Tag: Marsheaux (Page 1 of 12)

A Beginner’s Guide To MIRRORS

11 October 2025 /

Photo by David Ellis

“MIRRORS formed probably in a very similar way to a lot of other bands; we were in a pub, we were being very scathing and cynical about the current crop of musical hopefuls and obviously assumed at the same time we could do it better. So before we knew it, we picked up a couple of old synthesizers and we were bashing out some tunes…”: James New

MIRRORS may have only released one full length album ‘Light & Offerings’ in early 2011 but while the lack of success may have precipitated their premature disbandment, with the qualitative lull in British synth music in the years following meant that ‘Light & Offerings’ was discovered retrospectively by electronic pop fans who had missed the band first time around.

MIRRORS released their first two self-produced singles ‘Look At Me’ and ‘Into The Heart’ in 2009. As the quartet began to perform live with cerebral projections as visual accompaniment, they fostered a suited look based around 20th Century European Modernism inspired by Gilbert & George and designated their music pop noir. Signing to Brighton’s Skint Records, after abortive recording sessions with Ed Buller and Richard X, the band opted to self-produce their debut long player and locked themselves away in a rural Sussex farmhouse for several weeks.

Despite having only one long player to their name, MIRRORS became known for their B-sides and remixes while since the band’s fragmentation in late 2011 and quiet disbandment in mid-2013 after their final gig in the Czech Republic, there have been number of new projects and collaborations. Of the classic line-up, front man James New has been the most prolific, working with Saint Raymond, Lauren Aquilina and Laura Welsh in a production / writing partnership with Josef Page alongside his own solo work and various guest appearences. Meanwhile outside of music, James Arguile entered the teaching profession while Ally Young trained to become a chef.

ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK has managed to assemble a Beginner’s Guide comprising of 20 tracks from The World of MIRRORS. As per usual, rules help to control the fun and the selections have been made from standalone releases whether physical product or digital downloads (both purchasable or available initially for free); they are placed in chronological order…

MUMM-RA She’s Got You High (2007)

James New and James Arguile had their first taste of near-fame in indie-pop hopefuls MUMM-RA named after the primary villain in the animated series ‘ThunderCats’. Reaching No41 in the UK Singles Chart, ‘She’s Got You High’ later appeared in ‘(500) Days of Summer’, an episode of ‘The Inbetweeners’ and a Waitrose advert. Despite supporting THE KILLERS, the band split and New started listening to KRAFTWERK…

Available on the MUMM-RA album ‘These Things Move In Threes’ via Columbia Records

https://www.instagram.com/mummraofficial/

MIRRORS Look At Me (2009)

“Bored of tradition”, James New met Ally Young and began formulating ideas “to do something that was considered from the ground up”. Joined by James Arguile who embraced the idea of making soulful electronic pop, the first fruit of labour was ‘Look At Me’; recorded on GarageBand with sonic distortion creeping in, it was released as a one sided red vinyl single on Pure Groove with the sleeve sticker outlining the MIRRORS manifesto.

Available on the MIRRORS EP ‘Broken By Silence’ via Skint Records

https://www.theguardian.com/music/2009/mar/13/new-band-mirrors

WHITE LIES A Place To Hide – Un Autre Monde mix by MIRRORS (2009)

The WHITE LIES connection came about as James New was friends with live keyboardist Tommy Bowen; a song from the debut ‘To Lose My Life…’ which also included ‘Farewell To The Fairground’, the trio’s post-punk influenced synth rock influenced by THE TEARDROP EXPLODES was given a doom-laden machine-percussive edge. “The WHITE LIES one was our first remix actually” recalled James New in 2010, “that’s probably the one I like the least”.

Originally available a free download, currently unavailable

https://whitelies.com/

MIRRORS Into The Heart (2009)

With Josef Page joining the line-up, MIRRORS were now a synth quartet and their second single on Moshi Moshi was a much more soaring statement after the comparatively understated ‘Look At Me’. Within its detuned shimmering tones, here was an accessible Cold War centric pop number with a majestic singalong that proved Synth Britannia influences were nothing to be ashamed of.

Originally available as the single ‘Into The Heart’ via Moshi Moshi Records, re-recorded version on the album ‘Lights & Offerings’ via Skint Entertainment

https://www.facebook.com/theworldofmirrors

AU REVOIR SIMONE Tell Me – MIRRORS remix (2010)

Known for their whimsical feminine synthpop, AU REVOIR SIMONE closed their third album ‘Still Night, Still Light’ with the minimally understated ‘Tell Me’; remixed in his bedroom in half a day, James New’s brilliant version made the American female keyboard trio of Erika Forster, Annie Hart and Heather D’Angelo sound delectably suicidal; “That was the plan…”, he said in 2010, “sort of gothic disco I was going for there!”

Available on the AU REVOIR SIMONE album ‘Night Light’ via Moshi Moshi Records

http://www.aurevoirsimone.com/

MIRRORS Ways To An End (2010)

‘Ways To An End’ saw MIRRORS’ intense and artful approach to dancing was very different to the ‘hands in the air’ culture of their home base of Brighton. Synthetic chills and pulsing effects dominated this brilliantly uptempo electro number that rhythmically recalled TALKING HEADS ‘Crosseyed & Painless’ while the claustrophobic production was very post-punk while wonderfully dense and swathed in melodic drama.

