Duran Duran, Human League, Depeche Mode: These British New Wave Bands’ Classic Records Turn 40

CANADA – SEPTEMBER 01: Photo of DURAN DURAN; L-R: Andy Taylor, Nick Rhodes (front), John Taylor … [+] (back), Roger Taylor, Simon Le Bon – posed, studio, group shot (Photo by Peter Noble/Redferns)

Redferns

When it comes to British alternative rock albums, 1981 truly delivered the goods. At a time when the United Kingdom were in the midst of Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher’s administration, civil unrest in the form of riots, and the marriage of Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer, that year brought out some of the most arresting and innovative albums in the genres of post-punk, New Wave and synthpop from these stylish and charismatic musical acts. They launched a golden period of U.K. music for the first half of the 1980s, setting the stage for the Second British Invasion of America. Forty years later, these records from such legendary artists as the Human League, Duran Duran, the Police, Depeche Mode, the Pretenders and others still stand the test of time. Here, in no particular order, is a partial list of these now-classic records that are marking a special 40-year milestone in 2021.

Duran Duran

Duran Duran

Like Roxy Music’s 1972 self-titled record, the Fab Five’s debut record was a glimpse into the future of ’80s pop music—their merger of post-punk and disco created a sound that was vibrant, exciting and danceable. Its two most popular and enduring songs remain “Planet Earth” and “Girls on Film,” of which the latter track is forever associated with a sexy and infamous video that got banned by the BBC. Duran Duran also had some other deeply underrated cuts from the punk-ish “Careless Memories” to the exuberant “Friends of Mine.” 

The Police

Ghost in the Machine

The Police’s penultimate studio record saw the band really incorporating synthesizers and horns, as they were shifting away from the reggae rock of the first two albums Outlandos D’Amour and Regatta de Blanc. While expanding on a sound that leaned more toward progressive art rock than punk, the Police continued to craft catchy hit singles in “Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic,” “Spirits in the Material World,” and the dark and political “Invisible Sun.”

Depeche Mode

Speak and Spell

The debut album by Depeche Mode is unique in the band’s 40-year discography because it is the only one to feature keyboardist Vince Clarke, who wrote nearly all of its songs. Plus the tone of these electronic-dominated songs were poppy and lighter compared to the moody and dark material to come, following Clarke’s exit shortly after. Still, Speak and Spell contained some of the band’s best-known songs in their catalog, such as the ’80s New Wave anthem “Just Can’t Get Enough,” “New Life” and “Photographic” (the U.S. version of the album featured another Depeche Mode classic “Dreaming of Me”).

The Human League

Dare

Before Dare, the Human League recorded two albums of cold, sci-fi-leaning electronic music in the tradition of Kraftwerk and David Bowie (who once hailed them as pop music’s future). But lack of commercial success and internal division resulted in two of the original members departing to form Heaven 17. The League under singer Phil Oakey did an about-face by adding two female singers and writing more accessible songs. The result was their third album, Dare, a synthpop masterpiece containing the now-iconic hit “Don’t You Want Me” along with other winning tracks as “Love Action,” “Open Your Heart” and “The Sound of the Crowd.”

The Psychedelic Furs

Talk Talk Talk

The Furs’ second studio album could be considered a greatest hits record in itself. On Talk Talk Talk, the band, fronted by the distinct and raspy singing of Richard Butler, eases up on the dark, post-punk tone of their 1980 debut record for something a bit more approachable. There’s not a clunker in the bunch, and a good number of its songs have their found their way on future compilations: “Dumb Waiters,” “Mr. Jones,” “Into You Like a Train,” “All of This and Nothing,” and the band’s signature song “Pretty In the Pink.”

Spandau Ballet

Journeys to Glory

Today, most people associate Spandau Ballet with blue-eyed soul music due to the massive success of their 1983 album True and its title song. But as indicated on their debut record, Journeys to Glory, Spandau Ballet started out as an electropop outfit who came of age during Britain’s New Romantic scene. The album’s opening track, the very danceable “To Cut a Long Story Short,” sounded quite similar to the synthpop music of their peers like Ultravox; other notable songs from the record included “The Freeze” and “Musclebound.” Casual music listeners who only know of Spandau Ballet through the song “True” might be in for a surprise upon hearing this earlier album.

Pretenders

Pretenders II

The Chrissie Hynde-led group didn’t suffer the dreaded sophomore jinx with the sequel to their acclaimed self-titled debut: Pretenders II continued its successor’s enticing mix of post-punk. New Wave and jangle pop with beloved songs like “Message of Love,” “Day After Day,” “Talk of the Town” and “I Go to Sleep.” Pretenders II also marked the end of the band’s classic lineup, as two of its members, Pete Farndon and James Honeyman-Scott, later died prematurely from drug-related causes.

