Best of 80s synth pop
 

Recently I've been seriously hung up on The Human League (thanks to the best pop albums thread I think), specifically Darkness, Love action and Don't you love me. Don't really care for the rest of the album, but these songs are pretty addictive.

Here's Love action:


Post some quality 80s synth tunes please...(:

I always liked Devo's "Whip It" (1980) and, of course, one of my favorite songs of all time, Depeche Mode's "Personal Jesus" :love: (released 1989). Do you think "Pesonal Jesus" still counts as synth pop, adidasss? It seems to use less synthesizer than their other songs.

Before I watched the "Personal Jesus" video, I always thought it was simply a great song that opposes religion in an appealingly sacrilegious way. Then, after watching the video, I thought it was about prostitutes. (I was disappointed, because I love atheist songs.) But today I learned something new about the intended meaning behind "Personal Jesus":

So...thinking back to the "Personal Jesus" video, if prostitutes are like Jesus, then I guess paying for sex is just a variation of a religious tithe! How convenient!

Devo - "Whip It" (1980):



Depeche Mode - "Personal Jesus" (1989):

I would say anything before Music for the Masses was sync pop for DM. After that they really evolved. Violator was the fist album to introduce their use of guitar and pull away from the sync stuff.

Both good choices veg...:)

Pet Shop Boys-Heart

ABC-The Look Of Love

^good call on Pet Shop Boys. I love the whole 'actually' album.

I'll submit an obvious one: Blue Monday by New Order


edit for some more New Order:
Bizarre Love Triangle


Touched by the Hand of God

Party Fears Two-The Associates

When Loves Breaks Down-Prefab Sprout

Wood Beez-Scritti Politti

That's what I thought, Vancouver..."Personal Jesus" isn't like their earlier synth stuff...but I like the song so much I wanted to post it anyway, hoping it would pass! :)

Thanks adidasss! I don't know much about music genres, so I don't want to post something completely wrong!

My NEXT synth pop song for your thread IS ONE OF MY FAVORITE SONGS OF ALL TIME!!!! Peter Schilling's "Major Tom." Since Peter Schilling is supposed to be a synthpop musician, I hope this song counts!

I like both the German and English versions of "Major Tom." I could listen to this song again and again. I remember being in a high-rise hotel in Kenya in Nairobi when this song came on a radio station. I was ecstatic! It seemed very surreal to hear the song there.

Why do I love this song? I love the hard driving beat and the synth sounds, the story, the gritty rhythm guitar, the bursts of guitar chords, the feeling of suspense, the smooth, silky vocals, and the angelic-feeling chorus that sweeps me away.

When I listen to this song, I always feel like an astronaut looking down on my beloved earth, feeling the distance from my human family (all you folks) growing, growing, growing...ending in the apparent final isolation of a single human life. I don't get how the protagonist can end up alive, though. Where does he come home to in space? What does this mean? I ponder...

Peter Schilling - "Major Tom" (1983) (English):



Peter Schilling - "Major Tom (Völlig losgelöst)" (1983) (German):

My personal taste go for the Belgians of Front 242.

^I wouldn't regard Front 242 as synth pop though!

Since I'm norwegian, I should of course mention A-Ha. Take on Me from their album "Hunting High and Low", while not as good as the title track, might just be the definitive synth pop song for me.




I also think Tears for Fears deserves mention here :) I don't listen to a lot of synth pop, but I like quite a few of their songs. Of couse I remember them from when I was a kid.




And then, just to squeeze in a curiosity, here's Klaus Nomi :



He's not in his traditional get-up here, but the song is so brilliant :D

I've rattled on about Scritti Politti's Cupid & Psyche a few times before here, which isn't strictly synth-pop (there's a lot more funk in there than usual), but it'd be my favourite 80s pop album if it weren't for the Human League.

There aren't many videos of it on youtube, so here are some LastFM links...

Small Talk
Perfect Way
Lover To Fall

I dunno, i think Depeche Mode and New Order were churning out some pretty awesome synth pop all through the eighties.... I know I'd definitely take anything by them from that era, for sure...

This one is rather memorable to me .. Sandra's "(I'll Never Be) Maria Magdalena", most successful single in Norway, 1985 :D



For added trivia, she was also married to the Enigma guy, Michael Cretu. She was widely popular here in Europe, but have you americans heard this one before?

She had Keytar player too, which puts her at the forefront of all things "80's" and "synth"...

Ultravox should have a mention as well here. One of my favorite synth bands.



Flock of Seagulls as well.

Listen to Japan.

What a track:

Dass ist sehr gute Musik, ja!? You stolen my thunder, I was going to say pretty much everything you said, except the part about hotel in Nairobi.

Another song I was going to pick. I thought it was a pretty good debut album altogether, don't you think?