Available on the MIRRORS album ‘Lights & Offerings’ via Skint Records

https://theworldofmirrors.blogspot.com/2010/12/mirrors-and-omd-tour-account.html

MIRRORS Broken By Silence (2010)

In their short career, MIRRORS left not only a great album in ‘Lights & Offerings’ but a body of wonderful B-sides too. Originally the flipside of ‘Ways To An End’, the emotive ‘Broken By Silence’ exploited the sad melancholy often associated with OMD; “It’s one of my favourite tracks of ours!” said James New and it became the title song of a special CD EP made available during MIRRORS shows opening for OMD.

Available on the MIRRORS EP ‘Broken By Silence’ via Skint Records

https://theworldofmirrors.blogspot.com/2010/12/mirrors-tour-account-part-2.html

OMD Sister Marie Says – MIRRORS Un Autre Monde Mix (2010)

With the European tour opening for OMD came an invitation to remix ‘Sister Marie Says’, the most immediate song on their comeback album ‘History Of Modern’. Much was anticipated in as the apprentice casttheir homework on the sorcerer’s spell. Using a dark abstractly percussive approach minus the song apart from bursts of choir samples and the whispered title phrase, this reconstruction polarised OMD and MIRRORS fans alike.

Originally available on the single ‘Sister Marie Says’ via Blue Noise Records, currently unavailable

http://www.omd.uk.com/

MIRRORS Falls By Another Name (2011)

“It’s a bit of a guilty pleasure…” said Ally Young of ‘Falls By Another Name’, a B-side catchy enough to have been an A-side. Not as dense as MIRRORS’ usual pop noir, the bright pulsing melodies and James New’s Dave Gahan impression made this sound like a quality outtake from DEPECHE MODE’s ‘Speak & Spell’; “…we do have a habit of writing quite big melodies and choruses” added the MIRRORS singer, “we come from a poppy sort of place”.

Available on the MIRRORS EP ‘Broken By Silence’ via Skint Records

https://theworldofmirrors.blogspot.com/2011/05/

MIRRORS Something On Your Mind (2011)

MIRRORS revealed an interesting musical diversion with this haunting take of a rootsy country number originally recorded by Karen Dalton. Written by Dino Valenti of psychedelic rockers QUICKSILVER MESSENGER SERVICE, ‘Something On Your Mind’ was a touching ballad with its tortured yearning suiting the quartet’s pop noir aspirations. Ally Young said: “It was very nice for us to be able to apply our aesthetic to someone else’s song.”

Available on the MIRRORS album ‘Lights & Offerings’ via Skint Records

https://theworldofmirrors.blogspot.com/2011/04/embedded-mirrors-european-tour-diary.html

MIRRORS Secrets – Andy McCluskey remix (2011)

Originally a 10 minute epic split into three movements, ‘Secrets’ closed MIRRORS’ debut long player, driven by an intense percussive tattoo and a shifting octave bass riff that was pure Klingklang. While pushing forward the synthetic claps and allowing in some air, Andy McCluskey stripped down the backing and shortened proceedings, making it much less claustrophobic and militaristic than the original cut.

Originally available a free download, currently unavailable

https://www.runoutgrooves.com/mirrors/

ANOTHERS BLOOD Lost Communication – MIRRORS remix (2011)

Behind the cerebral alt-rock act ANOTHERS BLOOD was producer Richard Frenneaux. His rousing ‘Lost Communication’ was given an electro-gothic austere by MIRRORS that subdued the vocal into a background of slowly throbbing bass synths. ANOTHERS BLOOD later covered NEW ORDER’s ‘Lonesome Tonight’ for Mojo Magazine in 2012 while Frenneaux released his debut solo album ‘Fluoxetine Times’ in 2020.

Available on the ANOTHERS BLOOD single ‘Lost Communication’ via Family Records

https://www.instagram.com/richfrenn/

LADY GAGA Judas – MIRRORS Une Autre Monde Mix: Nuit (2011)

In their biggest remix commission yet, MIRRORS contributed two remixes, subtitled ‘Jour’ et ‘Nuit’; the best of these was the latter night version which added the discordant backing on the verse that let  Lady Gaga get away with her bizarre intonation saying “arse”. With the very poppy chorus removed, his provided a darker resonance to the implied blasphemy while a pulsing middle eight added to the edgier synthpop adaptation.

Available on the LADY GAGA download bundle ‘Judas (Remix EP Part 1)’ via Interscope Records

https://www.ladygaga.com/

MIRRORS Blood Diamonds (2012)

Following the departure of founder member Ally Young and a parting of ways with Skint Records, MIRRORS came back with an independently distributed EP of new material. Also including previously unreleased home demos, it was snappily titled ‘This Year, Next Year, Sometime?’; the first of the demos ‘Blood Diamond’ was a marvellous percussive surprise with a tribal TALKING HEADS attack and James New’s spirited chanting!

