RetroPop Issue 4 June 2022

EUROVISION 2022 | THE ULTIMATE GUIDE
NEW!
RETROPOP JUNE 2022
JACK
SAVORETTI
Bringing the sound
of Europiana to life
BRIGHT LIGHT
BRIGHT LIGHT INSIDE THEIR
A decade of pop EXPLOSIVE
excellence TELL-ALL
MOVIE!
xPROPAGANDA
Eighties synth-pop
royalty returns
RICK ISSUE 4 | £4.99
ASTLE Y PER
D C H A RT TO P
NE
TEA BOY TURO
LO KS BACK
PLUS
BUCKS FIZZ OCEANIC KATRINA TOP OF THE POPS
Are You Ready Nineties pop-dance Love Shine A Light Tales from the
at 40 duo speaks out turns 25 classic chart show
RETROPOP | from the editor
RETROPOP
ISSUE 4 | JUNE 2022
Irresistible Ltd., Floor 3, 86-90 Paul Street,
London EC2A 4NE
RETRO POP
Est. April 2020
HELLO HELLO!
retropopmagazine.com
@RetroPopMag
nyone else caught
EDITOR
Connor Gotto
connor.gotto@retropopmagazine.com
A Eurovision fever yet?
All eyes will be on
Turin on May 14 for the Grand
Final of the 66th edition of
ART DIRECTOR the Eurovision Song Contest
Owen Connolly and it’s safe to say this year’s
owenconnollydesign.com show may just be the biggest
spectacle yet!
CONTRIBUTORS
This month, we celebrate
Ian Berriman
the show - dubbed The Sound
Greg Lansdowne
of Beauty - with an 18-page
Joe Matera
mega-feature, showcasing the
COVER IMAGE 40 entries set to compete for
© Peter Neill the title and looking back on some classic Eurovision
All copyrights and trademarks are acts celebrating milestones this year.
recognised and respected. Speaking of which, our cover star Rick Astley is in
a celebratory mood, as he reflects on three decades of
ADVERTISING success ahead of the release of the all-new double-disc
Media packs available on request. expanded edition of his debut LP ‘Whenever You Need
Please direct enquiries to Somebody’.
ads@retropopmagazine.com The classic album features his massive global smash
hit singles Never Gonna Give You Up and Together
GENERAL ENQUIRIES Forever and, decades on from his PWL days, Rick
Please direct enquiries to reveals the stories behind his best-loved tracks.
contact@retropopmagazine.com We also catch up with Propaganda stars Claudia
Brücken and Susanne Freytag, who return after three
Printed in the UK by Stephens and George
decades with their standout new album ‘The Heart Is
on behalf of Irresistible Ltd. Distributed by
Strange’, and go behind the scenes of a-ha’s explosive
Select Publisher Services, Marion Manor,
biopic with director and producer Thomas Robsahm.
62 Wimborne Road, Bournemouth, Dorset
I’m very excited to have one of my favourite artists,
BH3 7AR.
the brilliant Jack Savoretti, in this issue, chatting about
selectmagazines.co.uk
the ‘Encore’ edition of his chart-topping LP ‘Europiana’
Tel: +44 (0)1202 586848
- what an album! Equally fabulous is Bright Light Bright
ISSN 2754-7841 Light, aka Rod Thomas, who reveals how he navigated
releasing four albums, and working and touring with
All contents © 2022 Irresistible Ltd. or published Cher, Elton John, Erasure and many others, without the
under license. All rights reserved. No part of backing of a record label.
this magazine may be used, stored, transmitted All that and lots more inside - and don’t forget,
or reproduced in any way without the prior there’s new content every day over on the RETROPOP
written permission of the publisher. Irresistible website and on our social media pages. Go and give us
Ltd. (company number 13729328) is registered a follow on @RetroPopMag, enjoy this issue, and I’ll see
in England and Wales. Registered office: Floor you again in another four weeks!
3, 86-90 Paul Street, London, EC2A 4NE. All
information contained in this publication is for
information only and is, as far as we are aware,
accurate at the time of going to press. Irresistible
Ltd. cannot accept any responsibilities for errors
or inaccuracies in such information.
Connor Gotto, Editor
RETROPOPMAGAZINE.COM 3
RETROPOP
CONTENTS
14
70
30 24 44
INTERVIEWS FEATURES RETRO
SPECTIVES
32 RICK ASTLEY 11 TOP OF THE POPS 24 KATRINA AND

Celebrating 35 years of his iconic TALES THE WAVES -
debut album ‘Whenever You Revisiting The Teardrop LOVE SHINE A LIGHT
Need Somebody’ Explodes’ classic 1981 Lead singer Katrina Leskanich
performance of Passionate recalls triumphing for the United
42 OCEANIC Friend Kingdom at Eurovision in 1997
Nineties duo on their mega-hit
Insanity and the pitfalls of fame 14 EUROVISION
and success SONG CONTEST
Get the lowdown and meet
44 A-HA: THE MOVIE the contestants set to hit the
Filmmaker Thomas Robsahm stage in Turin, Italy for the 66th
goes behind the scenes of the Eurovision Song Contest
tell-all biopic
54 XPROPAGANDA
Claudia Brücken and Susanne
Freytag on their first album
42 26
together in three decades
26 BUCKS FIZZ -
62 HANSON ARE YOU READY
Sibling trio look back on 30 Ahead of its 40th anniversary,
years of hits and reveal how solo Cheryl Baker, Mike Nolan and
projects led to new album Jay Aston revisit their classic LP
4 RETROPOPMAGAZINE.COM
RETROPOP | contents
32
54
80
RETRO
R E V I VA L
REGULARS
62
70 JACK SAVORETTI 6 NEWS
Singer-songwriter on his latest Stay in the loop with your
album ‘Europiana: Encore’ and favourite pop superstars
working with Nile Rodgers and
John Oates 30 POP QUIZ
Test your Eurovision knowledge
78 MICHAEL MEDRANO as we look back on six decades
Pop’s rising star on the
inspirations behind his first full-
of iconic performances!
93
length project REVIEWS
90 ALBUMS
80 BRIGHT LIGHT Will Young, Kylie Minogue,
BRIGHT LIGHT xPropaganda and more…
After 10 years of success, Rod
Thomas reveals how he did it 96 REISSUES
all without the backing of a Marc Almond, Toyah, Kim Wilde
record label and more…
98 COMPILATIONS
78 Ultimate ‘90s Anthems and

more…
LINE-UP
NEWS
STEPS HEAD BACK

TO THE FUTURE
Steps have finally announced the The concert film features all five again.’
release of their ‘What The Future members of the band on stage Extras include
Holds Tour’ concert film. together and is presented in full HD a moving behind-
The group hit arenas across the UK with audio in stereo and 5.1 surround the-scenes
last November in support of their two sound. documentary
albums “What The Future Holds’ and “We were so proud of our What outlining how
‘What The Future Holds Pt. 2’. The Future Holds Live tour and we’re Steps and their
Featuring a career-spanning set, excited for those who came to watch crew managed to keep the show on
the gigs showcased recent releases to be able to relive the show again,” the road throughout the numerous
PHOTO COURTESY OF THE ARTIST
Take Me For a Ride, Heartbreak In said the group. challenges posed by the pandemic,
This City and Something In Your “For those who didn’t get a chance featuring unseen interviews with
Eyes, along with classic cuts such to come down to the show in person, Claire, Faye, H, Lisa and Lee.
as One For Sorrow, Deeper Shade of we hope you love every minute of The live release will be available in
Blue and Tragedy. this special release. We’re delighted multiple formats including 2CD and
Despite being one band member how it’s turned out despite difficult DVD, Blu-Ray, a limited edition four-
down due to Covid, Steps have circumstances. disc Photobook and a special limited
incorporated other audio and video “This tour was the ultimate pop edition collectors slipcase box.
footage to bring the best experience party and we’re delighted this release All formats are available to pre-
of the show as a whole. can bring us all back into Steps world order now.
BRITNEY SPEARS CULTURE CLUB are PINK FLOYD have NICOLE
IN THE
is getting ahead with heading to Las Vegas for a reunited to release the SCHERZINGER
work on her tell-all series of gigs this summer Ukraine benefit song Hey, is reportedly
LOOP memoir following

the end of her
conservatorship
Hey, Rise Up planning a solo
comeback
LINE-UP | news
Prince and the

