Your Daddy's Synthpop

“What is it about gay English synthpop duos from the ‘80s? They have style. They have relevance. They have staying power. They have a musician who is content to hide behind a computer during live shows while the singer commands the stage.”

I wrote that as the opening to a review of Pet Shop Boys’ Cubism DVD a couple of years ago. At the time I was referring specifically to the Boys and Erasure. Those same observations are also reported on and expanded upon in the excellent BBC documentary Synth Britannia.

If you’re a fan of pop music... hell, if you’re a fan of music, you need to watch this amazing documentary covering the genesis and evolution of synthpop in the UK. From the earliest heartbeats in the late ‘70s to the world-moving earthquakes of the ‘80s, this is a fantastic, uniquely British story that needed to be told. Influences like Kraftwerk and J.G. Ballard are given their due, while the growth of the genre is explored through the words and work of the people who were on the ground as the movement took shape.

Eight of the nine segments are available on YouTube. For whatever reason, that last 10-minute segment is nowhere to be found (I believe it’s a copyright issue in the US), but viewing what’s here will fuel your playlist selections for days! (Don't believe me? Check out the tracklisting from the program listed below!)

Credit to the always great folks over at Slicing Up Eyeballs for the heads up on this.

Program Tracklist
1. Depeche Mode - New Life
2. Wendy Carlos - William Tell
3. Wendy Carlos - Clockwork Orange Main Title
4. Kraftwerk - Autobahn
5. The Clash - White Riot
6. The Normal - Tvod
7. The Normal - Warm Leatherette
8. The Future - 4 Jg
9. The Human League - Being Boiled
10. Donna Summer - I Feel Love
11. Cabaret Voltaire - Seconds Too Late
12. Cabaret Voltaire - Nag Nag Nag
13. Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark - Messages
14. Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark - Enola Gay
15. Joy Division - Atmosphere
16. John Foxx - Underpass
17. Throbbing Gristle - Still Walking
18. Throbbing Gristle - Hot on the Heels of Love
19. Fad Gadget - Back to Nature
20. Silicon Teens - Memphis Tennessee
21. Gary Numan - Are Friends Electric?
22. Gary Numan - Cars
23. Visage - Fade to Grey
24. The Flying Lizards - Money
25. Depeche Mode - New Life
26. Depeche Mode - Just Can't Get Enough
27. The Human League - Don't You Want Me
28. Heaven 17 - Penthouse & Pavement
29. Cabaret Voltaire - Landslide
30. Soft Cell - Tainted Love
31. Yazoo - Only You
32. Yazoo - Don't Go
33. Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark - Maid of Orleans
34. Eurythmics - Sweet Dreams
35. Ultravox - Vienna
36. Kraftwerk - The Model
37. Depeche Mode - Everything Counts
38. Depeche Mode - Master and Servant
39. Pet Shop Boys - West End Girls
40. New Order - Ceremony
41. New Order - Blue Monday
42. Philip Oakey & Giorgio Moroder - Together in Electric Dreams