Available on the MIRRORS EP ‘This Year, Next Year, Sometime…?’ via Bandcamp

https://mirrorsofficial.bandcamp.com/album/this-year-next-year-sometime

MIRRORS Between Four Walls (2012)

On slimming down to a trio, MIRRORS headed towards a sparser textural direction with ‘Dust’ and ‘Hourglass’ than on ‘Lights & Offerings’, but this was nevertheless rewarding with further listens. The beautifully stark drama of ‘Between Four Walls’ was full of post 3:00am drama. Asking “Do you ever wonder how you’ll ever get there when you never turn back around?”, it was high end atmospheric electronic balladry at its best.

Available on the MIRRORS single ‘Hourglass’ via Bandcamp

https://mirrorsofficial.bandcamp.com/album/hourglass

LOVELIFE Brave Face (2012)

After Ally Young left MIRRORS, his first port-of-call was to produce the second album by OASIS-inspired indie band VIVA BROTHER. But when things floundered and the band split, he teamed up with their singer Lee Newell, relocated to New York and LOVELIFE was born. ‘Brave Face’ was a chilling but uplifting piece of mood music which came over like OMD fronted by HARD FI in its Cool Britannia meets Synth Britannia fusion.

Available on the LOVELIFE EP ‘El Regreso’ via Lovelife

https://www.facebook.com/LVLFinfo/

FOTONOVELA featuring JAMES NEW Our Sorrow (2013)

Not content with producing MARSHEAUX and collaborating with OMD on the ‘English Electric’ track ‘Helen Of Troy’, Greek production duo FOTONOVELA unveiled a new sophomore opus which was more song based using a number of prominent international vocalists. One of the numbers ‘Our Sorrow’ featured the majestic voice of James New. This sad string synth laden ditty was in the vein of classic OMD.

Available on the FOTONOVELA album ‘A Ton Of Love’ via Undo Records

http://www.facebook.com/undofotonovela

MARSHEAUX featuring JAMES NEW Now This Is Fun (2015)

MARSHEAUX included some interesting arrangements covering DEPECHE MODE’s second album ‘A Broken Frame’. But the 2CD deluxe edition boasted a bonus track in a cover of the ‘See You’ B-side ‘Now This Is Fun’ featuring James New on lead vocals. Whereas the original version went through a series of frantic tempo changes, MARSHEAUX kept the pace constant and moody while the MIRRORS front man remained anxiously impassioned.

Available on the MARSHEAUX deluxe album ‘A Broken Frame’ via Undo Records

https://www.facebook.com/marsheaux

PURPLE HAZE featuring JAMES NEW Fall In (2017)

James New returned to his indie guitar roots to reform MUMM-RA while also working with others. The project of Sander Van Doorn, this PURPLE HAZE collaboration saw New add his forlorn vocals to the dreamy acoustic electronic hybrid of ‘Fall In’ which exhibited all the potential qualities of MIRRORS; there were bangin’ dance remixes by LYNDSCAPE and Zonderling but New issued his own solo guitar-oriented take in 2018.

Available on the PURPLE HAZE album ‘SPECTRVM’ via Doorn Records

https://www.instagram.com/jamesnewmusic/

VIRENS We’re Still Cool (2024)

Despite James New teasing that he might return to synth with acoustic covers of ‘Don’t You Want Me’ and ‘A Real Hero’, his new project VIRENS was actually an alt-folk duo. His partner Louisa Connolly-Burnham had a voice akin to Hope Sandoval of MAZZY STAR, so it was fitting that ‘We’re Still Cool’ was like THE JESUS & MARY CHAIN meeting Bowie’s ‘Heroes’; it also saw New reunite with Josef Page who co-wrote and produced the track.

Available on the VIRENS EP ‘Mutual Assured Destruction’ via Couples Therapy

https://www.instagram.com/virensmusic/

The MIRRORS Appreciation Society Facebook Group is at https://www.facebook.com/groups/404571368236796

Text by Chi Ming Lai with thanks to Norman Cooke
11th October 2025

ANOTHER 25 SYNTHY COVERS 2015 & Beyond

26 April 2025 /

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

http://www.marsheaux.com/

METROLAND Close To Me (2015)

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.

Available on the album ‘A Strange Play – An Alfa Matrix Tribute To The Cure’ (V/A) via https://alfamatrix.bandcamp.com/album/a-strange-play-an-alfa-matrix-tribute-to-the-cure

http://www.metrolandmusic.com/

PARALLELS Moonlight Desires (2015)

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

https://www.iloveparallels.com/

HANNAH PEEL Heaven How Long (2015)

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

http://www.hannahpeel.com

TREGENZA The Partisan (2015)

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

https://www.facebook.com/tregenzamusic

JOHAN BAECKSTRÖM Jerusalem (2016)

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

https://www.facebook.com/bstrommusic/

PSYCHE Ring The Bells (2016)

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

http://www.psyche-hq.de/

HEAVEN Lonesome Town (2017)

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

https://www.facebook.com/ITALIANSDOITBETTER/

KALEIDA 99 Luftballons (2017)

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.

Available on the KALEIDA album ‘Tear The Roots’ via https://kaleida.bandcamp.com

http://kaleidamusic.com

UNIFY SEPARATE Mute (2017)

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.

Available on the UNIFY SEPARATE album ‘First Contact’ via https://unifyseparate.bandcamp.com/album/first-contact

https://www.unifyseparate.com/

IONNALEE Mysteries Of Love (2019)

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.