Revolution resurrected
Prince’s Grammy Award- run Collector’s Edition of the iconic
nominated concert film ‘Prince performance, available exclusively
and The Revolution: Live’ has been from the official Prince Store.
remastered and remixed for a new Housed in a luxe foil box, the set
release. includes the remixed and remastered
Restored from the original 2” audio pressed onto 3 coloured LPs
multitrack master reels, the film has (purple, red and gold), 2 CDs, the Blu-
been digitally enhanced onto Blu- Ray film, an expansive 44-page book
Ray video with selectable stereo, 5.1 complete with never-before-seen
surround and Dolby Atmos sound. photos of the ‘Purple Rain Tour’, new
Recorded during the funk icon’s liner notes highlighting stories and
March 30, 1985 ‘Purple Rain Tour’ memories from all five members of
PHOTO PRN MUSICCORP, NANCY BUNDT
stop at Syracuse, New York’s Carrier The Revolution, and a limited run 24
Dome, the concert was beamed to x 36 poster.
millions live via satellite and has “Listening back to that Syracuse
since gone down in history as one show, I’m like, wow, we sound like
of the most iconic live recordings in a freight train just coming out of
pop and rock history. nowhere,” says The Revolution’s
The new release of ‘Prince and The BrownMark. “That was powerful. I’ve
Revolution: Live’ marks the first time been to a lot of concerts, and I’ve
that the concert will be available on never seen anything like that.”
vinyl - as a 3LP set - and on CD as ‘Prince and The Revolution: Live’
part of a 2CD/Blu-Ray collection. is released June 3 and available to
Also due for release is a limited pre-order now.
BLUE BRING HEART & SOUL

Blue will release their sixth 4 at Cardiff’s Motorpoint
album ‘Heart and Soul’ later Arena and conclude at
this year. Newcastle Utilita Arena on
The ‘00s boy band has been December 20.
busy in the recording studio According to a press
putting the finishing touches release, the new album is
to their first LP since 2015’s “one of their best records yet”
‘Colours’, which is set to drop - and it seems they’ve been
on September 9. working on the project for
Its arrival comes two days several years.
before the All Rise group’s Back in 2017, Simon
tour was due to open but, confirmed he and his

amid the album release, Blue bandmates were back in
have pushed their UK arena the studio, revealing at the
trek to December. time: “We’re in the studio.
Citing “some very exciting We did the Sunshine Festival
plans to be announced in in Worcester. We’re going have all been working on solo Simon and Antony enjoying
due course,” Lee Ryan, to Latvia tomorrow. We’re projects in the meantime, careers on stage.
Duncan James, Simon constantly working, at least with Lee and Duncan ‘Heart and Soul’ is available
Webbe and Antony Costa will two or three times a month.” appearing in ‘EastEnders’ and to pre-order on CD, Vinyl and
kick off the run on December However, the four-piece ‘Hollyoaks’, respectively, and Cassette.
TAKE THAT movie ROXY MUSIC will hit NATIONAL ALBUM DAY MADONNA and
‘Greatest Days’ has cast its the road later this year is celebrating debuts for its her son David have
fictional boy band and will to celebrate the group’s 2022 edition - full release recorded a stripped
film over the summer 50th anniversary slate to be announced soon back cover of Elton
John’s Your Song for
Ukraine relief efforts
LINE-UP
NEWS
ABBA GO FOR GOLD
ABBA are celebrating their 50th anniversary with the
release of a 10-disc career-spanning retrospective.
Available as a 10LP box set, pressed on 180g
heavyweight vinyl, as well as a 10CD collection,
the bundle includes all of ABBA’s albums, from
1973’s ‘Ring Ring’ to their sensational 2021 comeback
LP ‘Voyage’.
Also included is a bonus disc of ABBA tracks, featuring
non-album singles such as Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A
Man After Midnight), Fernando and other B-sides.
The 10CD set comes with the addition of a
40-page booklet, featuring album information and
SUGABABES
classic ABBA photographs from throughout their career.
Meanwhile, the group will also release all of their
studio albums as 12” vinyl picture discs, available as
for Glastonbury
a discounted 8LP bundle, and 9LP bundle (including
‘Voyage’) for a limited time only.
return
While the group returned last year with new music,
ahead of the opening of their ‘ABBA Voyage’ residency Sugababes and McFly have ticked off the bucket list.”
show in London on May 27, they have insisted the been added to this year’s They join headliners Billie
record will be their last. Glastonbury line-up as part of Eilish, Paul McCartney and
“This is it… It’s got to be, you know,” said Benny the festival’s Field Of Avalon Kendrick Lamar at the 2022
Andersson (via The Guardian) “I didn’t actually say that, stage billing. edition of Glastonbury - the first
‘This is it’ in 1982. I never said myself that ABBA was The groups will perform since 2019.
never going to happen again. But I can tell you now: at the Worthy Farm event, The Beatles superstar will
this is it.” alongside acts such as Imelda headline the Pyramid Stage
The albums are all released on June 10 and available May, The Damned, The on June 25, with Billie and
to pre-order now. Hoosiers, Nick Mulvey, Orla Kendrick due to perform
Gartland and Ward Thomas. on June 24 and June 26.
It mark’s Sugababes’ return Meanwhile, Diana Ross is set
to the iconic event for the first to play the Sunday afternoon
time in almost two decades, legends slot.
having last performed in Following the line-up

2003. However, this will be the announcement, Emily Eavis
first time founding member tweeted: “We are very happy to
Siobhan Donaghy joins Keisha bring you the first shortlist of
Buchanan and Mutya Buena for artists from the main stages for
the festival. Glastonbury Festival 2022 – and
Meanwhile, McFly will make if you can believe it there’s even
their long-awaited Glastonbury more to come!”
debut, with the band admitting Glastonbury will run at
they’re “so excited” for the gig Worthy Farm between June
and remarking: “Another one 22-26.
DAMON ALBARN has MARC ALMOND was SOPHIE ELLIS- PHIL COLLINS
IN THE
released an expanded forced to put the UK leg of BEXTOR has performed his
deluxe edition of his his solo tour on hold until delayed the European final gig with
LOOP solo LP ‘The Nearer the

