Thursday, May 1, 2014




If you check out The Human League‘s 1981 album Dare (also consider the special edition "Dare/Love and Dancing" featuring remixed instrumental versions of the album’s original songs) you might be surprised, both at its fresh sound and how the group influenced modern artists such as She Wants Revenge, Moby, and Little Boots.
In a recent issue of MixMag, synth pop star Grum lists Dare as one of the albums he credits for influencing his field. He writes: "…the album is very electronic while having a real human song writing warmth to it, and that’s something I really admire." Grum adds that The Human League was experimenting with different techno dance sounds before a lot of 80s groups were.

"Don’t You Want Me?" is considered the group’s biggest hit, but the rest of Dare is something else altogether, yet often left behind. If you ask me, "Don’t" is a pretty good song (still sounding great all these years later!) in itself. There’s a special place inside my heart for this song since it was one of the very first 45s I remember buying at a local Harmony Hut.

Tracks such as "Darkness," "Seconds," and "The Sound of the Crowd" carry a tinge of despair I didn’t catch when I was a kid. "Seconds" in particular is very somber and contemplative and might have escaped the attention of an 11-year-old just looking for a good beat. But as an adult who also likes some meat on the bones of a good song, "Seconds" is wonderful and clocks in at just under five minutes, yet it feels much longer — as if it’s carrying you along in a wave of sadness that has never sounded so mellow or alluring.

 "The Things That Dreams Are Made Of" is easily the most dance accessible song on the CD…I love it the most!





and on another 80s note (though completely different in any music sense)a great little write-up in a recent issue of Classic Pop:


 

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