Synth-pop is a music genre that first became prominent in the late 1970s and features the synthesizer as the dominant musical instrument. It was prefigured in the 1960s and early 1970s by the use of synthesizers in progressive rock, electronic, art rock, disco, and particularly the Krautrock of bands like Kraftwerk. It arose as a distinct genre in Japan and the United Kingdom in the post-punk era as part of the new wave movement of the late 1970s.
Who's Afraid of the Art of Noise? is the debut studio album by the English avant-garde synth-pop group Art of Noise, released on 19 June 1984 by ZTT Records.
"Heavenly Action" is a song by English synth-pop duo Erasure, released in November 1985 as their second single. It is a mid-tempo pop song, written by Erasure members Vince Clarke and Andy Bell as a straightforward ode to love. Issued by Mute Records in the UK and Sire Records in the U.S., the single proved to be the second commercial failure for the duo. The music video for the song was directed by John Scarlett Davies and produced by Nick Verden for Aldabra. It features Clarke and Bell in an outer space/celestial setting, with several young children appearing as angels. To this day, "Heavenly Action" remains Erasure's lowest-charting single on the UK Singles Chart, peaking at number 100. In the United States, "Heavenly Action" was paired with "Who Needs Love Like That" on the 12-inch single and, as a double-sided hit, climbed to number eight on the U.S. Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart. It was later included on the duo's debut album Wonderland, released in June 1986.
Turnaround is the fourth studio album by Irish boy band Westlife, released on 24 November 2003 by BMG. The first single released was the upbeat track, "Hey Whatever". The next single was a cover of the Barry Manilow hit, "Mandy". The band's version earned them their 12th UK number one and an Irish record of the year award. "Obvious", an original song, was the third and final single released from the album.
We Are the Night is the sixth studio album by English electronic music duo the Chemical Brothers, released on 2 July 2007 by Freestyle Dust, Virgin and Astralwerks.
Cardinology is the tenth studio album by Ryan Adams, and fourth album with his backing band The Cardinals, released on October 28, 2008. The album completed Adams' contract with Lost Highway Records, and marks his final recording session with The Cardinals. Following the album's release and subsequent tour, Adams disbanded the band and entered a self-imposed hiatus until the release of Ashes & Fire, in 2011.
Reality Killed the Video Star is the eighth solo studio album by English singer-songwriter Robbie Williams, released in November 2009. The album was produced by Trevor Horn and recorded between September 2008 and August 2009 in London and Los Angeles. It debuted in the top ten of 22 national album charts worldwide, and has received varying reviews from music critics. It incorporates elements of pop rock, dance-rock, alternative rock and adult contemporary music. Reality Killed the Video Star was viewed by critics and fans as being Williams' "comeback album" after the relative failure of his 2006 release, Rudebox.
The Night Before is the 11th studio album by British rock band James, serving as the first of two mini-albums. Following the release of their 10th studio album Hey Ma (2008), the band sought to experiment and take risks for their next record. They worked on material and uploaded it to a FTP server, for download by others. After three months, Lee Muddy Baker pieced the tracks together. The Night Before is a power pop and space rock release, with individual track comparisons to U2, Joy Division and Cocteau Twins. Preceded by a UK tour, The Night Before was released on 19 April 2010. The album reached number 20 in the UK, and received a mainly favourable response from music critics, with a few of them finding it an enjoyable record.
The Sound of Arrows are a Swedish electronic music duo originally from Gävle, and now based in Stockholm. The duo, consisting of Oskar Gullstrand and Stefan Storm, have remixed tracks for artists such as Lady Gaga, Alphabeat, The Naked and Famous, Natalia Kills and Nicole Scherzinger. They also produced the song "Shoot the Bullet" for electropop artist Queen of Hearts.
The Sea of Memories is the fifth studio album by English alternative rock band Bush, released on 13 September 2011 through Zuma Rock Records, eOne Music and earMUSIC. It is the band's first studio album in ten years, following 2001's Golden State, and the first to be recorded with Chris Traynor and Corey Britz on lead guitar and bass, respectively. It is also the first Bush album released on E1 Records, marking their first venture away from Interscope, who handled all of their previous releases. The album's title comes from a line in the song "Baby Come Home". The cover art is by Los Angeles-based street artist, RETNA.