Fountain, More Pure the
Stream Flows’
later this year owing to
Covid-19 - European dates
to go ahead as planned
leg of her ‘Kitchen
Disco Tour’ until
2023
Genesis at The
O2 in London
LINE-UP | news
BACKSTREET’S
BACK!
Backstreet Boys are back with a bang as
they finally bring their ‘DNA’ tour to the
UK and Europe with a string of 2022
tour dates.
The boyband will return to the stage in
October with a series of shows across the
continent, before wrapping the leg with a
gig at London’s The O2 on November 6.
The trek also includes stops in
Portugal, Spain, Germany, Italy, the
Netherlands, Sweden and Poland, with
tickets for the live shows on sale now.
A portion of proceeds will be donated
to UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency

helping protect and assist those forced to
flee their homes in Ukraine.
The tour began three years ago in
May 2019, but was cut short in March
2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic. Backstreet Boys kicked off their world in June for the opening night of their
Although the band initially rescheduled tour in April with four shows at The North American and Canadian dates,
the remaining dates for 2021, they later Colosseum at Caesars Palace in Las which run through September.
pushed their plans back to 2022/2023 Vegas. Meanwhile, the tour will hit South
Ahead of the UK and Europe gigs, Following a short break, they’ll return America and Oceania in early 2023.
George Michael’s
masterpiece revisited
features the hit singles Fastlove and global supply issues.
Jesus to a Child, and proved a huge In a statement, they said: “For reasons
commercial hit for the Wham! legend. beyond our control, due to global supply
Now, the iconic album is to be and manufacturing difficulties, it is with
issued as a 2LP gatefold on 180g vinyl, great regret that we have had to delay
remastered from the original tapes. plans to mark and celebrate the 25th
Meanwhile, a Super Deluxe Box Set anniversary of Older until the first half
features the 2LP set along with ‘Upper’ of 2022.
- available on vinyl for the first time - “We know that you will not be
plus 5 CDs, three 12”x12” art prints and a disappointed with what we have
George Michael’s classic third 12”x12” 48-page book, titled ‘The Story of planned, and in the meantime we want
album ‘Older’ has been remastered Older’. to thank you all for your patience and
and expanded for a deluxe reissue Last year, the late star’s Estate for the love and continued support for
celebrating its 25th anniversary. confirmed a reissue was on the way, but George and his music.”
Originally released in 1996, the LP were forced to delay the project due to ‘Older’ is available to pre-order now.
MCFLY paid tribute to late SOFT CELL star Dave MARY J. BLIGE will GIRLS ALOUD
Foo Fighters drummer Taylor Ball looks set to miss receive the Icon Award are reuniting to host
Hawkins with a cover of the the group’s first album at the 2022 Billboard an industry fundraiser
group’s hit single Best of You release in 20 years as he Music Awards in memory of late
recovers from a fractured bandmate Sarah
vertebrae - get well soon! Harding
JUST CAN’T GET
ENOUGH OF THE
80s and 90s?
Then you’ll love Totally 80s and Totally
90s with Gary King! Listen every week
for free at www.X1Player.com
RETROSPECTIVE | Top of the Pops
Top Of The Pops tales

Step back in time as we revisit classic moments from the ‘Top of the Pops’ archives!
Cope made
his orange top
himself, from a
hotel pillowcase.
#1 JULIAN COPE
DROPS ACID TOP 10
THE OFFICIAL CHART
September 3, 1981: FOR AUGUST 30, 1981
The Teardrop Explodes - Passionate Friend
1 SOFT CELL
f you were about to appear live on a shiny white grand piano, shoeless. “After
I
Tainted Love
national television, you’d probably want much manoeuvring, I scrambled to the top
2 ANEKA
to be stone-cold sober. But pop stars of this vast and polished plateau. The finish
Japanese Boy
are a different breed. No stranger to of the piano was unbelievable. I waded in its
voyages on the psychedelic plane (he used high gloss syrup, my feet sinking deeper and 3 THE HUMAN LEAGUE
to ride imaginary horses to the recording deeper into the surface like hot wet tar on a Love Action (I Believe In Love)
studio), The Teardrop Explodes frontman newly completed road.” 4 ELECTRIC LIGHT
Julian Cope decided to take massive hits of Once the camera crane swung round from ORCHESTRA
LSD in his dressing room and then spend Bucks Fizz, Cope was “fighting for his life”. Hold On Tight
WORDS IAN BERRIMAN PHOTOS BBC / TOP OF THE POPS
several hours of rehearsals smoking spliffs He recalls feeling as if keyboard player Jeff 5 THE ROYAL
before lip-synching live on ‘Top of the Pops’. Hammer, seated at the piano, was thousands PHILHARMONIC
The results were, as he recounted in his of feet below. “He looked ridiculous to me, like ORCHESTRA
1994 autobiography ‘Head-On’, predictably The Phantom of the Opera or some such shit.” Hooked On Classics
paranoia-inducing. Somehow, he made it through to the end
6 GARY NUMAN
“The acid heightened the fake tans of of the three and a half-minute performance
She’s Got Claws
everyone in the room… The BBC make-up without falling off, or wrecking the expensive
woman had scared the shit out of me. They instrument. “I felt the song disappearing into 7 UB40
had asked me if I’d just come back from a tunnel. It was fading out and the audience One In Ten
the Bahamas, and said they loved my tan. was cheering. I felt as though I’d been up 8 SHAKIN’ STEVENS
Of course, irony is lost on someone who’s there for days…” Green Door
tripping his brain out, so I figured that I must 9 GENESIS
be turning brown.” l Follow @TOTPFacts on Twitter for Abacab
It didn’t exactly help matters that he’d live trivia commentary on the BBC Four
10 LOBO
decided to mime the song while standing on repeats.
The Caribbean Disco Show
14
INTO THE
STRATOSPHERE
Meet this year’s
Eurovision contestants,
including the United
Kingdom’s very
own Space Man
Sam Ryder!
PHOTOS PARLOPHONE MUSIC, REUTERS / ALAMY STOCK PHOTO
16 24 26
BUCKS FIZZ KATRINA QUIZ

Cheryl, Mike and Celebrating 25 years Test your Eurovision
Jay revisit ‘Are You of Eurovision winner knowledge with our
Ready’ 40 years on. Love Shine a Light. ultimate pop quiz.
n ig h t in m u si c se t to return
With the bigge st
, w e b ri n g y o u th e ultimate
for its 66th edition 2022!
guide to Eurovision
he 2022 Eurovision Song Contest
T kicks off on May 10 with the first

of two Semi-Finals, during which
a total of 35 countries will hit the
stage and perform their entries, with 10
contestants from each heat progressing on
to the Grand Final.
Semi-Final 1 will see 17 stars sing, with
18 acts due to perform on May 14 in the
second show. Russia had originally been
billed to compete during the first heat, but WHEN?
on February 25, the European Broadcasting SEMI-FINALS: MAY 10 & 12
Union announced that the country was
GRAND FINAL: MAY 14
excluded from the contest due to its invasion
of Ukraine.
In the Grand Final, the 20 successful Semi- WHERE?
Finalists will return to compete for the prize, TURIN, ITALY
alongside acts from the ‘Big Five’ countries -
France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United
Kingdom - who bypass the preliminary
WHO?
stages. This right is also given to the host 40 COUNTRIES WILL COMPETE,
country, however as Italy automatically WITH 25 PROGRESSING TO THE
progresses, the rule is invalid this year. GRAND FINAL
PHOTOS GIULIO RUSTICHELLI; CITTÀ DI TORINO
SEMI-FINAL 1 - MAY 10 SEMI-FINAL 2 - MAY 12

