Latest news with #synthpop
Forbes
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Forbes
A Flock Of Seagulls' Mike Score Talks Playing On ‘Lost 80s Live!' RetroTour
ANAHEIM, CA - JANUARY 26: Singer Mike Score of the band the Flock of Seagulls performs onstage ... More during KEarth's Totally 80's Show at Honda Center on January 26, 2018 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by) More than 40 years after they first burst onto the scene with radio-friendly hits like 'I Ran (So Far Away),' 'Space Age Love Song' and 'Wishing (If I Had a Photograph of You)' and stylish videos, the British synthpop band A Flock of Seagulls is still performing to audiences and recording music. And although the era of big hair, pastels and Pac-Man has long gone, A Flock of Seagulls and their '80s contemporaries left an indelible imprint on pop culture with their New Wave sound and look. 'I think anything that keeps our name upfront somewhere is good,' says Mike Score, the band's founding singer. 'Suddenly, you find out that every era has some great music…And a lot of new bands, I think, are very inspired by the '80s with a bit of '90s and of what's going on now. So it's basically a case of: you just stick with it, stick by your guns, and it'll come back around for you.' This summer, A Flock of Seagulls is back on stage again for this year's installment of Lost 80s Live!, the long–running 1980s retro tour for which the band has been a regular staple. The tour, which kicks off on July 31 in New Haven, Connecticut, also features such artists as China Crisis, Big Country, the Vapors, Josie Cotton, Belouis Some, General Public, Polecats, Peter Godwin and the Icicle Works, — all of whom will be performing their biggest and well-known hits from that decade. 'We do it every year,' Score says. 'I think we missed one — I don't know whether it was last year or two years ago. When you're gigging all the time, you just forget what you've just done. You do a gig, you move on, you're onto the next one. Suddenly, you know you've been on tour for four or five months. And you're like, 'Where did the time go?' It's very strange.' To Score, the appeal of Lost 80s Live! is that there are no backstage egos but rather a spirit of respect and camaraderie among the different acts. 'It's great,' he says. 'The main thing there is that all the bands know each other. We're all happy to be doing it. 'The crowds are great,' he continues. 'Usually, they know all the songs from everybody. So they're all singing along. They're all having a good time. And that comes from them to the band. So you know by the time we go on, we're having a good time. It's just a good vibe all around.' It's a guarantee at Lost 80s Live! that Score and his band will play their famous hits that defined '80s pop music. It all began in Liverpool in 1979 when Score, his drummer brother Ali Score and bassist Frank Maudsley founded the group; guitarist Paul Reynolds later joined, solidifying the classic lineup. UNITED KINGDOM - NOVEMBER 01: Photo of Frank MAUDSLEY and Paul REYNOLDS and Ali SCORE and FLOCK OF ... More SEAGULLS and Mike SCORE; L-R: Ali Score, Mike Score, Frank Maudsley, Paul Reynolds - posed, group shot, studio (Photo by Fin Costello/Redferns) 'In the old days with the original guys, it was just fun,' Score recalls. 'It was so weird that we rehearsed probably for a year every night for like six or seven hours and wrote a bunch of songs. Somebody heard them. We did a gig. And, I think, like a month after that, we got this huge deal with Zomba Records.' Released in 1982, A Flock of Seagulls' self-titled debut album became a huge success, featuring such songs as 'I Ran (So Far Away),' 'Space Age Love Song,' 'Telecomunication,' 'Messages' and the Grammy-winning 'D.N.A.' The band's music was a perfect amalgam of futuristic electronic pop and guitar-charged rock. 'When you've got an album like that, you've got to realize that it took a year to write,' says Score of A Flock of Seagulls. 'We rehearsed five or six nights a week. And every night, I would say we would write two new songs. So you're talking maybe 100-150 ideas that came down to maybe 10 or 12 ideas, and that became the first album,' he says. Of the classic lineup, Score says: 'The chemistry was there. We had a ball when we were rehearsing. We always had a great time. And we knew that we were writing some good stuff. But even so, we thought, 'We're going to get a deal here. We're going to get a single out or something.' We didn't expect the five-year deal from Zomba. That came as a big surprise.' 'I Ran' was the runaway hit that introduced the U.S. to A Flock of Seagulls ('When we played it to people, they were like, 'That song is amazing. It's got synths. It's got guitars. It's got rhythm. It's got a story. It's got everything,'' Score remembers). The song's accompanying video gave further exposure to the group, who became recognized for their look, particularly Score's distinctive and unforgettable hairstyle. 'It's indescribable, really,' he says of making it in the States. 'I remember we arrived in New York to do a couple of club shows. 