"Indestructible" is a song by Swedish recording artist Robyn, taken from her seventh studio album Body Talk (2010). The song was written by Robyn and Klas Åhlund, and produced by Åhlund. It was released as the lead single from Body Talk on 1 November 2010 in Sweden and one day later in the United States. The song was previously heard, in an acoustic form, as the final track on Body Talk Pt. 2, released in September 2010. The song was one of the first to be recorded for the Body Talk series, but Robyn saved it for later to give it a chance of becoming a single.
Outta This World is the second studio album from English boy band and The X Factor runners-up JLS. It was released in Ireland on 19 November 2010 and in the United Kingdom on 22 November 2010. The album received negative to mixed reviews from music critics. It debuted at number two in the UK, and at number four in Ireland, selling 152,000 copies in its first week in the UK. Since its release, the album has sold over 650,000 copies.
III/IV is the 12th studio album by alt-country singer-songwriter Ryan Adams, released on December 14, 2010 through PAX AM. The album is his fifth with backing band The Cardinals, and was recorded in 2006 during the same sessions that yielded Easy Tiger. A double album, III/IV was recorded prior to bassist Catherine Popper's departure, and also marks guitarist and backing vocalist Neal Casal's recording debut for the band. According to Adams, the album remained unreleased until 2010, as his former label, Lost Highway, had previously rejected it.
The Night the Sun Came Up is the debut studio album by American recording artist Dev, released on September 2, 2011 by Universal Republic Records. Dev worked exclusively with American Electropop production duo The Cataracs and Alan De la Rosa, who helmed the production of the entire album along with co-writing songs with Dev. Production on the album took place mainly in January 2011 and continued into 2012 as the North American release date for the album was delayed from September 20, 2011 to January 10, 2012 as per Dev's request to add more songs to the album, with Amazon.com announcing that the North American release would be pushed back further to March 26, 2012.
The discography of The Sound of Arrows, a Swedish synthpop duo composed of singer Stefan Storm and synth player Oskar Gullstrand, consists of two extended play, three singles, seven music videos and a number of other appearances.
"Witches' Brew" is a song recorded by British dance recording artist Katy B, for her 2011 debut studio album On a Mission. Written by the singer, Geeneus and Sam Frank, along with the song's producer, DJ Zinc, the song is styled in the genre of electro music, while infusing breakbeat. Its production centers on the usage of synthesizers; the lyrics revolve around luring in a lover using spells and potions. It was released by Rinse and Columbia Records as the album's fifth and final single, on 28 August 2011.
Lightning is the fourth studio album from the indie pop duo Matt & Kim, written, produced, performed and recorded by them in their New York apartment between January and July 2012, using Logic Pro. The ten-track set is an electronic indie pop album which member Matt Johnson described as being upbeat, while on some tracks being a little darker. The group decided "to do as little possible to the songs production-wise and still have them be strong" unlike their previous studio project Sidewalks.
"On the Metro" is a song by British all-female pop group Girls Aloud, recorded and taken from their second greatest hits compilation Ten (2012). The song was written by Girls Aloud member Nicola Roberts, along with its producers Jason Pebworth, George Astasio, Shave and Dan Stein, otherwise known by The Invisible Men and DJ Fresh.
Reptilians is the third studio album by the American electronic indie rock band Strfkr. Departing from the light feel of their previous work, Jupiter (2009), the twelve-track Reptilians includes lyrics by Joshua Hodges about death and the end of the world, while musically not sounding depressing. One of the ways these theories are supported is using samples of British-American philosopher Alan Watts in some of the tracks. Finished in November 2010 and released on March 8, 2011 by Polyvinyl Records, two singles were issued from Reptilians, which was "Julius" in late 2010 and "Bury Us Alive" in January 2011. Upon its release, the album earned mostly positive reviews from music critics, with praise going towards the band's development from their previous records and re-listening value. On the American Billboard Top Heatseekers chart, it entered at number 26.
Queen of the Clouds is the debut studio album by Swedish singer Tove Lo, released on 24 September 2014 by Island Records. The album follows her first extended play Truth Serum (2014) and includes the successful singles "Habits " and "Talking Body". Lo worked with several writers and producers such as The Struts, Klas Åhlund, Alexander Kronlund, Alx Reuterskiöld, and Captain Cuts. Musically, Queen of the Clouds is primarily a electropop, dance-pop and synth-pop record. Lyrically, the album's themes center on the stages of a relationship, including passion, love and break-ups.
