Suggestions to offer to your loved ones that desire to fill your neon leggings this Christmas

Every year it seems that the last two months of the twelve dealt to us offer some of the finest releases to radio and fans. However, many releases undoubtedly are overlooked as shoppers embark on an illogical quest to find that perfect gift that they hope will impress, outshine, or even the score with gifts exchanged in the past. Why not minimize the pain of holiday shopping and just order the ‘80s aficionados on your list what they really want: new music from artists from a genre that defines who they are.

To assist you, below I have collected a register of items on my wish list this year, just in case any one should draw my name at any of the seasonal gift exchanging events yours truly will be participating in over the next few weeks. I’ve also done my best at explaining why these unforeseen releases are important to add to my collection. New music from my generation adds a little twinkle to the Celebration of the Season.

SHAKESPEARS SISTER- Songs from the Red Room (Zoom Europe): Splinter groups are often the result of internal friction catalyzed by swelling egos as they seldom last more than an album or two (Revenge, Arcadia, Porno for Pyros). However, Shakespears Sister is by far the greatest exception. Siobahn Fahey, who originated the all-girl pop act Bananarama in 1982, formed her own splinter outfit more than 20 years ago yet still finds delight in rejoining her girlie mates on stage for a choreographed sweatathon to “Venus” with the Bananas every once in a blue moon, no hard feelings. After the world wide smash single “Stay” with its chilling Grim Reaper death video from 1992’s infectious ‘Hormonally Yours’, Shakespears Sister (which jointly consisted of singer / songwriter Marcella Detroit, the one with the ‘higher-than-helium’ voice) collapsed musically when Fahey announced live at the 1993 Ivor Novello Awards that Shakespears Sister would no longer be continuing as a duo in a breathtaking moment that shocked not only the Brits, but band mate Detroit as well. Following psychotherapy to help alleviate mental exhaustion and depression, Fahey recorded another Shakespears Sister full-length (‘#3’, Polygram). However, her longstanding relationships with the label as well as with her husband (Eurithmic Dave Stewart) had ended and the record wasn’t released commercially until she reclaimed its rights and released it on her own independently in 2004 (SF Records). Following several years of spinning self-produced record cuts in various London clubs, Fahey has now returned where Sacred Heart (1989), the act’s critically acclaimed debut, left off, gazing in an atmosphere of electro-pop with frail vocals that pulse like an ER heart monitor, deep and thin. Collaborating with members of Death in Vegas and former Bananarama playmate Terry Hall (the Specials, Fun Boy Three), Fahey has confidently created a contemporary yet retro appealing album that should reprise her role as the disheartened talent that fell from the banana tree.

BANANARAMA - Viva (Fascination): While Siobahn Fahey’s version of pop may not tickle your fancy, believe it or not, her former band Bananarama are THE most successful female act of all-time outside of the U.S., selling an astonishing 40 million records internationally since 1982. Now celebrating the release of their tenth album ‘Viva’, the ladies of the Eighties are back and again, the dance floor belongs to them. Although most Americans will credit their contribution to the Karate Kid ( 1984’s “Cruel Summer”) as Bananarama’s greatest donation to pop music, who could forget their sensational cover of “Venus”, the fantastic chorus of “Love in the First Degree” or the radio-smash “I Heard a Rumor”. These dance anthems defined the alternative club scene in the 1980s. This new collection of synth-pop gems on “Viva’ continues the duo’s triumphant formula (no one member credits as lead-vocalist as members Keren Woodward and Sara Dallin share the mic on every verse and chorus) with nothing short of blazing Hi-NRG. Produced by Ian Masterson (Pet Shop Boys’ producer), Bananarama’s girl-next-door return is minty-fresh to a pop world contaminated with American Idol competitions and Disney boy bands.

a-ha - Foot of the Mountain (Warner Bros.): Truth is the Norwegian trio a-ha can’t technically be typecast as a one-hit-wonder (fact check: 1986’s “The Sun Always Shines on T.V.” was another a-ha top 20 hit) in spite of the attempts made by VH-1’s silly yet entertaining decade countdown specials. Since 1984, a-ha have racked up an astonishing 30+ hit singles on the BPI charts (U.K.), 8 full-length albums, and countless awards across Europe and America. Like the Oprah Winfrey Show, twenty-five years is simply enough. Lead singer Morten Harket is becoming more political these days (moonlighting as a voluntary spokesperson for the Pro-Life movement) and has agreed with founding members Pal Waaktaar and Magne Furuholem to retire their palindrome next year after they tour the world, including America (their first since 1986) one more time. Each of a-ha’s records are like collectible Chess pieces, some more valuable than others. “Foot of the Mountain” won’t be gauged against other releases for some time to come until the album’s forthcoming singles flow through the charts. However, as their final release, a-ha go out in fine form with Harket’s trademark falsetto vocals (he held a note in 2001 for 20 seconds in the single “Summer Moved On”, now recognized as the longest note held in pop music by the British Phonograph Institute) elegantly refined as he showers splashes of warm melodies over spongy listeners across the Globe. Hopefully, Georgians will have the opportunity to bid the group goodbye should an Atlanta date appear as tour plans for next year are finalized. We’ll keep you posted!

ECHO & THE BUNNYMEN – The Fountain (Ocean Rain Records): Since Echo & the Bunnymen reunited in 1997 after Ian McCulloch’s solo and Electrafixion period left him uninspired, each of the band’s albums made ever since have surpassed the last in excellence. In 2006, original guitarist Will Sergeant and mopey vocalist Ian McCulloch released their finest record in twenty years with the grey skied guitar pop that is ‘Siberia’. As a live act, Echo have played to greater audiences and on stage at more world festivals in the past 10 years than they ever did in the 1980s, more evidence that they have become the godfather of modern alternative rock. To accompany the release of ‘The Fountain’, Echo were set to hit the road in America last month with a stopover at the Masquerade a few weeks back. However, American tax rules overshadowed their plans and the tour was scrapped until further notice. Until the rescheduled dates surface, go out and buy the new record and prepare to add these tracks to the laundry list of Bunnymen classics that you know you can’t imagine life without.

PET SHOP BOYS - Christmas (101 Distribution): Last September, the Pet Shop Boys celebrated their 25th recording anniversary with one of the most amazing stage shows ever taken on the road. The show featured a half-dozen costume changes, walls of geometric & multidimensional props, and over two decades of hits and album cuts. Unlike many of their contemporaries that walked away from making records at the end of the Reagan era but later revived their careers by becoming a touring act-only, the Pet Shop Boys haven’t banked their future on successes made strictly from the Eighties. The synth-pop twosome have made ten applauded full-length albums (excluding the Disco series remix collections and b-side anthology) including this year’s pinnacle release ‘Yes’. Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe, the deadpan duo who maintain the Pet Shop, are closing out their 25th year with yet another anticipated release. This time however, the Boys will release their first holiday collection, an EP singularly titled (as with all of their full-lengths) ‘Christmas’. Rumors are that copies will be limited and finding the new EP in your local department store will be impractical; two reasons to make sure that ‘Christmas’ is prioritized on your wish. Online outlets such as Amazon, A Different Drum, and Tower Records are taking advanced orders now for the cd, which isn’t slated for release until mid-December (12/14), just in time to relieve you of the same monotonous holiday soundtrack that’s affixed on radio year after year.

TREVOR HORN -Slaves to the Rhythm: A Tribute to Trevor Horn. DVD (MVD Visual): So what makes Trevor Horn so important you ask? His vocals can be heard on one of the most pivotal tracks of all-time (“Video Killed the Radio Star”) during his residence as a Buggle in 1979. In 1982, he was the mastermind behind Anne Dudley’s electronic experimentation that became the Art of Noise. His gifted production talents launched careers of such exceptional artists as ABC and Seal, raising the bar of craftsmanship in the studio. He developed his own independent record label ZZT, inspiring a fresh league of other DIY labels to assist the new wave genre. In 2004, over twelve world-renowned artists reunited with Horn on stage to celebrate his legacy in pop music. The concert event, which includes farewell performances by Dollar as well as Horn’s former band the Buggles, was filmed for a DVD European release only– until now. This collection of live performances is a novelty for any fan of ‘80s pop and offers a rare opportunity to see artists such as Propaganda, the Art of Noise and even Frankie Goes to Hollywood resurrect for a special tribute to the legendary Trevor Horn.

BAD LIEUTENANT –Never Cry Another Tear (Original Signal): For those that follow the saga of Manchester’s New Order, 2008 ended on a dismal note when bassist Peter Hook announced that he’d wiped his bass-inflicted scarred hands of New Order once and for all. Based on the historical path that initiated with Joy Division, when this band suffers a crisis, members respond with innovation. Particle project bands such as Revenge, Electronic, and the Other Two were all New Order experiments as a result of internal dissatisfaction. Bad Lieutenant, featuring New Order’s lead vocalist Bernard Sumner, is the latest counter to this tribulation.

BLANK & JONES –So 80s (101 Distribution): Last year, Billboard magazine reported that 1.8 million copies of music were sold in vinyl format! A shocking blow to the digital download service provider, the return of vintage vinyl has boosted the confidence of both the industry and the phono-loyalist deejay. Even today’s hottest dance artists are rediscovering the gems of wax. For example, the renowned aces of trance duo Blank & Jones have acquired rights to spin a robust collection of new wave records in a 3-cd megamix set of rare, collectible and original 12’’ versions of alternative club hits born in the 1980s. You can expect some of the standard tracks that show up on similar compilations such as extended versions of “If you leave” by O.M.D. and “The Promise” by When in Rome, but this collection also plows deeper in the vault and includes rarities by Yazoo, Bryan Ferry, Dusty Springfield and the Flirts, just to name-drop a few. Listed as an import, this set is pricey at first glance, but collecting these original records and burning them using an USB device on your desktop is far more expensive. Blank & Jones’ ’So 80s’ not only provides you with these authentic mixes, but they also create a club atmosphere of blended beats that camouflage with the rhythm of the preceding track as it begins to identify itself in the mix making this the answer to your own personal new wave club experience without the parking fee, the smoke, and the disturbing Robert Smith wannabe.

THE MARY ONETTES –Islands (Labrador): Disregard the fact that the Mary Onettes aren’t really from the Eighties though it will be challenging to convince the masses otherwise. To help your case, this Swedish four-piece have just released only their second effort to date. Based on the free mp3 track offered by their label Labrador late last summer, the band’s first single “Dare” is an emblematic preview of what’s to come, which is more of the same classic-alternative guitar and thin-sliced vocal arrangements toasty warmed with subtle blankets of lush synthesizers. Fans of the Cure, the Wild Swans, and the Jesus and Mary Chain should consider a voyage to these ‘Islands’, conceivably the best contemporary artist release in new wave this year.

Please visit Ideal Copy, classic alternative music’s greatest online source provider at
www.idealcopy.com for more information on ordering any of these recordings.