As an eighties kid, synth pop has been pumping in my blood ever since that first day I turned on my MTV. There’s some debate as to who’s considered a synth pop band and who isn’t. For this September Music Twitter challenge – #SynthPopSeptember – I’m focusing more on what’s considered synth pop, not who. The songs I’m featuring on Mental Jukebox this month aren’t solely composed of synthesizers. There may be drums, bass, and dare I say, electric guitars. But each of these songs were picked because the synthesizer is core to its being.
In the early to mid eighties, Tears For Fears were as solid a band as you could get. Getting The Hurting and Songs From The Big Chair back to back was a treat for music fans like me who wanted the synthesizers to play a more prominent role. TFF knew their way around pop (“Everybody Wants To Rule The World”, “Pale Shelter”). They knew their way around more jazzier arrangements (“The Working Hour” and later “Woman In Chains”). They delved into the experimental (“The Prisoner”, “Listen”). And they always knew the power of a strong hook: “Change”, “Mad World”, “Mother’s Talk”, “Shout”, the list goes on.
“Change” lives and dies on that manic synth hook that opens the song, holds up the middle, and closes things up. Despite being so representative of the era, it still holds up quite well after all these years. The guitar that comes in later in the track doesn’t compete with the synthesizers, it merely complements what has already been building. Now, I dare you to listen to “Change” without bobbing your head or tapping your foot.
“When it's all too late, It's all too late.”