1ST HALF 2ND HALF 1ST HALF 2ND HALF
ALBANIA NORWAY AUSTRALIA MONTENEGRO
LATVIA PORTUGAL GEORGIA ROMANIA
SWITZERLAND DENMARK CYPRUS CZECH REPUBLIC
SLOVENIA ARMENIA SERVIA POLAND
BULGARIA AUSTRIA FINLAND BELGIUM
MOLDOVA CROATIA AZERBAIJAN NORTH
UKRAINE ICELAND SAN MARINO MACEDONIA
LITHUANIA GREECE ISRAEL SWEDEN
NETHERLANDS MALTA ESTONIA
IRELAND
LINE-UP | Eurovision 2022
MEET
THE HOSTS
The 2022 Eurovision Song Contest will be
hosted by pop superstar Mika, alongside
singer Laura Pausini and presenter
Alessandro Cattelan. Mika is a well-known
name in Italy, where he sits as a judge on the
Italian version of ‘The X Factor’ and worked
with former host Alessandro, while Laura
is one of the country’s most successful
recording artists.
STAGING THE SPECTACLE

Multimedia artist and designer Francesca
Montinaro is the creator of The Sun Within, the
stage set to host the 2022 Eurovision Song Contest.
According to a press release, it has “the ability to
showcase theatrical motion, which is framed by
water and will have a lush Italian garden lapping up
the rays in front of it.”
“The kinetic sun, source of spectacular
movements and tricks of light, rules the stage and
represents our Italian attitude: always on the move,
rebellious, creative, welcoming, passionate,
intuitive,” says Francesca. “We are the
ones with the sun within, and this
is our way to be in this world.
“The cascade of water
that frames the stage,
allegorically represents the
sea that surrounds us, a
symbol of our complex
culture. The stage is our
peninsula: a country
where each contestant is
welcomed, no matter where
they are coming from.”
m e e t t h e
CONTESTANTS
his year, 40 countries will compete
T at the 66th Eurovision Song