I wanted to lead off with this song, it's one of my all-time favorite songs including all genres. I think it's one of the best Love songs of the 80's. (That's what we need, more Synth-Torch song, if there's such a thing.)


I really don't know the diffence nuances between calling something New Wave, Synth Pop or 80's Pop.
I love Missing Persons, they were one of the best bands in the 80's with an errie futuristic synth sound. There were a couple of songs I was thinking of posting by The Fixx, hard to choice from, so I went with Red Skies at Night. The Motels are a great band, this song isn't too synthy; it sounds more like a synth imitating a Fender Rhodes, but overall it's still a great song. INXS Don't Change (I hope it's not to overplayed for anyone) I still like and think it's one of those songs that defined 80's music.

I TOTALLY forgot about INXS 's Don't Change... it's actually quite an amazingly tuneful melodic song, definitely one of the best things they did pre - fame / big bucks... sounds a bit like some of the Church's earlier stuff, probably why i like it.... hehehehehe

Another few synth groups I would put up are Erasure, Alphaville, Secret Service, Fiction Factory, Men Without Hats, and Falco (although not a group). I agree with Neapolitan's post about the genre blendning..I think alot of groups in the eighties can be considered synth but then someone else will just classify them into another genre. Ah well, I just put them all in my "good" category :)

A 80's synth pop list without yazoo is almost criminal. :p:

Anyone remember the group "Expose"?! lol

Love taht yazoo- situation video!! just posted it to my fb :)

Erasure - A Little Respect...Great Tune!

Hey! I haven't listened to Erasure in YEARS!!!! So I listened to "A Little Respect" again to remind myself because I actually forgot this duo existed until reading your post. I used to listen to them a lot in the 80s! Now I'm going to listen to more of their music to remind myself of what they sing.

Yes, I liked "A Little Respect" quite a bit. I just watched the video, never knowing what the main singer looked like. He looks like someone with a lot of personality!

The other song of theirs I liked was "Oh L'Amour," mentioned earlier by Liljagare. I just listened to it again...probably the first time in 20 years. Wow. That takes me back in time. I like the aching feeling of their music.

Pet Shop Boys are releasing a limited edition single... hmmmm

Pet Shop Boys — Home

I would also like to add Nick Kershaw and Howard Jones to this list (ok maybe I am bumping this thread so that it stays above the Ke$ha thread for at least a few minutes and because I think they deserve that).
"




and Gary Numan of course (with Bill Sharpe in this one).

Howard Jones.... i totally thought that guy was the shit when I was a kid in the eighties, I really have no idea why...

There are only two reasons to like him. Either it was the music (which I still like ) or the hair. Of course, this pretty much applies to all eighties music now that I think about it...

have to agree with Howard Jones being awesome. always liked this one best



and the hair is definitely not doing it hahahaha

also, how the hell does an 80s synth pop thread get to 4 pages without Duran Duran???



they just don't make them like they used to hahaha

Howard Jones did have some pretty darn catchy tunes goin' on... my eight year old brain was probably pretty easily sucked in to that...

The Fixx - One thing leads to another.
 

The Fixx - One thing leads to another, is one of my favorite from this specific era & genre. Howard Jones was always a fav, and Duran Duran too.

1. The OMD Singles by Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark
2. Thompson Twins - Greatest Hits by Thompson Twins
3. Shout: The Very Best of Tears for Fears by Tears For Fears
4. The Best of Howard Jones by Howard Jones
5. Natural History: The Very Best of Talk Talk by Talk Talk
6. Discography: The Complete Singles Collection by Pet Shop Boys
7. The Best of New Order by New Order
8. POP! - 20 Hits by Erasure
9. The Best of Yaz by Yaz
10. Seven and the Ragged Tiger by Duran Duran

I can't believe I haven't seen this thread before. I absolutely love synth pop, so I'll repeat what I posted in the new wave thread, 'cause these are such great songs: Visage and Gary Numan


But I'll add something more: Soft Cell


My favorite electro pop is the one with a more raw sound and a punk immediacy like Fad Gadget and those German EBM bands like DAF and early Die Krupps



But, my absolute favorite I discovered recently: a New York minimal synth band Dark Day led by Robin Crutchfield, ex-DNA member (of No Wave scene). A catchy, hypnotic quality - what more can you ask from a synth band. These two songs below are from Exterminating Angel (1980)

surely a flock of seagulls?

Don't forget the unmistakable sound of Ceta Javu. The lead singer is now a professor of geography in a university somewhere in Europe.

I'd never heard of Dark Day before, dankstra. Your description is spot on...a catchy, hypnotic quality.

Lovely song! I like the hard beat contrasting with the pretty bell-like tones.

Don't this was posted yet: