INXS – Pub rock that learned to slide
Formed in Sydney in 1977 as the Farriss Brothers, INXS spent a decade in Australian pubs before Kick (1987) put Michael Hutchence on charts outside Australia.
Massive Attack – Bristol bass that darkened the clubs
Massive Attack came out of Bristol's Wild Bunch. Blue Lines, released in April 1991, is the album the UK press later called trip-hop.
Grace Jones – Marble, bass and a stare
Grace Jones does not ease into a song: Compass Point sessions, Nightclubbing, and a visual method as strict as the bass.
The Cure – A Forest
The Cure's A Forest (Seventeen Seconds, 1980): Gallup bass first, Smith chase, Fiction single, UK No. 31.
Air – Sexy Boy
Air’s Sexy Boy (Moon Safari, 1998): Höfner through a guitar amp, Godin/Dunckel, Virgin hit.
Soft Cell – Tainted Love
Soft Cell’s Tainted Love (1981): Gloria Jones cover, Mike Thorne, Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret, UK No. 1.
Rose Bowl 1988 – Depeche Mode
On 18 June 1988 Depeche Mode closed the Music for the Masses tour in front of 60,453 people at the Rose Bowl, and the crowd waved their arms through Never Let Me Down Again.
Yazoo – Don’t Go
Yazoo’s Don’t Go (1982): Vince Clarke B-side for Only You, Alison Moyet, Blackwing/Mute, UK No. 3.
What if Depeche Mode had broken up after Violator?
Depeche Mode stops after the World Violation tour, leaving Violator as the last album and four separate careers.
Erasure – A Little Respect
Erasure’s A Little Respect (The Innocents, 1988): Clarke/Bell, Stephen Hague, Section 28 context, UK No. 14.