Contest, but not all of them will
make it to the Grand Final stage on
May 14. Over two nights, 35 acts will perform
in a bid to earn a spot on the stage in Turin
and, ahead of a week of massive shows, we
take a look at the artists and entries set to
light up the stage at Eurovision 2022.
UNITED KINGDOM
ARTIST: SAM RYDER
ENTRY: SPACE MAN
Singer-songwriter Sam Ryder made a name for himself in the 2020
when he became famous on TikTok for his cover versions of famous
songs, and is now the most followed British artist on the platform. He
was subsequently signed to Parlophone records and was selected to
represent the United Kingdom with his song Space Man, co-written
with Max Wolfgang and Amy Wedge, who won a Grammy for Ed
Sheeran’s worldwide hit Thinking Out Loud.
FRANCE
ARTIST: ALVAN & AHEZ
ENTRY: FULENN
Vocal trio Ahez join forces with
electro pop multi-instrumentalist
Alvan for Fulenn, their 2022 hit
that triumphed in the French
national selection ‘Eurovision
France: C’est Vous Qui Decidez’.
The song is about a woman from
Breton who, tired of settling for
second best, dances away her troubles
CROATIA to one of the most electrifying, dynamic
ARTIST: MIA DIMŠIĆ numbers headed to Turin.
ENTRY: GUILTY PLEASURE
With six chart-toppers under her belt BELGIUM
in her home country, Mia Dimsic is ARTIST: JÉRÉMIE MAKIESE
hoping to shine her star across Europe ENTRY: MISS YOU
when she hits the Eurovision stage with Winning ‘The Voice Belgique’ helped start 2021 on a
her track Guilty Pleasure. It’s already high for singer Jérémie Makiese, but triumphing
proven a hit in Croatia and won ‘Dora in Eurovision 2022 would be an even bigger
2022’ with a landslide victory, scoring achievement. He’s heading to Turin with his
almost 80 points more than runner-up, powerful ballad Miss You, showcasing his
Marko Bosnjak, and after topping the emotional side and his silky smooth vocals,
charts following its release, it’s poised as which have already won him legions of
a strong contender. fans in his home country and beyond.
POLAND
ARTIST: OCHMAN
ENTRY: RIVER
American-born Ochman
returned to his home country
Poland after graduating high
school, where he nurtured his
love of music and entered the
11th season of ‘The Voice Poland’,
joining former Eurovision star
Michal Szpak’s team. He went on to
win the competition, secured a major
record deal with Universal Music Polska and
was selected to represent the country with River - a
showcase of his impressive vocal range.
ALBANIA
ARTIST:
RONELA
HAJATI
ENTRY: SEKRET
No stranger to the
music scene, Ronela
AUSTRALIA Hajati has appeared in
ARTIST: SHELDON RILEY competitions such as
ENTRY: NOT THE SAME ‘Top Fest’ and ‘Kenga
At 22, Sheldon Riley already has an impressive track record Magjike’ for the past
under his belt - he competed on ‘The X Factor Australia’ in decade, scooping the
2016, ‘The Voice of Australia’ in 2018 and 2019, and ‘America’s Internet Award at the
Got Talent ‘in 2020. After a nerve-wracking final, he won 2013 edition of the latter with Mos ma Isho. It was
the chance to represent Australia at Eurovision with Not the announced late last year that she’d represent Albania,
Same, which the LGBTQ+ star wrote based on his personal after winning the 60th edition of ‘Festivali i Këngës’
experiences with Asperger syndrome. with her self-penned “ethno” pop banger. She’s set to
revamp the song before hitting the Eurovision stage -
a common practice for Albanian entries.
AUSTRIA
VISVALDAS MORKEVIČIUS; ORF; HENRI DOYEN; THOMAS BRAUT / FRANCE TV
ARTIST: LUM!X
PHOTOS GORAN ČIŽMEŠIJA; PARLOPHONE MUSIC; SLAWOMIR KUCHANSKI;
FEAT. PIA
LITHUANIA
ARTIST: MONIKA LIU
MARIA ENTRY: SENTIMENTAI
ENTRY: HALO Singer Monika Liu is one of
DJ & producer Lithuania’s most recognisable
LUM!X originates artists, having appeared on local
from the home city editions of ‘The Voice’ and ‘The
of Eurovision 2022, Masked Singer’, and she’s
Turin, but he’ll set to represent her
represent Austria country with the
when he takes to jazz-influenced
the stage with his Sentimentai. Since
EDM number Halo, its release, the track
featuring vocals from has already topped
Pia Maria. Despite the charts in her home
being relatively country and after
unknown, the emerging victorious in
18-year-old is faced the ‘Pabandom iš Naujo’,
with the biggest show of she’s hoping to top the
her career to date and, with the backing of LUM!X - who has Eurovision leaderboard.
racked up almost one billion streams across platforms - it’s
sure to open up the next stage of her career.
ISRAEL
ARTIST: MICHAEL BEN DAVID
ENTRY: I.M
Michael Ben David rose to prominence in 2021 when, after
graduating from the Beit Zvi Performing Arts school the year
prior, he auditioned for the Israeli version of ‘The X Factor’,
where he was mentored by former Eurovision winner Netta. He
eventually won the contest and is set to perform his flamboyant,
electronic number I.M in a bid to snatch the trophy in Turin.
ITALY GEORGIA
ARTIST: MAHMOOD & BLANCO ARTIST: CIRCUS MIRCUS
ENTRY: BRIVIDI ENTRY: LOCK ME IN
Eurovision veteran Mahmood - who Progressive rock trio Circus
represented the country back in 2019 - has Mircus started out performing in a
teamed up with another powerhouse of the circus academy but, after realising
Italian music scene, Blanco, for new entry they weren’t cut out for a career
Brividi. In the last two years, Blanco has in the big top, they dropped out
released a chart-topping album and four No. to become musicians. Having
1 singles in his home country, including his formed in 2020, they were internally selected by Georgian Public
new collaboration, and he’s hoping for similar Broadcasting (GPB) to represent the country with their funky, guitar-
success in Turin with the pair’s soaring ballad. driven number Lock Me In.
ARMENIA
ARTIST: ROSA LINN
ENTRY: SNAP
Rosa Linn’s history with Eurovision goes
back almost a decade. Back in 2013, the
singer made a name for herself when she
competed in the Armenian selection for the
‘Junior Eurovision Song Contest’ with her
song Gitem. Although she wasn’t selected
to represent the country, her dream will
finally come true this year when she takes
to the stage with her guitar-led, folk-
inspired track Snap.
LATVIA
ARTIST: CITI ZĒNI
ENTRY: EAT YOUR SALAD
Hip-hop group Citi Zēni won the Latvian Eurovision Selection
Supernova by a landslide 11,000 votes with their song Eat Your
Salad, with its message of vegan/eco-friendly living. The group only
formed in 2020, having met at a songwriting camp, but their novelty
track was a hit with the Latvian public, along with the country’s jury,
who also awarded the topical entry the maximum points.
DENMARK
ARTIST: REDDI
ENTRY: THE SHOW
Danish-Swedish girl band Reddi were relatively
unknown before being selected for Eurovision 2022,
but they already have a history with the Contest.
Drummer Ihan Haydar played for Soluna Samay
back in 2012 and, with a track penned by Eurovision
veterans Julia Farin, Chief 1 and Remee, they’re in good
hands when it comes to their rocking entry The Show.
NORWAY
ARTIST: SUBWOOLFER GREECE
ENTRY: GIVE THAT WOLF A ARTIST: AMANDA
BANANA TENFJORD
Pop duo Subwoolfer’s identity is unknown; ENTRY: DIE
TOGETHER
the two members perform in black suits Music was never Amanda
and white shirts, with distinct yellow Tenfjord’s first career choice;
wolf-head masks and yellow gloves under initially, she studied medicine,
the pseudonyms Keith and Jim. Having before giving up her vocation
completed at ‘Norsk Melodi Grand Prix 2022’, to focus on her art. Having
they scored a victory with Give That Wolf a already released a handful
Banana - featuring several nods to the story of singles, her latest number
of ‘Little Red Riding Hood’ - and will bring Die Together is bang on
their show stopping act to Eurovision 2022 trend, with a lush, mid tempo
electronic track backing
standout, clean vocals - sure to
fare well at Eurovision.
SWEDEN
ARTIST:
CORNELIA
JAKOBS
ENTRY: HOLD
ME CLOSER
Sweden’s 2022 entrant
Cornelia Jakobs
made her Eurovision
bid twice before as
IRELAND a member of the
ARTIST: BROOKE band Love Generation, which
participated in Melodifestivalen 2011 & 2012, but it’s as a
ENTRY: THAT’S RICH
solo artist that she’ll represent the country in Turin. Her
Singer Brooke Scullion hails from the city of Derry,
entry Hold Me Closer builds to a massive number that
where Ireland’s first Eurovision winner Dana was
helped her beat fan favourite Anders Bagge during the
also born, and is hoping to follow in her footsteps
selection process and is sure to be a hit with fans of the
with the song That’s Rich. She’s already well known
country’s recent Eurovision output.
thanks to a stint on the 2020 series of ‘The Voice
UK’, on which she was mentored by singer Meghan
PHOTOS GIULIA BERSANI; SHAHAR ARBIV; MARTIN MYKLEBUST; AGNETE
Trainor and reached the Top Four. SCHLICHTKRULL; KOSTAS KARYDAS; SVT; RUTH MEDJBER; ROBERT KOLOYAN
MALTA
ARTIST: EMMA MUSCAT
ENTRY: OUT OF SIGHT
Emma Muscat’s star has been shining for some
time, with the singer competing in the Italian
talent competition ‘Amici’ and performing on SAN MARINO
‘Isle of MTV’ in 2018 and 2019, and now she’s set ARTIST: ACHILLE LAURO
to take on the world with a stint at Eurovision.
ENTRY: STRIPPER
Opening with a stripped back piano arrangement,
Chart-topper Achille Lauro has been a staple of the Italian
her song Out of Sight flourishes into a full pop
music scene for the last decade, scoring numerous hit singles