'Telecommunication' was pretty big on the dance charts by then. And 'I Ran' was just starting to scratch around the Top 100. We got off the plane and we got into a limo. As we went to New York, 'I Ran' came on [the radio]. We were stunned. It's like, 'How do they know this song here in New York?' We all just looked at each other and it was smiles from ear to ear, and 'Wow, we're in America.'' During that period, A Flock of Seagulls not only became MTV staples but also toured with the Go-Go's and the Police and headlined themselves. 'We were going up and up and up,' Score says. 'It was literally a case of 'Do not look down. It's too far. If we can't stay this high, it's going to be a hell of a fall.' We just closed our eyes and kept going.' For A Flock of Seagulls, writing and recording the second album, 1983's Listen, was a bit of a challenge, although it yielded another hit in 'Wishing (If I Had a Photograph of You).' 'We had no time to write it at all,' Score recalls. 'So that's where you fall into the trap of second-album problems. We did the second album straight on tour. I think we recorded it in three or four weeks but straight back out on tour because the first album was still doing well. The second album was riding on the back of it.' The group's third album, 1984's The Story of a Young Heart, produced another hit single in "The More You Live, the More You Love." Its reflective and moody tone departed from the first two band albums, as indicated on the poignant 'Remember David,' which was inspired by the death of Score's best friend from school. 'I wrote that whole album about him. I went into rehearsal every day, and I wrote a new song for 12 days or something like that. Steve Lovell, who was going to be our producer, was with me and he'd make his production notes. Then we brought the band in to work on it. The whole thing is about that except 'The More You Live.' I had a relationship that broke up. And my mom said to me, 'Don't worry, lad. The more you live, the more you love.' So that became the inspiration for that song.' By the end of the 1980s, the departures of Ali Score, Frank Maudsley and Paul Reynolds left Mike Score as the only member from the popular lineup. 'We'd lived in each other's pockets for a couple of years, and things happen,' he says. 'You're all in the same hotel room. You're all traveling together. You're playing together. You're getting drunk together. Your wildness comes out on tour and you're having a great time, and you end up getting on each other's nerves. And after three years, we split.' During this period, Score moved to the U.S., where he has since lived for many years. 'The girl I was going out with at the time just said, 'Come over here and hang out for a bit.' So that's what I did. My brother married an American girl, so he moved. I think Frank stayed in England. He was back and forth for a bit. But now I live between England and America. I love going back to England. Because I've been here so long. I'm an American citizen now. So to me, America is home and England is a second home.' Although there were many personnel changes in the group with Score being the constant, the classic lineup reunited for the albums Ascension (2018) and String Theory (2021). 'I wouldn't say we're best friends now, but we are friends again,' Score says. 'We got together and did a few things, the orchestral stuff. That was good fun, but I don't know if we could all live together again and do stuff on the road.' In addition to touring, Score released new A Flock of Seagulls music in 2024 as the Some Dreams album. "I never stopped writing songs,' he says. "In fact, I was trying to write a song before, and I was just like, 'You've lost it, man.' But I'll give it another go this afternoon and I just sit down at the computer with a guitar or something and start playing. And if the song comes out, great. If it doesn't, there's always tomorrow. We didn't stop in the '80s. And there are new songs that they may go for. Who knows?' 'Some of the songs, even on the new album, I experimented a bit,' he says. 'But I also have to reach back to where my inspirations came from. I look back at our first album, and sometimes I go, "Oh, this one sounds like it could have been on the first album.' Then I write it that way. Then other songs, I go, 'Well, this one's not particularly Seagulls, but it's got a Seagulls core.' And then I try and push that into a more experimental area.' The durability of A Flock of Seagulls' music lives on through the Lost 80s Live! tour. which is not only an opportunity for fans of the band and members of Generation X to relive the music of their youth, but also for younger people to experience the 1980s. 'A lot of people bring their kids to that,' Score says. 'And of course, they're showing the kids the music they liked. To us, that is great because it helps it carry on to another generation. We've been going, I don't know, 42 years or something silly like that now. Personally, I like it when a little kid comes along and he's got my old hairdo. He's a baby Seagull, you know what I mean.'