Available on the IONNALEE album ‘Remember The Future’ via To Whom It May Concern

https://ionnalee.com

KID MOXIE Big In Japan (2020)

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

http://www.facebook.com/kidmoxie

NATION OF LANGUAGE Gouge Away (2020)

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.

Available on the NATION OF LANGUAGE single ‘Gouge Away’ via https://nationoflanguage.bandcamp.com/track/gouge-away

https://www.nationoflanguage.com/

DIE ROBO SAPIENS FanFanFanatisch (2020)

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.

Available on DIE ROBO SAPIENS ‘FanFanFanatisch – The Düsseldorf EP’ via https://alfamatrix.bandcamp.com/album/fanfanfanatisch-the-d-sseldorf-ep

https://www.diekrupps.com/

JORJA CHALMERS Rhapsody (2021)

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

https://www.instagram.com/jorjachalmers/

GEMMA CULLINGFORD Ode To Billie Joe (2021)

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

https://www.gemmacullingford.co.uk/

DLINA VOLNY Hollywood (2021)

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

https://www.facebook.com/dlinavolny/

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

https://www.facebook.com/psyaviah/

https://www.facebook.com/MariKattman

SCANNER Alone Again Naturally (2022)

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’.

Available on the SCANNER EP ‘Jayemme’ via https://scanner.bandcamp.com/album/jayemme

https://scannerdot.com/

DURAN DURAN Bury A Friend (2023)

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

https://duranduran.com/

SOFT CELL The World Turned Day-Glo (2023)

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.

Available on the SOFT CELL album ‘*Happiness now completed’ via BMG

http://www.softcell.co.uk

RICKY WILDE x NINA Lovers On A Beach (2023)

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

https://twitter.com/Wildericky

https://www.iloveninamusic.com/

SALLY SHAPIRO Rent – NICOLAAS remix (2023)

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

https://www.facebook.com/shapirosally

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

https://www.facebook.com/nightclubband

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

https://propband.tilda.ws/

ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK’s ‘A Fistful Of Electronic Covers’ playlist featuring reinterpretations through the ages can be heard via Spotify at https://open.spotify.com/playlist/12XFwF5iuLj3Jl7Tj2GTpE

Text by Chi Ming Lai
26th April 2025

A SYNTH IS FOR LIFE & NOT JUST FOR CHRISTMAS…

2 December 2023 /

As the Yule Tide season gets into full swing, ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK presents a collection of modern seasonal tunes with a more artful slant…

With a song to play on each of the 25 days in December until Christmas, some are covers with a modern approach while others gather their thoughts and emotions into original compositions. But each has their own take on the holiday period, whether happy or sad or both.

Synths at Christmas are not entirely new; ‘Last Christmas’ by WHAM! was primarily made with a Roland Juno 60 while BAND AID’s ‘Do They Know It’s Christmas? was dominated by PPG Wave 2.2 with a percussive sample taken from ‘Memories Fade’ by TEARS FOR FEARS also being key to the intro.

However the traditional nature of Christmas often dictates traditional instrumentation in its songs, which means that Christmas synth songs are comparatively uncommon and a more recent phenomenon.

Whatever your plans whether with the family or in the studio, please remember, a synth is for life and not just for Christmas… may it bring you lots of cheer! The 25 songs are presented in yearly then alphabetical order within…

BE MUSIC Rocking Carol (1982)

A Be Music production for a limited edition flexi-disc of 4400 given away at The Haçienda on Christmas Eve 1982, with the greeting “Merry Xmas From The Haçienda And Factory Records”, this was NEW ORDER covering the traditional Czech seasonal tune also known as ‘Jesus Sweetly Sleep’ and ‘We Will Rock You’ as a robotic electronic tone poem. The second track was a version of Ludwig van Beethoven’s ‘Ode To Joy’ in a similar style!

Available on the compilation album ‘Ghosts of Christmas Past (Remake)’ (V/A) via Les Disques du Crépuscule

https://www.neworder.com/

EURYTHMICS Winter Wonderland (1987)

Recorded as part of an album on behalf of Special Olympics that featured U2, Madonna, Whitney Houston, Bruce Springsteen, Bryan Adams and Alison Moyet among others, EURYTHMICS’ glistening electronic take on romance during the winter season was cited by ASCAP as now the most played version of the song which was made famous by Darlene Love on the classic 1963 album ‘A Christmas Gift For You From Phil Spector’.

Available on the compilation album ‘A Very Special Christmas’ (V/A) via Universal Music

https://www.eurythmics.com/

S.P.O.C.K White Christmas (1992)

Swedish electronic pop veterans S.P.O.C.K celebrated their 35th Anniversary in 2023; originally recorded for Energy Rekords’ ‘Virtual X-Mas 92’ EP and then a bonus song on their 1995 compilation ‘A Piece Of The Action’, this cover of the Irving Berlin standard made famous by Bing Crosby was suitably melodramatic as the holiday season was celebrated in The Neutral Zone while under threat of an alien attack.

Available on the compilation album ‘Virtual 2020 X-Mas’ (V/A) via Energy Rekords

https://www.facebook.com/StarPilotOnChannelK/

SAINT ETIENNE Featuring TIM BURGESS I Was Born On Christmas Day (1993)

Delightfully catchy with a house-laden bounce, ‘I Was Born on Christmas Day’ was written in acknowledgement of band member Bob Stanley’s birthday for an EP ‘Xmas 93’. Featuring a duet between Sarah Cracknell and special guest vocals by Tim Burgess from THE CHARLATANS, the joyful narrative saw the couple elope, confusing some fans and press who thought the press photos were for real.

