING like to do the occasional cover version and these have ranged from new wave numbers like ‘I Could Be Happy’ and ‘Spellbound’ to soul classics such as ‘Superstition’, so how do you choose a song that will suit the R. MISSING aesthetic? Are there any more particular songs you would like to do?
A record label asked us to do several covers that suited several themes they had in mind. I’m not sure we’ll be doing any other covers.
What is next for R. MISSING? You don’t play live very often, is that something that might change in the future?
More releases. And yes, more live shows.
ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK gives its warmest thanks to Sharon Shy
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