ABC News
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- ABC News
Midge Ure on punk, pop and Ultravox and Nina Korbe on opera and advocacy
Midge Ure is a musical chameleon, his career having taken him from boy band, Slik (stable mates of the Bay City Rollers), to punk band, Rich Kids (with ex-Sex Pistol, Glen Matlock), to singer, guitarist and keyboard player with Ultravox, penning one of the great New Romantic anthems, 'Vienna'. For the past thirty years he's been a solo artist with an ever-evolving songbook and later this year he's bringing it to Australia. He talks to Andy about his varied career and why Ultravox was never really synth pop – not when their biggest hit contained a viola solo. Nina Korbe is Koa, Kuku Yalanji, and Wakka Wakka singer and broadcaster. She joins Andy to talk about her operatic and music theatre career on the rise, and her advocacy work introducing kids from her family's traditional lands to orchestral performance. Nina Korbe performs as Musetta in Opera Queendsland's La bohème in September. Midge Ure tours Australia in October. Full dates here. Music in this program: Title: Kanana Artist: Bumpy Composer: Amy Dowd, Mick Power Album: Kanana (due 3 October) Label: Astral People Recordings Title: Vienna Artist: Ultravox Composer: Chris Allen, James Ure, Warren Reginald Cann, William Lee Currie Album: Vienna Label: Chrysalis Title: Forever and Ever Artist: Slik Composer: Bill Martin, Phil Coulter Album: Slik Label: Bell Records Title: Put You in the Picture Artist: Rich Kids Composer: James Ure Album: Ghosts of Princes in Towers Label: EMI Title: If I Was Artist: Midge Ure Composer: James Ure Album: The Gift Label: Chrysalis Title: Shéhérazade (extract) Artist: Nina Korbe, Queensland Youth Symphony, Simon Hewett Composer: Maurice Ravel Courtesy of QYO Title: Somewhere from West Side Story Artist: Nina Korbe Composer: Leonard Bernstein Courtesy of ABC Classic Title: Gone a Long Time Artist: Billy Strings Composer: Billy Strings, Jarrod Walker Album: Highway Prayers Label: Reprise The Music Show is produced on Gadigal and Gundungurra Country
BreakingNews.ie
07-06-2025
- Health
- BreakingNews.ie
A-ha singer Morten Harket announces Parkinson's disease diagnosis
A-ha's lead singer Morten Harket has announced his diagnosis with Parkinson's disease. The frontman of the Norwegian synth-pop group, known for hits including Take On Me and You Are The One, said he is having issues with his voice due to the condition, which causes parts of the brain to become progressively damaged over many years. Advertisement His bandmate Magne Furuholmen has said all future A-ha-related activities 'will of course be tuned to suit Morten's situation'. View this post on Instagram A post shared by a-ha (@officialaha) Speaking to a biographer for an article on the A-ha website, Harket, 65, said: 'I've got no problem accepting the diagnosis. With time I've taken to heart my 94-year-old father's attitude to the way the organism gradually surrenders: 'I use whatever works'.' He continued: 'Acknowledging the diagnosis wasn't a problem for me; it's my need for peace and quiet to work that has been stopping me. 'I'm trying the best I can to prevent my entire system from going into decline. Advertisement 'It's a difficult balancing act between taking the medication and managing its side effects. 