Available on the SAINT ETIENNE album ’A Glimpse Of Stocking’ via PIAS

http://www.saintetienne.com/

DEAD OR ALIVE Blue Christmas (2000)

Originally recorded as a sparse ballad for the B-side of 1990 DEAD OR ALIVE single ‘Your Sweetness Is Your Weakness’, Pete Burns’ foray into the music for holiday season was given a dancier makeover in 2000 by band mate Steve Coy. In hindsight, now sounds like a stylistic blue print for PET SHOP BOYS ‘It Doesn’t Often Snow At Christmas’. The two would later work together on the excellent if menacing ‘Jack & Jill Party’ in 2004.

Available on the DEAD OR ALIVE album ‘Fragile’ via Demon Music Group

https://www.discogs.com/artist/46720-Dead-Or-Alive

SALLY SHAPIRO Anorak Christmas (2006)

With their naïve wispiness, understated cinematics and disco beats, if there act who are ably suited to Christmas pop music, it is Swedish duo SALLY SHAPIRO. A cover of a song by NiXON, the project of fellow Swede Roger Gunnarsson, the lines “The first time that I saw your face on a cold December night, it was a Tuesday on a gig with a band that we both liked” captured an innocent romance and the aural warmth of the named apparel.

Available on the SALLY SHAPIRO album ‘Disco Romance’ via Paper Bag Records

https://www.facebook.com/shapirosally

PET SHOP BOYS It Doesn’t Often Snow At Christmas (2009)

Originally recorded in 1997 for an exclusive fan club single but remixed in 2009, ‘It Doesn’t Often Snow At Christmas’ was a suitably cynical offering. Famous for keeping THE POGUES ‘Farytale Of New York’ off the 1987 UK Christmas No1 spot with their cover of ‘Always On My Mind’, while this didn’t hit those commercial heights, it provided a very PET SHOP BOYS take on the madness of the festive season.

Available on the PET SHOP BOYS EP ‘Christmas’ via EMI Records

http://www.petshopboys.co.uk/

CHEW LIPS When You Wake Up (2010)

With their last single having been released in 2012, CHEW LIPS might well have disbanded but in 2010, on the back of their only album ‘Unicorn’ and its subsequent tour, they were on a productive high. ‘When You Wake Up’ was a bonus tune recorded and given away as a Christmas gift to fans at the end of that very successful year. Delivered with lead singer Tigs’ usual feisty panache, listening back only highlights how much CHEW LIPS are missed.

Originally released as a free download via https://soundcloud.com/chewlips/when-you-wake-up

https://www.facebook.com/CHEWLiPS/

HURTS All I Want For Christmas Is New Year’s Day (2010)

With their TAKE THAT dressed as ULTRAVOX template, following the success of their debut album ‘Happiness’, Theo Hutchcraft and Adam Anderson turned their attentions to memories of “the worst Christmas of our lives”. In true Bros Go To Bavaria style, despite the mournful start, ‘All I Want For Christmas Is New Year’s Day’ transformed itself into a hopeful uplifting anthem with a big chorus and lashings of tubular bells.

Available on the HURTS album  ‘Happiness’ via Major Label / RCA

http://www.informationhurts.com/

LOLA DUTRONIC Another Christmas Without Snow (2010)

In the UK, a wet Christmas is always more likely,  but LOLA DUTRONIC’s ‘Another Christmas Without Snow’ resonated with its melancholic yet pretty demeanour. The project of Canadian producer Richard Citroen and using a flexible roster of wispy female vocalists, the tones of Lola Dee came over all dreamy like SAINT ETIENNE and conveyed the season’s mixed emotions. In 2014, they presented ‘The Christmas Disco’.

Available on LOLA DUTRONIC single ‘(Another) Christmas Without Snow’ via Lola Dutronic

https://www.facebook.com/LOLA-DUTRONIC-80232595392/

ERASURE Gaudete (2013)

Andy Bell and Vince Clarke’s version of this traditional Ecclesiastical Latin carol continued an ERASURE tradition that had first begun with ‘God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen’ for the CD edition of the ‘Crackers International’ EP in 1988. With a precise electronic backbeat, ‘Gaudete’ was taken from its 16th Century origins and thrown into the new millennium with a cheeky ‘Ice Machine’ reference for good measure.

Available on the ERASURE album ‘Snow Globe’ via Mute Artists

http://www.erasureinfo.com/

HYPERBUBBLE A Synthesizer for Christmas (2013)

HYPERBUBBLE A Synthesizer for ChristmasWhether it was a Casio, Yamaha or Roland, everyone who ever loved synth music wanted ‘A Synthesizer For Christmas’. Texan synthesizer couple HYPERBUBBLE took that enduring memory and turned it into a delightful synthpop ditty that could resonate with electronic geeks from 8 to 80 the world over. Short but very sweet, it was another joyous “cartoon automaton symphony” from Jess and Jeff DeCuir.