number, no doubt helping her beat competition
and albums and recently making headlines following a
from fan favourites Aidan and Nicole Azzopardi
provocative performance at the 72nd Sanremo Music Festival.
during the selection process.
During the show, he delivered a risqué set alongside vocalists
PHOTOS KRIS MICALLEF; LUCA D'AMELIO; ORLIN NIKOLOV; KONSTANTINOS MANOLAS; JOEY SCHULTZ;
ANNA MARIA BOSHNAKOVA; VLAD ANDREI; KOSTA ĐURAKOVIĆ; VENLA SHALIN; BARBORA NOSKOVÁ
from the world famous Harlem Gospel Choir - and he’s no
doubt hoping that shock factor will prove a hit at Eurovision
CZECH REPUBLIC with his song Stripper.
ARTIST: WE ARE DOMI
ENTRY: LIGHTS OFF
American-Norwegian trio We Are Domi met at
university in Leeds, UK and formed the band in
2018. The truly international act was one of seven
potential Czech Republic entries for Eurovision 2022
and proved a hit with the public and a professional
jury, winning a spot in Turin with their synth-heavy,
electro pop banger Lights Off.
FINLAND
ARTIST: THE
RASMUS
ENTRY: JEZEBEL
Rock group The Rasmus SERBIA
have enjoyed a global ARTIST: KONSTRAKTA
career for almost 30 ENTRY: IN CORPORE SANO
years, scoring hits such Konstrakta is the first act to triumph in Serbia’s new
as In The Shadows, national final ‘Pesma za Evroviziju’, beating fierce
No Fear, Sail Away and competition including two previous Eurovision
Funeral Song, and entrants - Sara Jo (from Moje 3, Serbia 2013) and
now they’re preparing for the biggest Tijana Dapčević (North Macedonia, 2014). The
gig of their career at Eurovision 2022. Jezebel is co-written by Lauri winning song In Corpore Sano translates to English
Ylönen and Desmond Child and, as the title suggests, tells a story of as ‘In the Healthy Body’ and comes complete with an
the Biblical figure. interpretative performance sure to attract attention.
BULGARIA
ARTIST: INTELLIGENT MUSIC PROJECT
ENTRY: INTENTION
Bulgarian businessman Milen Vrabevski formed the Intelligent
Music Project in 2010 and has welcomed a number of alternating
musicians over the years. For Eurovision, the group will be fronted
by Chilean lead singer Ronnie Romero, a former member of
the rock band Rainbow. Also playing on the guitar-led rocker is
Eurovision veteran Stoyan Yankulov, who performed Water as one-
half one-half of Bulgaria’s a fifth place 2007 act Elitsa Todorova.
CYPRUS
ARTIST: ANDROMACHE
ROMANIA ENTRY: ELA
ARTIST: WRS German-born Andromache has a talent show
background, having appeared on the second
ENTRY: LLÁMAME
season of ‘The Voice Greece’ in 2015, after which
Andrei Ionuț Ursu has worked as
she launched a successful career in music. Her
a professional dancer for some of
Eurovision entry Ela sees the star reunite with
the world’s biggest artists and major
Giorgos Papadopoulos, who penned her debut hit
productions, but now he’s planting
To Feggari, with a Mediterranean vibe sure to go
himself centre stage in Turin in a bid for
down well with fans.
the Eurovision trophy. His song Llámame
is performed in Spanish and English and,
with an infectious dance floor beat, he’s
set to show off his moves in a bid to win
votes from across Europe.
GERMANY PORTUGAL
ARTIST: MARO
ARTIST: MALIK HARRIS
ENTRY:
ENTRY: ROCKSTARS
Singer, songwriter and rapper
SAUDADE,
Malik Harris started making SAUDADE
music during his teenage years, Having attended
developing a sound that combines Berklee College of
rock, folk and electronic music, Music in Boston,
often with a loop effect. The USA - the largest
hitmaker has high hopes for independent music
his entry Rockstars and, during college in the world -
the German national final for singer Mariana Secca
Eurovision 2022, sampled aka Maro couldn’t be
‘Germany 12 Points’ onto the track. better prepared to hit the
During the performance, he’ll play stage in Turin this year. After
keyboard, guitar and add beats. spending time in LA working
on her music, she was announced as one
of the 20 acts for ‘Festival de Cancao’ and toppled
competition from Os Quoter e Meia and Aurea with
her track Saudade, Saudade.
SPAIN
ARTIST: CHANEL
ENTRY: SLOMO
Singer, dancer and actress Chanel Terrero is
already a big name in her home country and is
hoping to take her popularity to the next level with
her slick, uptempo tune SloMo. It’s been 53 years
since Spain last won the Contest, but the hype
around her performance is building ahead of her
appearance in Turin.
AZERBAIJAN
ARTIST: NADIR
ENTRY: FADE TO BLACK
Nadir Rustamli already has the
backing of Eurovision royalty,
having been mentored by Eldar
Qasimov - the winner of the 2011
Contest - during his stint on ‘The
Voice Azerbaijan’, which saw him
battle his way to victory. He’s hoping
for similar success in Turn, after
being chosen internally by the
Azerbaijani broadcaster ITV (Ictimai
SWITZERLAND TV) to represent the country with his
piano ballad Fade To Black.
ARTIST: MARIUS BEAR
ENTRY: BOYS DO CRY
Marius Bear began his music career as
a busker, playing on the streets of the
PHOTOS TVE; ICTIMAI TV; RTV SLOVENIA; MARIE WYNANTS; RÚV; MAXIM FESENKO;
Appenzell District before finding fame in
2019 when he won the ‘Best Talent’ prize at the
Swiss Music Awards. A firm favourite in his home
country, Marius also took part in the inaugural series of ‘I Can See Your
Voice’ in 2020 and was internally selected by the Swiss broadcaster to
AKO LEHEMETS; MARTIN TRAJANOVSKI; ALEKSANDRA JOVIC; SRF
represent the country on stage in Turin with Boys Do Cry.
MONTENEGRO
ARTIST: VLADANA
ENTRY: BREATHE
MOLDOVA
Having released her first music in ARTIST: ZDOBŞI ZDUB AND
2003, Vladana is approaching her FRAŢII ADVAHOV
20th year as an artist and hoping ENTRY: TRENULEŢUL
to take her act to the next level with It’s third time lucky for Zdob si Zdub, who were
her soaring Eurovision 2022 entry Moldova’s debut entry back in 2005 with the
Breathe. She’s competed to represent sixth-placed song Boonika Bate Doba and they
the country numerous times in the returned in 2011 with So Lucky, finishing 12th.
past and, over a decade since her last This time around, they’re bringing folk band
big song release Sinner City, she’s Fratii Advahov along for the ride in a bid to
hoping to improve the country’s finally land a place atop the leaderboard with
track record of recent years when Trenulentul. Austria’s Udo Jurgens previously
she hits the stage in Turin. won in 1966 with his third consecutive entry,
Merci, Chérie.
THE
NETHERLANDS
ARTIST: S10
ENTRY: DE DIEPTE
S10 (pronounced Es Teen) has
been performing professionally
since 2016 and is known for her
rap and hip-hop tracks. For the
SLOVENIA Eurovision Song Contest, she
ARTIST: LPS contributed a stripped-back
breakup anthem in a bid to
ENTRY: DISKO
better last year’s entry, which
Having formed in 2018, LPS - or Last Pizza Slice -
saw 2021’s host country as one
came to prominence in 2021 when they competed in
of four entries that scored no
the newcomer section of the ‘EMA Freš’, where they
public points, finishing 23rd on
finished in fourth place. The success saw them move
the leaderboard.
forward and compete at ‘EMA 2022’, where they beat
out established artists such as BQL and Batista Cadillac
to be named as Slovenia’s selection for Eurovision
2022 with their feelgood track Disko.
NORTH
MACEDONIA
ARTIST: ANDREA
ENTRY: CIRCLES
It’s Andrea Koevska’s
powerhouse vocals that helped
her rise through the ranks of the
ICELAND
Eurovision selection process ARTIST: SYSTUR
and earn the right to represent ENTRY: MEÐ HÆKKANDI SÓL
Macedonia during the 2022 Sibling trio Sigga, Beta & Elin have been performing
edition of the show. Her anthem together for over a decade and initially found success
tied with eventual runner-up in 2013 with their song Ain’t Got Nobody. The
Viktor Apostolovski, at which group was chosen as one of 10 acts for the Icelandic
point the contest had to go to a national selection ‘Songvakeppnin’ and, despite
tie-break, but it was the rising star competing against fan favourites Reyjavikurdaetur,
who emerged triumphant and triumphed for a spot at Eurovision 2022. Með
will sing for her country in Turin. Hækkandi Sól marks one of the rare occasions that
the country’s entry is sung entirely in Icelandic.
UKRAINE
ESTONIA ARTIST: KALUSH
ARTIST: STEFAN ORCHESTRA
ENTRY: HOPE ENTRY: STEFANIA
Stefan’s journey to Eurovision has Rap group Kalush are no strangers
been a slow burn, having tried to the global stage, having signed
to represent Estonia on four with American hip-hop label Def
occasions, including in 2019 Jam Recordings back in 2019, but
when his song Without You for Eurovision they’re switching
made it to the final stages of up their sound and collaborating
the selection process thanks with instrumentalists Tymofii
to a top ranking jury vote. Muzychuk and Vitalii Duzhyk.
While he ultimately wasn’t The song Stefania originally
successful then, his time finished in second place in
is now with his stomping the country’s ‘Vidbir’ selection
anthem Hope - which process, but after original winner Alina Pash was
earned twice the number of deemed ineligible, the group accepted the invitation to
votes of his nearest rival. represent Ukraine.
Light up t h e m a g i c :
Love Shine
A Light AT 25
Katrina and the Waves scored the United Kingdom’s most
recent Eurovision victory with the classic Love Shine a Light -
a track we revisit with the leading lady herself!
n 1997, the 42nd Eurovision Song Eurovision and submitted the song for the Labour government getting in.
I Contest took place in Dublin,

