Originally Posted by Akira (Post 852119)

By having countless arguments about genre in various places of the board and still not getting a step closer to getting an exact definition of a broad term. Lol.

Originally Posted by Urban Hatemonger (Post 834208)

David Bowie - Low
Practically the template for all 80s synth pop.
Yes he wasn't the first to do this kind of thing, but for someone who was basically a pop star coming out with something so left field must have come as quite a shock at the time.
Could you imagine someone like Lady Gaga coming out with a krautrock album now? I don't think so.
I doubt any record company these days would let a major star make something so experimental today.

XTC - English Settlement
A double album of finely crafted pop songs from a great band at their peak. I love XTC dearly but I don't think any of their other albums come even close to touching this one.

Pulp - His n Hers
I grew up with this one and must have played it to death over the years.Some of the themes on the album are pretty dark & disturbing in a kind of suburbanite way with Jarvis Cocker's low hushed Scott Walkerish delivery but it's layered on some really bouncy catchy pop hooks to make it more palatable.

Orange Juice - You Can't Hide Your Love Forever
I've always found it a shame this band don't get much more credit than they do. They basically invented 80s jangly indie pop years before The Smiths even showed up. Edwin Collins has an amazing ear for a melody and this album is chock full of them.

The Human League - Dare
You have to admire Phil Oakey. He replaced two musos like Martyn Ware and Ian Craig Marsh with a couple of teenage girls he met in a nightclub.
Let me repeat that...
HE REPLACED TWO MUSOS LIKE MARTYN WARE AND IAN CRAIG MARSH WITH A COUPLE OF TEENAGE GIRLS HE MET IN A NIGHTCLUB. and ended up making their best ever album turning his back on experimental electronica designed to impress art students and made one of the greatest pop albums ever written.
Well done that man.