Retrovision: Ultravox - Passing Strangers

Ultravox' video for the song Passing Strangers has been remastered. The song was released in 1980 and was the second Ultravox with Midge Ure on voclas.

Instant Hit: Modern English - Gathering Dust

"Gathering Dust" was the third single by Modern English released 40 years ago. It is a pretty much atmospheric track, loud and turning into explosion of sound. Similar to the music their contemporaries like Joy Division and A Certain Ratio did it shows a perfect examples of Post Punk aesthetics.

Retrovision: Mental As Anything - Come Around

"Come Around" was the four single release from young Mental as Anything. released in 1980. The song as taken from their second album Espresso Bongo which went Gold in their native Australia. As all early group members were visual artists, the majority of video clips have been designed and created by the band members or their art school contemporaries.

Instant Hit: Was (Not Was) - Wheel Me Out

"Wheel Me Out" was the debut single released by Was (Not Was) in 1980. Forty years after this is  still enjoyable and nice offering of  pop funk and electro groove in a Post disco wrap. In 1981 the song appeared in Seize the Beat (Dance Ze Dance) compilation.

Joy Division's 40th Anniversary Reissues

Joy Division's second album Closer has been reissued as part of the 40th Anniversary as limited edition ‘crystal clear’ vinyl LP. The three non-album singles,"Transmission", "Atmosphere" and "Love Will Tear Us Apart", are also being reissued as 12" singles at the same time as the album. The reissue is set for release on July 18th.  This release also marks 40 years of Ian Curtis' death who died on May 18th 1980.

Instant Hit: Pink Military- Did You See Her?

"Did You See Her" was the second single for Pink Military, released 38 years ago in 1980. The songs was also included on their debut album Do Animals Believe in God. There were two different version of the songs, the Album and Single version. Although this songs has huge potential, being in the same league with the some of the biggest hits from Siouxie and The Banshees and Echo & The Bunnymen at that time, it only remained a hidden gem. The group split soon after and Jayne Casey went on to form Pink Industry.

Instant Hit: Barbi and the Kens- I'm Not Your Stepping Stone

Barbi and the Kens was one of the several project of Bobby Orlando projects released in the early 80's. Under this moniker he released only one mini LP in 1980 which featured 4 track including the title track "Just a Gigolo" which even managed to enter the Billboard Club Play charts. Later throughout the 80's he even manage to become one of the most prolific Hi-Nrg produces which besides of producing his own acts, resulted in a collaboration with Divine and Pet Shop Boys. Even today he is still releasing albums. Here for you, the bouncy "I'm Not Your Stepping Stone" 

Ultravox' - Ultra Box Set Announced for Late October

Chrysalis Records have announced the release of a new Ultravox box set. 'The Albums 1980-2012' is a nine-CD collection featuring the six Midge Ure era studio albums – 'Vienna' (1980), 'Rage in Eden' (1981), 'Quartet' (1982), 'Lament' (1984) and 'U-Vox' (1986) – as well as live records 'Monument' (1983) and 'Return to Eden' (2009). The story is brought right back up to date with the inclusion of 'Brilliant', last year’s studio album featuring the classic line-up after a recording hiatus of almost three decades. All the LPs from the 1980s have been newly remastered by Steve Rooke at Abbey Road Studios. 

The CDs will be in card sleeves and housed in a clamshell box. The Albums 1980-2012 is released on 28 October 2013.

Source:

http://www.superdeluxeedition.com/news/

Minimal Wave to Reissue Blancmange Debut EP Irene and Mavis

Minimal Wave have announced the release of Blancmange seminal debut EP 'Irene & Mavis' in November, 2013. This EP was originally recorded in 1979, released in 1980 and it was a different sound and not exactly representative of what Blancmange later went on to become. The D.I.Y. sound of the EP fits right in there with the early output of Soft Cell, the Human League, and Cabaret Voltaire. It stands out as an important record, capturing the mundane with modern electronics and remains as an artifact representative of the band before they went on to reach pop chart success. 

 The Irene & Mavis EP has been newly remastered and will be released as a numbered limited edition 10” EP in November. A digital release will follow.

Retrovision: OMD- Messages

OMD released their third single "Messages" in May 1980 and the song entered the UK charts #31 and managed to climb to number #13. The song was taken from OMD's eponymous debut album and it was released as 7" and 10" record. The second version also featured the cover of Velvet Underground's "Waiting for The Man". Today the guys are still active as a duo and have released their 12th studio album "English Electric". Their latest single "Dresden" is out this month.

 

Wire to Release a New Album in March 2013

Wire have announced a new album for March next year. The album will be entitled 'Change Becomes Us' and as it is reported, it will include some unrecorded material originally written in 1979–80 which had only ever existed as quickly prepared sketches for one-off performance. This album is also the first time where Matthew Simms, previously Wire's touring guitarist, has been an integral part of the Wire recording process. The 13 track record is due on March 25, 2013 and we hope to get more official news soon. 

Zaine Griff Reissues

Zaine Griff's first two studio albums 'Ashed and Diamonds' and 'Figvres' have been reissued for the first time by Amplifier. The Auckland born singer who formed part of the English New wave scene and who was under a strong influence of David Bowie released these albums in the early 80's. 

His debut album 'Ashes and Diamonds' was produced by Tony Visconti, famous for his work with David Bowie. They met and re-recorded three songs with Zaine Griff's band. The album was issued in 1980 and featured the singles "Ashes and Diamonds" and "Run". Zaine's second album 'Figvres' was released two years later, in 1982 by Polydor. It was produced by Hans Zimmer and featured a great line-up of artist who collaborated on it including Warren Can, Yukihiro Takahashi and Kate Bush. The album featured the singles "Figvres" and "Flowers" the wonderful duet with Kate Bush. 