Ireland, following the country’s
victory the year prior with Eimear
Quinn’s The Voice. Not only was it the
fourth time in five years that Ireland
consideration to compete in the ‘Great
British Song Contest’, for a spot in the
Grand Final.
Despite recording regularly, the
group’s success had been dwindling
And [Eurovision] was just sort of an
afterthought.”
The victory may have been
underwhelming for the singer at the
time, but two decades on the track
had hosted the contest, it also marked since their 1980s heyday, and they finally got its moment in the spotlight
a record sixth time that it was staged hadn’t entered the UK Top 20 - let alone in the way Katrina imagined. Love
in Dublin. the Top 10 - since 1985 with Walking Shine a Light took centre stage at the
Ireland’s track record in recent years on Sunshine. However, the new track 2020 special ‘Eurovision: Europe Shine
may have been exemplary, with Linda propelled them back into the public a Light’, which aired in lieu of that
Martin, Niamh Kavanagh, and Paul consciousness and saw Katrina and year’s edition owing to the Covid-19
Harrington and Charlie McGettigan the Waves score their highest-charting pandemic. Not only was the show
scoring victories in the early 1990s, but single, peaking at No. 3 in the UK. named after Katrina and the Waves’
for the UK it had been a different story On the evening of the Eurovision winning number, but the song also
altogether. Song Contest Grand Final, the band featured as a performance, with all
Come the 1997 edition of Eurovision, performed 24th out of 25 acts and, contestants from the planned Contest
it had been 16 years since the country’s when it came to the voting, assumed (except for Hooverphonic from
last victory - with Bucks Fizz classic a permanent position in first place on Belgium), as well as an instrumental
Making Your Mind Up in 1981 - and the scoreboard. The song ultimately rendition courtesy of the Rotterdam
despite strong efforts from Michael Ball, finished with 227 points, setting a record Philharmonic Orchestra.
Sonia and, most recently, Gina G, the at the time. For Katrina, it was a particularly
trophy remained firmly out of reach. But The group may have proven popular poignant moment. “I was shocked. I was
when Katrina and the Waves emerged with voters across Europe, but when flabbergasted, to tell you the truth,” she
with their ode to love, hope and they returned to the UK it was a different smiles. “To hear the orchestra playing
optimism, the tables were about to turn. story altogether. “When we won in 1997, it and then to hear everyone taking a
Written by band member Kimberley Terry Wogan was saying, ‘There’s gonna line, I just stood in front of the TV with
Rew, Love Shine a Light was originally be a lot of people here. There’s going to my mouth hanging open. I was just like,
born out of a request from the brother of be a lot of press, a lot of popularity’,” says ‘This is extraordinary!’
the group’s drummer Alex Cooper for an Katrina Leskanich, following the release “It was fun to think that the UK won
anthem for Samaritans to celebrate the of her latest solo album ‘Hearts, Loves & [in 1997] and all of that, but [there was]
30th anniversary of the organisation’s Babys’. no fanfare whatsoever. So for it to be
Swindon branch. However, upon “There wasn’t jack shit. There wasn’t bigged up in such a way in 2020, it
presenting the track the group was anybody waiting at the airport. Tony actually was so much more appropriate
told it would be the perfect fit for Blair had just got in. It was all about for now and it’s almost like it found
RETROSPECTIVE | Katrina and the Waves
FOR IT TO BE
BIGGED UP IN SUCH
A WAY IN 2020…
IT’S ALMOST LIKE IT
FOUND THE RIGHT
YEAR TO REEMERGE
AND TO BE BORN
AGAIN. AND THAT
WAS A BIG, FANTASTIC
SECOND ‘HALLELUJAH’
MOMENT.
the right year to reemerge and to her partner Myra Stratton. However, somebody else’s song, he wanted to
be born again. It just had so much when Sam took a different direction write his own - which I do not blame
more meaning, it was so much more with her latest recordings, Katrina took him. So it kind of bounced I Want to
poignant this time. And that was a big, the song to Eurovision. Love Again back into my lap.”
fantastic second ‘hallelujah’ moment.” “I thought, ‘This could be a great The song features on ‘Hearts, Loves &
More than two decades may have Eurovision song,’ and I heard that Babys’ and, when it comes to the future
passed since Katrina’s big win, but she’s BMG were going to be choosing the of the track, Katrina isn’t ruling out
not washed her hands of Eurovision Eurovision songs for the UK,” she recalls. luring Sam into the studio to cut a duet.
yet. In fact, she submitted a track in “So I got the song all ready and sent it to “I haven’t even thought about that,” she
2020, which she says was shortlisted BMG, and they said, ‘We love this, we’re teases. “We’ll have to see what Ms. Fox
for the UK - before organisers pinned going to shortlist it for Eurovision 2020.’ thinks of the whole thing.”
their hopes on singer-songwriter James And then it came to the crunch and More than two decades on from her
PHOTO MIKE INNS
Newman, who contributed his own they’d come across James. And James monumental win, who knows - there’s
track My Last Breath. said, ‘Yeah, but obviously I’m gonna still time for Katrina to bag another
The song I Want to Love Again was write my own song. And James had a Eurovision classic!
written originally for Katrina’s friend really good track record for songs…
Samantha Fox, inspired by the loss of “Even though he could have sung l ‘Hearts, Loves & Babys’ is out now.
R u n f o r t h e s u n …
Are You
Ready AT 40
Bucks Fizz’s Eurovision winner Making Your Mind Up took
them to the top of the charts, but according to Cheryl Baker,
Mike Nolan and Jay Aston, it was their second album
‘Are You Ready’ that cemented the group’s pop legacy
n April 1981, Bucks Fizz scored for the gig that night. It was crazy times!” year of ‘82. But then, the following
I overnight success with their