Available on the HYPERBUBBLE single ‘A Synthesizer For Christmas’ via Socket Sounds

http://www.hyperbubble.net/

VILE ELECTRODES The Ghosts Of Christmas (2013)

VILE ELECTRODES The Ghosts Of ChristmasIf ‘Twin Peaks’ met ‘Leader Of The Pack’ under the mistletoe, it would probably sound like ‘The Ghosts Of Christmas’. Possibly the best Christmas tune of the last 15 years, VILE ELECTRODES’ harrowing tale of a departed loved one and three wise men dressed in blue with dreadful gifts to bear is strangely enticing, with the beautifully haunting echoes of Julee Cruise’s ‘The Nightingale’ lingering over the frozen lake.

Available on the VILE ELECTRODES EP ‘The Ghosts Of Christmas’ via Vile Electrodes

http://www.vileelectrodes.com/

HANNAH PEEL Find Peace (2014)

HANNAH PEEL Find Peace‘Find Peace’ was a Christmas song longing for the cold but merry winters of yesteryear under the modern day spectre of global warming, armed conflict and political tension. The off-kilter analogue buzzing and almost random sequences made for a striking listen as a frantic percussive death rattle and an emotive synth drone take hold to provide an appropriate backdrop for the eerie but beautiful voice of Hannah Peel.

Available on the HANNAH PEEL single ‘Find Peace’ via Snowflakes Christmas Singles Club

http://www.hannahpeel.com/

MARSHEAUX We Met Bernard Sumner At A Christmas Party Last Night (2015)

GHOSTS-OF-CHRISTMAS-PAST-twi158cd‘We Met Bernard Sumner At A Christmas Party Last Night’ was a wonderfully whispery synthpop number that capture that classic wispy MARSHEAUX vibe. The lyrics were constructed from the song and album titles of NEW ORDER to provide an imaginary narrative on Marianthi Melitsi and Sophie Sarigiannidou surreally bumping into the Manchester combo’s lead singer at a Yule Tide function.

Available on the compilation album ‘Ghost Of Christmas Past (Remake)’ (V/A) via Les Disques du Crépuscule

http://www.marsheaux.com

SPARKS Christmas Without A Prayer (2015)

On 1974’s ‘Kimono My House’ album, the Mael brothers recorded a song called ‘Thank God It’s Not Christmas’, a typically perverse SPARKS romp that had nothing to do as such with the holiday season. After their fruitful FFS collaboration with FRANZ FERDINAND, Russell and Ron ended the year with ‘Christmas Without A Prayer’, a fitting offering which also amusingly outlined that albums by WINGS were actually unwanted gifts.

Available on the SPARKS single ‘Christmas Without A Prayer’ via Lil’ Beethoven Records

http://www.allsparks.com/

VICE VERSA Little Drum Machine Boy (2015)

“A twisted cover of a cover of a cover”, this synthy reinterpretation of the tune based on a traditional Czech carol made famous by a bizarre but enjoyable version by David Bowie and Bing Crosby, saw former ABC stalwarts Mark White and Stephen Singleton reconvene as VICE VERSA to wax lyrical about 303s, 808s, 909s and a “shiny new Roland toy” in a combination of sleigh bells, squelching arpeggios and of course, drum machines…

Available as a free download via https://soundcloud.com/vice-versa-electrogenesis/little-drum-machine-boy

https://www.facebook.com/Vice-Versa-Electrogenesis-806726912703189/

ASSEMBLAGE 23 December (2016)

“Silent and alone, trying to make sense”, when you’ve had enough of Christmas shopping and the in-laws, there’s probably nothing better to let off steam than a bit of ASSEMBLAGE 23. While not exactly seasonal, Tom Shear’s Futurepop discoscape captured many of the mixed emotions endemic with the final month of the year, because in his determination to endure and to thrive, “when December ends, the pain will disappear…”

Available on the ASSEMBLAGE 23 album ‘Endure’ via Metropolis

https://www.assemblage23.com

SIN COS TAN Dead By X-Mas (2016)

A superb cover of Finnish metal glamsters HANOI ROCKS written by guitarist Andy McCoy predicticing where the band’s lifestyle could lead, this take on ‘Dead By X-Mas’ from the nocturnal synth duo SIN COS TAN came over a bit like Billy Idol gone electro, but with an elegiac twist. In 2006, the former William Broad himself issued his own collection of seasonal tunes entitled ‘Happy Holidays’ … it’s a nice day for a ‘White Christmas’!

Available as a free download via https://soundcloud.com/theofficialjorihulkkonen/sin-cos-tan-dead-by-x-mas

https://www.facebook.com/homeofsincostan/

FERAL FIVE I Want U (2017)

In a feminist call to reject the trash, with female empowerment lyrics like “I don’t need any money or a new handbag, I just need a kind of thing I’ve never had, who says you have to have some shabby gifts”, FERAL FIVE attacked tacky commercialism at Christmas in a sonic cacophony of crunchy bass guitar, big beats, sparkling electronics and chilling string machines for an alternative take on accepted practices during the seasonal festivities.

Available on the FERAL FIVE single ‘I Want U’ via Primitive Light Recordings

https://www.feralfive.com/

CIRCUIT3 I Believe In Father Christmas (2018)

Made famous by Greg Lake, CIRCUIT3 used analogue synths such as a Sequential Pro-One, Roland JX10, Korg Wavestation and Moog Sub37 to provide an eerie chill to the already cynical and  morbid 1975 song protesting at the commercialisation of Christmas. The lyricist was KING CRIMSON’s Peter Sinfield who later wrote the words to BUCKS FIZZ’s No1 ‘The Land Of Make Believe’ which warned against the evils of Thatcherism.