'There's so much to weigh up when you're emulating the masterful way the body handles every complex movement, or social matters and invitations, or day-to-day life in general.' Harket underwent a neurosurgical procedure in which electrodes were implanted deep inside the left side of his brain in June 2024 and had a similar procedure on the right side of his brain in December 2024, according to the website article. Magne Furuholmen, Morten Harket and Pal Waaktaar of A-ha during a signing session at HMV Oxford Street, London (Yui Mok/PA) These electrodes are connected to a small pacemaker-like device placed under the skin of the upper chest that sends electrical impulses through the electrodes into the brain and this method of treatment is called deep brain stimulation (DBS). Advertisement There is currently no cure for Parkinson's disease but there are treatments like physiotherapy and medication, according to the NHS website. The main symptoms are tremors, slow movement and stiff and inflexible muscles, and Harket also said the condition has affected his voice. 'The problems with my voice are one of many grounds for uncertainty about my creative future,' he said. Asked if he can sing at the moment, he said: 'I don't really know. I don't feel like singing, and for me that's a sign. Advertisement 'I'm broadminded in terms of what I think works; I don't expect to be able to achieve full technical control. The question is whether I can express myself with my voice. 'As things stand now, that's out of the question. But I don't know whether I'll be able to manage it at some point in the future.' He added: 'For a few years now I've been working on songs that I've got great belief in, and I feel the lyrics, especially, have something of a different aspect of me in them. 'I'm not sure if I'll be able to finish them for release. Time will tell if they make it. Advertisement 'I really like the idea of just going for it, as a Parkinson's patient and an artist, with something completely outside the box. It's all up to me, I just have to get this out of the way first.' A-ha formed in Oslo in 1982, comprised of guitarist Paul Waaktaar-Savoy, keyboardist Furuholmen and lead singer Harket. The band has had nine top 10 singles in the UK chart, including chart-topping track The Sun Always Shines On TV, and seven top 10 albums. Furuholmen said in an Instagram post on Wednesday: 'It is a day of sad news in a-ha world. Having known about Morten's diagnosis for some time does not take the force out of the blow, nor diminish the impact it has had, and will continue have, on us – as people and as a band. Morten Harket on stage at the Brit Awards 2006 (Yui Mok/PA) 'Our thoughts are first and foremost with Morten and his family at a difficult time adjusting to the changes that this condition has brought into their lives. 'As the news brings sadness, it is worth to remember through the hurt that there is also a lot of gratitude: for all the amazing memories, for how our combined creative efforts as a band have been so generously embraced by the world, and for how lucky we are that people continue to find meaning, hope and joy in our shared musical legacy. 'All future a-ha-related activities will of course be tuned to suit Morten's situation, but together we will work to try and find ways to give you the best of ourselves. Thank you everyone for all your support, your kind words, and consideration.'