Zaine has released his third album 'Child Who Wants The Moon' in 2011 and currently, he is working on his fourth album which is expected to be released in winter 2012. 

http://www.zainegriff.co.uk/home.html 

Lost Videos: Pauline Murray & The Invisible Girls - Mr X

Here is one of the rare music videos we stumbled upon recently. It is by Pauline Murray and the Invisible Girls who released it in 1980. "Mister X" was the second single which was also appeared on their self titled debut album released during the same year. The single was backed by "Two Shots" and it was written by Martin Hannett. Sadly there is no info about the video. Poor quality fragment, but still great to have it around on YouTube.

 

Lost Videos: Nini Raviolette - Suis-Je Normale?

Nini Raviolette made her debut 32 years ago with her only single release "Suis-Je Normale?". This minimal-synth gem appeared on a compilation album 'So Young But So Cold: Underground French Music 1977-1983'. Enjoy the artwork of squares, hearts, lips and blips.

Reissue: Robin Crutchfield's Dark Day- Exterminating Angel

Dark Entries will reissue Exterminating Angel by Dark Day in April. The record was originally released in 1980 and featured 13 experimental tracks written and produced by Robin Crutchfield. The album was originally released on Vinyl and featured the single "Trapped" which was released in 1981. Now it's available through amazon.com and it will also be reissued on Vinyl.

Bron Area

Bron Area was a British duo formed in 1979 in Nuneaton in England. Originally the group consisted of Martin Packwood and Steven Parker who had been involved in a number of bands before starting Bron Area. Steven had been playing piano for 4 years and sang in a punk band Addix through ’77. Martin had played 'My Way' to drunks in social clubs on the organ for some time. They recorded their debut cassette album for Ambivalent Scale Recordings in 1980 with the title 'One Year'. The album featured experimental sound mixing raw electronic collages with post punk sound.

The band's first official Single EP 'Fragile Sentences' was released in 1981 with the wonderful "Green Avenue" as a b-side. David Barker of 'Glass Records' approached the band after having heard 2 songs from the Alternative Sounds fanzines compilation tape Facet 1 and asked them to appear on his 'Wonderful World of Glass Vol. 1 LP'. Bron Area were signed to 'Glass' at the beginning of 1982. The first vinyl was a 12” Ep entitled "Different Phrases" released in March ’82 and later released as a 7” on 'Posh Boy Records' in the USA. With the release of their second record few more musicians were recruited which changed their music and gave the their following LP 'The Trees and the Villages' which appeared in 1982 a fresh new sound.

The founding members of Bron Area Martin Packwood and Steven Parker both released new material after the split of  Bron Area. Steven Parker recorded another cassette album with Kevin Harrison in the same year, while Martin Packwood was credited for playing bass on Martyn Ware's solo LP released in 1987.
Bron Area's recording material has never been reissued on CD.

Source: http://www.eyelessingaza.com/bron.html

Best of 1980 - Top 50 Singles List

It was an interesting year at the crossroads, still very influenced by the 70s music and culture, but also slowly opening the doors to the new decade and adopting new trends and styles. Blondie, ABBA, The Police and The Jam still ruled the charts. David Bowie scored his second number one hit this year, while Kate Bush became the first British female artist to have a No.1 album. It was also a sad year in music as the music world lost two very influential musical artists and iconic figures. Ian Curtis of Joy Division hanged himself just days before the US Tour kick off and John Lennon was shot dead outside his apartment building in New York City, both leaving their families and thousands of fans in mourning and sorrow. The year ended with John Lennon's song "Just Like Starting Over" reaching number one in the UK charts, announcing the new decade.

01. Joy Division- Love Will Tear Us Apart 

02. Visage- Fade to Grey 

03. Orchestral Manouvers in the Dark- Enola Gay 

04. Joy Division- Atmosphere 

05. David Bowie- Ashes to Ashes

06. The Cure- A Forest 

07. Spandau Ballet- To Cut A Long Story Short

08. Blondie- Atomic 

09. The Korgis - Everybody's Gotta Learn Sometimes 

10. Siouxsie and the Banshees- Happy House 

11. Peter Gabriel- Games Without The Frontiers 
12. Robert Palmer - Johnny and Mary

13. John Foxx- Underpass

14. Martha and The Muffins- Echo Beach

15. The Clash - Train in Vain
16. The Jam- Going Underground

17. Kate Bush- Babooska 

18. The Ramones - I Wanna Be Sedated

19. Bauhaus - Dark Entries

20. Ultravox- Passing Strangers 

Instant Hit: Taxi Girl- Cherchez Le Garçon

"Cherchez Le Garçon" was the second single for the French group Taxi Girl which was released in 1980 on the Pathé EMI label. The song combines the energy of the early post punk as well as melodic synth pop soundscapes. The year 1980 also saw the release of their debut album and EP with the same name.

The Teardrop Explodes- Kilimanjaro Deluxe Reissue

Originally released in 1980, 'Kilimanjaro' was the debut album by The Teardrop Explodes. This new 3-disc deluxe set includes the original album plus a second disc rounding up the relevant non album singles and b-sides. These include the group's two initial Zoo singles, fronted by "Sleeping Gas" and "Bouncing Babies" and the post-album "Reward" which gave the group its sole Top 10 hit. Disc Three features the Teardrops' Peel sessions. The set comes with a series of newly written notes from core members Julian Cope, David Balfe and Gary Dwyer.

Instant Hit- Vivabeat- Man From China

"Man from China" was a first single for Vivabeat released in 1980. Thanks to Peter Gabriel this record saw the light of the day as he passed Vivabeat's demo tape along to his record label. It is reported that the staff was singing and whistling along to this track. They later signed a five record deal with Charisma Records.