Your book captures a period, I don’t know if you listen to much modern day pop, but do you think there is an electronic pop legacy today, whether direct or indirect from this 1978-1983 era? The act I’m going to highlight is THE WEEKND… As it turned out that was the easy part. Then I had to write an actual book! What was the writing process for the book? ANDY BELL: ANDY BELL IN CONVERSATION AT THE 'LISTENING TO THE MUSIC THE MACHINES MAKE' BOOK LAUNCH ON NOVEMBER 6TH Eccentric, driven, and unorthodox in their approach, Devo had publicly asserted that the only people they would consider producing their debut album would be David Bowie or Brian Eno, and were fortunate indeed when Iggy Pop professed to be much taken by the Ohio act’s avant-garde, experimental sounds after they managed to get a demo tape to him during the March 1977 US tour for The Idiot. Pop listened to the tape and loved it, something he would later recall for Jeff Winner’s documentary film Are We Not Devo?: ‘I felt like Columbus, I felt like I just discovered America, and it was Devo.’

The Human League and Heaven 17 were among some of the most pioneering bands of the 1980s, with Martyn Ware having played an integral role in each of their numerous successes. Described by David Bowie as ‘the future of music’, Ware toured with the likes of Siouxsie and the Banshees and Iggy Pop before having the colossal hit albums Penthouse and Pavement and The Luxury Gap with Heaven 17. You’re right to say she was probably among the first journalists to talk to DEPECHE MODE, certainly one of the first to talk to SPANDAU BALLET, to SOFT CELL and JAPAN… she was very vocal and very reasoned. Also reading her, I liked her… I’ve never met her or anything but I liked her style, she wrote a lot like a fan so she wasn’t out there grinding her axe in attempts to look clever, lofty and intellectual. She was reporting the way she was responding to the things she was exposed to and that felt much more interesting and real to me. SL: You jokingly said about yourself that you live in constant fear that people will ask you about your favourite record. Is that really such a difficult question to answer? Could you name at least three records that have had a big impact on your life? Despite the rapid and blatant commercialisation of punk, its energy would resonate through musical culture for decades to come and, as the seventies accelerated towards an end, it was this spirit and influence that was seized upon by the next generation of artists, each desperate to subvert the immediate post-punk landscape. Consequently punk’s energy, aesthetic and attitude continued to underpin much of the more interesting music that was being released at the time, despite the rapid migration away from the movement by those in the know who were already moving on to explore new sounds and new styles.A good few years ago I was given the chance to write a book about 1980s pop culture which came out as Remember The 80s in 2008. That book was more pictures than writing but taking on the project made me realise that writing and publishing a book was something I could actually do and I actively started to think about ideas for another one. Yes, a little. Some of the artwork from the period the book covers is just as iconic as the music (and sometimes more so), so although the book isn’t really about the visual side of what was going on it was often difficult to disconnect one from the other. It’s the way that Evans weaves and knits these familiar names into such a rich and enormous tapestry that makes the book stand out. It is also done with humour and an affable tone that adds a human touch to the academic … Plus, it’s so bloody lovely to immerse oneself into this utterly fascinating and key period in the evolution of electronic music once again and realise how important it is.”– Louder Than War

Again that would be Erasure. If I take Erasure out of the equation then at a guess it’s between OMD, Depeche Mode, The Human League and maybe Nine Inch Nails. Overcoming any musical shortcomings through their use of new technology, in January 1978 The Human League demoed their first electronic experimentations. The band that entered their Devonshire Lane rehearsal space in Sheffield to commit those first recordings to tape was a trio of rather earnest young men – Martyn Ware (synthesisers), Ian Craig Marsh (synthesisers) and Philip Oakey (vocals, and owner of a saxophone he had conspicuously failed to learn how to play) – who had come together to realise a musical vision that was entirely their own, and which was in part dictated by a musical proclamation displayed on the wall of their workspace. With the exception of the human voice, only electronic instruments were to be used in the band’s compositions, and ‘bland’ words – and in particular the word ‘love’ – were to be avoided at all costs. One thing that your book does unashamedly focus on which I am pleased about, is that it focusses on the “ pop” in electronic pop… other books about electronic music in the past have been a bit “too cool for school”…

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More importantly, the process had allowed Tubeway Army, and Valeriun in particular, to open up to the idea of embracing a wider palate of opportunities, and ‘Bombers’ nevertheless represents an important step along the band’s journey. Tubeway Army were growing up in public and, while they didn’t yet know where they wanted that growth to take them, there was one thing they were sure of: they had no interest in being another of the one-dimensional punk act that were starting to crowd 1978’s release schedules.

He has conducted years of extensive research to document the synthpop revolution that began from a British standpoint in 1978 with THE NORMAL and THE HUMAN LEAGUE before TUBEWAY ARMY took this futuristic new sound to No1 with ‘Are Friends Electric?’. By starting at 1978, you are specifically highlighting the start of that British wave because before that, it’s international with bands like KRAFTWERK and SPACE as well as Giorgio Moroder and Jean-Michel Jarre… The chapter also discusses the importance of Brian Eno and his work with bands like the original line up of Ultravox! (exclamation mark included) with John Foxx at the helm before Midge Ure took his place when Foxx left the band to pursue his own journey in electronica. Moving across to Europe, specifically Germany, and even more specifically Dussledorf, Kraftwerk were starting to make waves by producing the 20-minute epic, Autobahn which yet another influential moment in the story of electronic music. Says Richard, “I didn’t really interview people for the book because wherever possible I wanted to use original materials. That means that most of the quotes from artists which appear in the book come from the late seventies and early eighties, while the events I write about were actually happening.This is why I wanted to talk about this in the context of 1978-1983 because thanks to some of the business choices that Richard Branson has made over the years which have upset people, the Virgin name has been tarnished as far as their contribution to music is concerned. Meanwhile history has seen Daniel Miller come out smelling of roses. An interesting thing about Virgin in 1980 was that they were close to bankruptcy.

Listening To The Music The Machines Make’ is published by Ominbus Press, available from the usual bookshops and online retailers, except North America where the book will be on sale from 26th January 2023 Evans’ meticulous research is synthesised into a lively and informative narrative that finally grants the genre the respect that it deserves.”– A BOOK OF THE YEAR 2022 Classic Pop Magazine

Such lukewarm reactions from the music press would become the norm for Ultravox!, whose long-running battle with the way the media portrayed them was then still in its infancy. Nevertheless, when it came to Ha! Ha! Ha!, the band themselves could understand some of the negativity that was thrown their way. The album had been made during a difficult time for Ultravox!, whose debut had failed to live up to their own expectations and who, as a result, had channelled the anger and frustration they were experiencing into the new songs. While the speedy writing and recording process added an urgency and a spontaneity to the finished record, by the time it hit the record shops Ultravox! were already impatient to be developing their sound further. One of the best things about this era was how these weird avant pop songs could enter the charts, they were classic songs but presented in a strange way with these sounds and boundaries were pushed… as much as I embrace this period of music, I always felt when it all crossed over into the mainstream in 1981, I don’t think it was on the cards and kind of a fluke… https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5FnbtbaXEnFqqbjOpBuWH1?si=8567b2c1826944b9 Interviewer: Rob Puricelli - Biog