Daily Telegraph
07-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Telegraph
Rita Ora sizzles in video for new single Heat
Don't miss out on the headlines from Music. Followed categories will be added to My News. It was a blockbuster week for new music from the planet's hottest female artists. Sabrina Carpenter released the cheeky synth-pop diss track Manchild, which fans insist is about her ex Barry Keoghan. The Queens made their grand re-entrances with Mariah Carey dropping Type Dangerous, her first non-Christmasy solo track in six years, and Madonna sharing a remix of her 90s album track Skin, a taster from the long-rumoured project Veronica Electronica of rare and unreleased remixes from her 1998 album Ray of Light. Ahead of her performance at the WorldPride Festival in Washington this weekend, Rita Ora released her new single Heat. Before her big Pride gig, Ora caught up on her squad of famous Aussie collaborators, from the sizzling (northern hemisphere) summer anthem's co-writer Troye Sivan to tour buddy Kylie Minogue. The Heat video is rather steamy. You shot it on Miami beach? 'It was shot while I was on the Kylie tour in April and we had about four hours in that day to shoot it because we were seriously back-to-back with the shows. So I'm happy we were in Miami, and it was all about the beach.' Ora cooling down diva-style with a beach-head blow-wave on the set of Heat. Picture: Supplied. You have very strong creative connections with Australia, particularly since you did the Voice (2021-2023). How did you and Troye Sivan and his songwriting partner Leland all get together to write Heat? 'Leland, I've known for a long time, we have a lot of mutual friends. And I've constantly had their support. When we were writing together, they suggested this concept of the sexuality and the intensity of heat. And that's what I love about Troye - he's so good at writing really sexy, cheeky songs. Rush was one of my favorite songs of last year and working with him has been on a bucket list. He just happens to be another Australian that wanted to work with me. It was just amazing, and the song fit exactly what my mood of the album was.' Clearly those heels aren't fit for standing purposes. Picture: Supplied. And what's the mood? 'My last record was all about finding love and feeling super inspired by my relationship (with film-maker husband Taika Waititi). Whereas this one is just really inspired by having fun and being a sexy bitch. I wanted to go back to how I started in my early career of feeling really comfortable in my skin and, and celebrating being a woman. And summer is such a big part of my life, since I was a kid going around to the Eastern European beaches and seeing how they operate with plastic bags on their heads, very different to a Hawaii beach. Or Sydney.' Pop star Rita Ora with husband Taika Waititi attend the MTV Europe Music Awards 2024. Picture:for Viacom International. Is it possible you were born in a bikini? 'Everyone's been asking me that! When I first got there to do The Voice, my health life changed drastically so I feel like I found my bikini bod in Australia, genuinely. I started exercising, sitting in the sun, seeing how fit everyone else is in Australia when they're walking down the beach. So it's your fault, Australia, you've made me just wear a bikini.' Ora with Kylie Minogue on tour together in the US. Picture: Supplied. You soft-launched Heat while you were doing a leg of the Tension shows with Kylie in America in April and May. 'It was everything to me. Kylie has been such an incredible inspiration to me for my whole life. And also having her as a supporter, I couldn't ask for anything more. I haven't toured like that for about three years and opening up for her was the best way to just get back into live shows. Her audience are just so accepting and they really showed up for me. I just never wanted it to end ... I'm just so grateful for that tour.' Lostboy, who co-wrote Kylie's smash Padam Padam, has said you were going to cut the song at one stage. Any regrets about him not leaving the song with you? 'I've always grown up with this saying, 'What's for you won't pass you.' And that's always how I've lived my life. And it's Kylie Minogue - she's the queen of the world, in my opinion. So, of course, Kylie's going to get it and kill it and do a great job. And in the pop industry, that happens every day to a lot of big artists, you don't just know about it. Lostboy lives in my studio here in Los Angeles, we're very close friends.' Is there a Whatsapp group for The Voice Australia coaches? Keith Urban featured on the track Shape of Me from your last album You & I and you are touring Australia with Ricky Martin in November. 'During that show, I made an incredible friendship with Keith and I love him to death. He's a big, big part of my music-making process, I ask for his advice. And I can't wait to do this Ricky tour. It's another reason to come to Australia. I mean, as soon as they asked me, I just said yes because it's in Australia and it's Ricky.' Heat is out now and tickets to the Ricky Martin and Rita Ora tour are on sale now via Originally published as Rita Ora teams up with Troye Sivan for sizzling new single Heat
