10 Perfect New Wave Albums With No Bad Songs

The current synth-wave trend, would never have come about if it wasn't for The Human League. The group was formed in Sheffield in the late '70s. They were a bunch of sci-fi nerds, who had a penchant for the sound of the future. Indeed, their name was taken from a table top board game, in which different factions battle for galactic dominance.

The group's original sound was a dark and gloomy exploration of space age disco. But due to creative differences, the man behind the synth, Martyn Ware, quit to form his own group. This left Philip Oakey floating in space, so to speak. He had the look of an androgynous pop star, with a hair cut that was sure to turn heads at any intergalactic rave night. But, apart from being able to deliver gloomy and intriguing vocals, he was lacking in the writing department.

The answer? He hired two high school girls, Joanne Catherall and Susan Ann Sulley to dance around on stage and add their high pitched vocals to balance his oaky tone. He also pulled in Ian Burden who was a professional session musician, who added at least a modicum of song writing talent - remarkably, it worked. The result was an album of pulsing synth lines, futuristic ambience and catchy dance melodies. This was tacky, disposable synth-pop and it was great.