Available on the CIRCUIT 3 single ‘I Believe In Father Christmas’ via Diode Records

http://www.circuit3.com/

WAVESHAPER Walking In The Air (2020)

Written by Howard Blake for the 1982 animated film ‘The Snowman’ which later added a cameo intro by David Bowie, ‘Walking In The Air’ became a hit for Aled Jones although the original version was actually sung by choir boy Peter Auty. Tom Andersson is the Swedish synthesist and retro gamer known as WAVESHAPER and his symphonic instrumental synthwave cover was both respectful and beautiful.

Available as a free download via https://soundcloud.com/waveshaper-2/walking-in-the-air-waveshaper-synth-edit

https://www.facebook.com/Waveshaperofficial

RODNEY CROMWELL Cold Christmas (2022)

If Canadian post-punk quartet ACTORS did Christmas songs, then it would have probably sounded like this gothic motorik number from the ever cheerful Rodney Cromwell. Written for Cherryade Records’ ‘A Very Cherry Christmas’ compilation, its chilling ARP synth strings and driving bass guitar was in total antithesis to Cliff Richard with bleak observational lyrics “like ‘Eleanor Rigby’ turbo-charged for 2022”.

Available on the RODNEY CROMWELL single ‘Cold Christmas’ via Happy Robots Records

https://www.facebook.com/rodneycromwellartist

SOFTWAVE featuring BARNEY ASHTON-BULLOCK Will It Ever Be Christmas Again? (2022)

“Of the year behind that we survived and the future we’d wish to see”, ‘Will It Ever Be Christmas Again?’ was presented as “Probably the first synthpop Christmas song in Danish music history”, SOFTWAVE provided a hopeful message to hold back on overindulgence.  ‘Andy Bell Is Torsten’ writer Barney Ashton-Bullock made a Santa Claus cameo reminding everyone that “Self-service, doesn’t mean self, self, self…”

Available on the SOFTWAVE single ‘Will It Ever Be Christmas Again?’ via https://elasticstage.com/softwave/releases/will-it-ever-be-christmas-again-singleep

http://www.softwavemusic.com

GEMMA CULLINGFORD In The Bleak Midwinter (2023)

Something of a tradition having covered a variety of recent and traditional seasonal tunes like ‘Walking In The Air’, ‘Lonely This Christmas’ and ‘Deck The Halls’ in previous years, Norwich-based Gemma Cullingford took Christina Rossetti’s poem and Gustav Holst’s musical arrangement of ‘In The Bleak Midwinter’ into darker and colder electro dance territory, reflecting today’s divided world in a cost of living crisis.

Available on the GEMMA CULLINGFORD single ‘In The Bleak Midwinter’ via Elmo Records

https://www.gemmacullingford.co.uk/

A further varied collection of seasonal synth based tunes compiled by ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK can be listened to at: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/7vIIjZkGd3cVOSarUPvX85

Text by Chi Ming Lai
2nd December 2023

ASPRA Presents: Play For Tomorrow Vol1

27 February 2023 /

Best known as one half of the Greek synthpop duo MARSHEAUX, Sophia Sarigiannidou launched her solo project ASPRA in 2022

Her first single was ‘Velvet’, an electronic rework of the 4AD cult shoegaze duo THE BIG PINK while on the flip was another cover in ‘Anoint’, a song originally by John Peel favourites THE FIELD MICE. While these choices were unexpected, it did point to Sarigiannidou’s own leftfield tastes. There was also two fabulous collaborations with veteran electronic composer Lena Platonos, prosed unexpectedly en Français.

“I started going to the neighborhood record store and asking them to write me tapes. I bought the ‘Machines’ compilation LP. The disc starts with ‘Messages’ by OMD. What a shock that was… within 3 minutes so many different tunes alternated, one better than the other.” she said, “Through this record, I discovered Fad Gadget, Gary Numan and John Foxx! That afternoon the living room of the house in Thessaloniki was transformed into a window into a future era! It was written everywhere that ‘the synthesizer is the sound of the future’. Mine certainly was!”

Compiling a collection of rare and less obvious post-punk and synth tracks in the spirit of ‘Machines’ from 1977-1985, ‘ASPRA presents: Play For Tomorrow Vol.1’ sees Sarigiannidou offer a snapshot into her creative outlook with songs that four decades on have shown themselves to be “timeless jewels that you can play for today or play for tomorrow…”

While OMD are among the better known acts in the selection with the wistful ‘Of All The Things We’ve Made’ along with ULTRAVOX’s superb ‘Just For A Moment’, the others are more obscure but no less essential. Complimenting these two choices, ‘Karussell’ by Michael Rother of NEU! highlights the German musician’s influence on the aural aesthetics of both.

With wispy vocals and joyfully handled keys, Chris & Cosey’s wonderful ‘October (Love Song)’ was the antithesis of their parent group THROBBING GRISTLE and covered by MARSHEAUX in Greek for their debut album ‘E-Bay Queen’ in 2004. Another highlight is the TB303 driven cinematic synthpop of ‘Mystery & Confusion’ by TUXEDOMOON leader Blaine L Reininger which exudes a Eurocentric spirit as per its title and deserves wider recognition.