News.com.au
07-06-2025
- Entertainment
- News.com.au
Rita Ora teams up with Troye Sivan for sizzling new single Heat
It was a blockbuster week for new music from the planet's hottest female artists. Sabrina Carpenter released the cheeky synth-pop diss track Manchild, which fans insist is about her ex Barry Keoghan. The Queens made their grand re-entrances with Mariah Carey dropping Type Dangerous, her first non-Christmasy solo track in six years, and Madonna sharing a remix of her 90s album track Skin, a taster from the long-rumoured project Veronica Electronica of rare and unreleased remixes from her 1998 album Ray of Light. Ahead of her performance at the WorldPride Festival in Washington this weekend, Rita Ora released her new single Heat. Before her big Pride gig, Ora caught up on her squad of famous Aussie collaborators, from the sizzling (northern hemisphere) summer anthem's co-writer Troye Sivan to tour buddy Kylie Minogue. The Heat video is rather steamy. You shot it on Miami beach? 'It was shot while I was on the Kylie tour in April and we had about four hours in that day to shoot it because we were seriously back-to-back with the shows. So I'm happy we were in Miami, and it was all about the beach.' You have very strong creative connections with Australia, particularly since you did the Voice (2021-2023). How did you and Troye Sivan and his songwriting partner Leland all get together to write Heat? 'Leland, I've known for a long time, we have a lot of mutual friends. And I've constantly had their support. When we were writing together, they suggested this concept of the sexuality and the intensity of heat. And that's what I love about Troye - he's so good at writing really sexy, cheeky songs. Rush was one of my favorite songs of last year and working with him has been on a bucket list. He just happens to be another Australian that wanted to work with me. It was just amazing, and the song fit exactly what my mood of the album was.' And what's the mood? 'My last record was all about finding love and feeling super inspired by my relationship (with film-maker husband Taika Waititi). Whereas this one is just really inspired by having fun and being a sexy bitch. I wanted to go back to how I started in my early career of feeling really comfortable in my skin and, and celebrating being a woman. And summer is such a big part of my life, since I was a kid going around to the Eastern European beaches and seeing how they operate with plastic bags on their heads, very different to a Hawaii beach. Or Sydney.' Is it possible you were born in a bikini? 'Everyone's been asking me that! When I first got there to do The Voice, my health life changed drastically so I feel like I found my bikini bod in Australia, genuinely. I started exercising, sitting in the sun, seeing how fit everyone else is in Australia when they're walking down the beach. So it's your fault, Australia, you've made me just wear a bikini.' You soft-launched Heat while you were doing a leg of the Tension shows with Kylie in America in April and May. 'It was everything to me. Kylie has been such an incredible inspiration to me for my whole life. And also having her as a supporter, I couldn't ask for anything more. I haven't toured like that for about three years and opening up for her was the best way to just get back into live shows. Her audience are just so accepting and they really showed up for me. I just never wanted it to end ... I'm just so grateful for that tour.' Lostboy, who co-wrote Kylie's smash Padam Padam, has said you were going to cut the song at one stage. Any regrets about him not leaving the song with you? 'I've always grown up with this saying, 'What's for you won't pass you.' And that's always how I've lived my life. And it's Kylie Minogue - she's the queen of the world, in my opinion. So, of course, Kylie's going to get it and kill it and do a great job. And in the pop industry, that happens every day to a lot of big artists, you don't just know about it. Lostboy lives in my studio here in Los Angeles, we're very close friends.' Is there a Whatsapp group for The Voice Australia coaches? Keith Urban featured on the track Shape of Me from your last album You & I and you are touring Australia with Ricky Martin in November. 'During that show, I made an incredible friendship with Keith and I love him to death. He's a big, big part of my music-making process, I ask for his advice. And I can't wait to do this Ricky tour. It's another reason to come to Australia. I mean, as soon as they asked me, I just said yes because it's in Australia and it's Ricky.'