Squeeze

East Side Story

Rolling Stone once named Squeeze’s fourth record as one of its 100 Best Albums of the ’80s, and that choice was justifiable:  its greatness was mainly due to the songwriting of Chris Difford and Glenn Tilbrook that embraced New Wave, soul and country (Elvis Costello also co-produced the album in addition to singing background vocals). So many standout songs originated from East Side Story, such as “Is That Love,” “Labeled With Love,” “In Quintessence,” “Piccadilly,” and the very popular and soulful “Tempted” sung by keyboardist Paul Carrack.

Adam and the Ants

Prince Charming

The follow-up to the hugely successful Kings of the Wild Frontier album, Prince Charming continued Adam and the Ants’ hit streak at the height of their popularity between 1980 and 1981. Energetic, poppy and even experimental at times, Prince Charming essentially followed the sonic blueprint of its predecessor and featured hit singles in the form of the over-the-top title song and the rollicking rocker “Stand and Deliver.”

Soft Cell

Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret

The debut recording by duo of singer Marc Almond and keyboardist Dave Ball could be considered a New Wave/synthpop concept album tackling subjects from nightlife culture (“Seedy Films,” “Bedsitter”) to personal angst (“Frustration,” “Chips on My Shoulder”). Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret’s biggest hit, of course, was the memorable “Tainted Love,” a remake of the Gloria Jones song from 1964 that broke Soft Cell into America and eventually became their only hit in that territory.

Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark

Architecture and Morality

Before they hit it big in America with 1986’s “If You Leave” from the Pretty in Pink movie soundtrack, the Liverpool synthpop outfit Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark had earlier recorded albums that were quite experimental similar to the pioneering German collective Kraftwerk. Architecture and Morality, the group’s third studio album, is a prime example of New Wave-meets-art pop, balanced with some accessible pop-oriented material such as “Souvenir,” “Maid of Orleans” and “Joan of Arc.”

Echo and the Bunnymen

Heaven Up Here

A dark and moody contrast to their more shiny-sounding pop of their contemporaries, Echo and the Bunnymen were one of several bands from their era, alongside U2 and Simple Minds, who drew inspiration from punk’s energy and an anthemic sense of purpose. In the case of the Bunnymen—featuring by the charismatic vocals of Ian McCulloch and the zinging guitar lines of Will Sergeant—they were also particularly influenced by late ‘60s psychedelic music, especially by the Doors. Heaven Up Here ranks up there as the Liverpool’s collective finest, highlighted by such tracks as the pummeling rocker “Over the Wall,” the fiery title song, and the moving “A Promise.”

Japan

Tin Drum

Led by singer David Sylvian, Japan was linked to the New Romantic scene, even though the group began in 1974, just few years before punk’s arrival. Over the course of five albums, Japan’s music evolved from glam rock to New Wave art pop that appeared to eschew commercialism. Released in 1981, the exquisite Tin Drum was the group’s final album and yielded their biggest charting U.K. hit song to date in “Ghosts.”

Elvis Costello and the Attractions

Trust

Trust continued on Elvis Costello’s creative streak that was kicked off by his first four acclaimed albums (My Aim is True, This Year’s Model, Armed Forces, Get Happy). There’s a little bit of everything on Trust: New Wave and power pop (“From a Whisper to a Scream,” White Knuckles); sophisticated pop (“You’ll Never Be a Man,” “Clubland,” “Shot With His Own Gun”); ’50s greaser rock (“Luxembourg”); and even country (“Different Fingers”)—all of them complemented by Costello’s always distinctive and clever songwriting.

Ultravox

Rage in Eden

The British synthpop quartet were riding high off the success of their previous album, 1980’s Vienna, by the time they released the follow-up Rage in Eden the next year. The second album to feature lead singer/guitarist Midge Ure, Rage in Eden was a continuation of Vienna’s driving yet foreboding electropop; its noteworthy tracks were the sweeping “The Voice” and the baroque-sounding “The Thin Wall.”

New Order

Movement

Following the tragic suicide of their singer Ian Curtis in 1980, the remaining members of Joy Division—Bernard Sumner, Peter Hook and Stephen Morris—carried on as New Order. With the addition of Gillian Gilbert, the new group released Movement, whose sound didn’t depart too radically from Joy Division’s doomy post-punk sound (at times, the vocals of Hook and Sumner echoed Curtis’ singing style), although the electronic influences seemed more prominent. Movement was definitely a transitional album between the end of Joy Division and the start of the dance-pop sound that New Order would become much famous for as the Eighties rolled on.