But the collection begins with the spacey avant folk of ‘UFO Report No.1’ by THE GADGETS, a track recorded in 1979 and featuring a very young pre-THE THE Matt Johnson. Despite its dour vocal delivery, 1982’s ‘Love Disgrace’ from Italian duo AMIN PECK is immensely catchy with its pulses, chops and glorious synth lines. Meanwhile New Zealand’s CAR CRASH SET earn their place with ‘Fall From Grace’ where deep sombre vocals contrast with a sparkling but gritty mechanical roll over 8 minutes.

Mute Records founder Daniel Miller finds two of his productions included; the dystopian minimal synth of ‘Music To Save The World By’ was the B-side from a one-off single on Cherry Red Records by the little known Alan Burnham while planting the seed of KOMPUTER, ‘Still Smiling’ by I START COUNTING has an innocent charm with those distinctive metallic tinges circa 1985. From that same year, French trio RUTH are eccentric but stylish on their debut single ‘Polaroïd/Roman/Photo’ crossing the detached with the playful while another curveball is thrown when the muted brass kicks in.

Α new wave duo with hints of THE VELVET UNDERGROUND but with a heated Italian vibe rather than the Götterdämmerung of Nico, CHRISMA’s ‘Black Silk Stocking’ was a 1978 single was produced and co-written by Vangelis’ brother, Nikko Papathanasiou. THE BUGGLES maybe best known for ‘Video Killed The Radio Star’ but the duo of Trevor Horn and Geoff Downes actually made a second album ‘Adventures In Modern Recording’ in 1981; from it, ‘On TV’ is enjoyably oddball while employing exotic Eastern flavours not unlike LANDSCAPE.

Last but not least THE ELECTRONIC CIRCUS’ spirited anti-war anthem ‘Direct Lines’ is sadly still relevant 42 years after its release. In what turned out to be a one-off project led by Gary Numan keyboardist Chris Payne, the resigned hopelessness is captured by the vocals of Penny Heathcote, frontwoman of Brighton band CORVETTES who themselves only issued one single.

‘Play For Tomorrow Vol.1’ is a superb compilation that will appeal to long standing music fans who love discovering music from the imperial pioneering phase of electronic pop that may have fallen under the radar back in the day.

Sophia Sarigiannidou has done a fantastic curation job and it will be interesting to see how these influences might permeate into the soundscapes of the eventual debut ASPRA album.

‘Play For Tomorrow Vol.1’ is released as a CD, available from https://deejaydead.de/en/aspra-presents-play-for-tomorrow-vol-1-limited-cd-digipack-2022 and https://www.poponaut.de/various-artists-play-tomorrow-limited-edition-p-22006.html

https://www.instagram.com/thisisaspra/

Text by Chi Ming Lai
27th February 2023

Introducing ASPRA

13 June 2022 /

ASPRA is the ethereal new project of Sophia Sarigiannidou, best known as one half of the Greek synthpop duo MARSHEAUX.

Although the last album of original material from MARSHEAUX was ‘Ath.Lon’ in 2016, she has been writing, compiling and recording songs over a number of years with the view to a solo release. Perhaps unexpectedly with her first single ‘Velvet’ in 2021, she tapped into her love of shoegaze via an electronic rework of the 4AD cult favourite by THE BIG PINK, a London duo with two long players to their name.

Sarigiannidou took the dense claustrophobic original and converted it into a more fragile atmospheric one. Swathed in crystalline electronics, it recalled mysterious otherworldly air of Julee Cruise and Jonna Lee. Backing the sold-out white vinyl single release of ‘Velvet’ was another cover in the shape of THE FIELD MICE song ‘Anoint’; originally part of a 1990 John Peel session which comprised of material that was written exclusively for it and never released, the alternative rock quintet were signed to Sarah Records but split up in 1991 after falling out during a tense tour in support their third album ‘For Keeps’. Both tracks were recorded during lockdown in Athens.

Although ASPRA’s account opened with a pair of cover versions, self-composed material is on the way with the OMD inspired instrumental ‘Experiment In Vertical Take Off’ being the first fruit of labour, accompanied by an appropriately abstract visual accompaniment.

In the meantime, two fabulous collaborations with veteran electronic composer Lena Platonos have just been released to digital platforms. The suitably enigmatic ‘Markos’ is a reworking of a track from the 1985 album ‘Γκάλοπ’ and prosed by ASPRA en Français, while more percussively swathed, ‘Kymata’ (meaning “Waves”) is a tense yet breathy slice of avant Hellectro pop.

Also in the works is ’Play For Tomorrow’, a various artists compilation curated by Sophie Sarigiannidou including tracks by artists such as Michael Rother, Chris & Cosey, Blaine Reininger as well as I START COUNTING, ELECTRONIC CIRCUS, OMD and CAR CRASH SET is set to be issued later in 2022.

The ASPRA portfolio to date can be listened to at https://open.spotify.com/artist/4zSybhZeWmCnRE73VSXmt8

https://www.instagram.com/thisisaspra/

Text by Chi Ming Lai
13th June2022

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