Eurovision-winning entry Making
Your Mind Up, topping the
leaderboard and the UK charts and
launching a career that would live on
Over the course of their debut, Bucks
Fizz had steered their sound away from
the three-minute ditty that made waves
across Europe, shelving plans to release
the equally uptempo The Right Situation
Christmas Day, we were on
Christmas ‘Top of the Pops’. And we
did these crazy outfits. I was a fairy
and they put a harness on my
back, so I was doing the routine
for four decades - and counting… in favour of more midtempo, moody and on ‘run for the sun’, they
The group’s iconic performance - cuts like One of Those Nights. flew me. It was great!”
which featured Mike Nolan and Bobby G The band’s hectic schedule meant She adds: “It was so special
ripping off Cheryl Baker and Jay Aston’s their input in the music itself was little, being on Christmas ‘Top of the
coloured skirts, revealing mini dresses and Jay credits producer Andy Hill for Pops’. It was second to winning the
- immediately earned its place in the nurturing and progressing their sound Eurovision Song Contest, because
history books and saw the band go on between albums. it was the biggest ‘Top of the Pops’
to find further chart success with hit “I think where the production show, wasn’t it?”
single Piece of the Action, taken from company was smart is that, if you’ve Jay credits the single for
their eponymous debut album. That had a platform, you don’t want to go and establishing Bucks Fizz as “an act that
record was finished in a matter of do the same thing. You need to show had longevity” and, with follow-up
weeks, but when it came to working yourself as an artist,” she says. “Andy Hill single My Camera Never Lies, the
on follow-up ‘Are You Ready’, it was a had a lot of other songs that he worked group returned to the top of the UK
different process altogether. on. If you’re a songwriter, you’ll have charts once again with one of their
Now bonafide pop stars, the group done 20 songs and, you know, three or most successful releases to date. It’s a
was on the road promoting their latest four of them are better. So they kind of particularly proud moment for Cheryl,
release when they were called into cherry picked the songs.” who conceived and performed the ‘My
the studio, one-by-one, to lay down Of the band’s new cuts, it was The camera never lies / Lies oh, oh, oh, oh’
vocals for the new tracks. “We were on Land of Make Believe that launched bridge section.
tour, I think. We were in Scotland - or ‘Are You Ready’ and, in late 1981, it was Meanwhile, its follow-up, the Mike
somewhere like that - and we were headed straight for the top of the charts. Nolan-led ballad Now Those Days
flying down to London to put our vocals “I absolutely adore The Land of Make Are Gone, also peaked in the Top 10,
down and then flying straight back in at Believe! It just takes me back to the showing a different side to the band
the end of the day,” recalls Cheryl. “We Christmas of 1981 and it being a massive worlds away from their Eurovision
were doing that one at a time, each of hit,” beams Cheryl. “It was only No. 2 at debut.
us, and we had to be flown back in time Christmas and went to No. 1 in the new “Even though I sing it, it’s still a
RETROSPECTIVE | Bucks Fizz
IT WAS SO
SPECIAL BEING ON
CHRISTMAS ‘TOP
OF THE POPS’. IT
WAS SECOND TO
WINNING THE
EUROVISION
SONG CONTEST,
BECAUSE IT WAS
THE BIGGEST ‘TOP
OF THE POPS’
SHOW, WASN’T IT?
group song. I don’t feel that this dawn to record cinematic scenes “I did it two or three times, and by
is my song,” insists Mike, who for the visual, Mike was given a lie half-past one I was finished,” he laughs.
remembers Bucks Fizz “worked in and showed up at midday to do “They said, ‘That’s you done now,’ and I
very hard on the harmonies” in the his straight-to-camera moments, before said, ‘Thank you very much - the star is
studio. Cheryl agrees: “I remember leaving just over an hour later. now leaving the building!’”
Andy Hill giving me - because I was like “I remember when we made the Bucks Fizz’s itinerary may have been
‘Mrs. Harmony’ - all of the cassettes and video of it, everyone had to be at the hectic and, in their early years as a band,
asking me to work out who should take studio for seven o’clock in the morning, the workload heavy, with the group
which line. And they were quite difficult because they had to be made up and releasing four albums - plus a ‘Greatest
lines, because they all crossed over. So dressed up in fancy dress and do their Hits’ collection - in just four years! But
we did that, and Now Those Days Are thing,” he shares. “They said, ‘Mike, you ‘Are You Ready’ remains a firm favourite
Gone, I adore.” don’t need to be here until 12’. I said, of the group and, ahead of the release of
The track may be Mike’s big vocal ‘OK then’. So I got there at 12, they made their fourth album as The Fizz, one they
moment, but one of his standout me up and put me in an outfit, and I look back on with great fondness.
memories of the single is filming its had to stand in front of this black screen
music video - because while Cheryl, Jay and sing Now Those Days Are Gone l The Fizz’s new album, produced
and Bobby were on set at the crack of into the mic. by Mike Stock, is out soon
The
Sound Of
Beauty
VARIOUS ARTISTS
EUROVISION SONG
CONTEST TURIN 2022 from Armenia’s Rosa Linn, is a guitar-led
HHHHH folk anthem, much in line with chart Latvia’s Citi Zēni’s Eat Your Salad is
trends that have proven popular for another unusual entry thrown into the
RELEASED: May 6 megastars such as Ed Sheeran. mix, this time urging listeners to ‘Eat
Universal Music One step further, though, and the beat your salad, save the planet / Being green
kicks in on LUM!X’s Halo featuring Pia is sexy as fuck’.
FORMATS: Maria, which is sure to prove a hit for If the past few years have taught us
2CD, 4LP Limited Edition Vinyl Austria in Turin. anything, it’s that the shock factor that
The quality of the entries for this once made Eurovision winners isn’t as
year’s Contest is superb and, among necessary as it once was, with the left
C
elebrate The Sound of Beauty many mid-tempo, scaled back ballads, side of the leaderboard increasingly
with the official album it’s the more upbeat offerings that really favouring song over performance.
from the 66th edition of the stand out and grab attention as the LP And with a superb line-up of well-
Eurovision Song Contest. progresses. crafted entries, there are no doubt a few
Clocking in at 40 tracks, the set As expected, this year sees a number underdogs who’ll snatch votes on the
includes every entry from the 2022 of heavy rock entries off the back of night; part of the fun is deciding who’ll
showcase and offers a broad spectrum Måneskin’s win with their anthem Zitti be the real dark horse!
of pop encompassing the entire E Buoni, some of which pack more of a Every year, Eurovision provides the
continent - and beyond… punch than others. Intention, this year’s perfect musical gathering, uniting fans
In the wake of Måneskin’s impressive entry from Bulgaria’s Intelligent Music for a showcase of the best that Europe
victory in 2021, this year sees a Project, is among the better selections has to offer, and the sounds and trends
particularly diverse offering of tracks, from the genre, whereas Stripper, the that’ll be making waves worldwide
from delicate, stripped-back ballads to song of choice from San Marino’s Achille over the coming months. Since their
all out rockers and stomping dancefloor Lauro feels a little too over engineered. victory, Måneskin have become a global
anthems, ensuring there’s something Buried among the 40 tracks are, of phenomenon, and there’s sure to be
for everything with the guarantee course, a number of typically outlandish another icon-in-the-making preparing
of getting the crowd at Turin’s Pala Eurovision entries - not least of all for the biggest night of their life.
Alpitour on their feet. Norway’s Subwoolfer with Give That In a world where very little is certain,
The variety is typified with the Wolf A Banana, which features the lyrics: one thing is for sure: given the wide
opening trio of tracks; Sekret, courtesy ‘And before that wolf eats my grandma variety, superb quality and stellar vocals
of Albania’s Ronela Hajati, brings to life / Give that wolf a banana / (I want your on offer, Eurovision 2022 is definitely
the sounds of the country, while Snap, grandma, yum, yum)’. Meanwhile, going to be one to remember!
DOUZE POINTS!
Out of 40 entries, there can only be one Eurovision winner
- but who will it be? Here’s who we’ve got our eyes on…
SWEDEN
CORNELIA JAKOBS
HOLD ME CLOSER
One of the favourites ahead of the big
night, Sweden could have another
winner on their hands with Cornelia
Jakobs’ Hold Me Closer. The track
starts out soft but builds to a stellar
crescendo, which has all the makings of
a leaderboard-topping entry.
ISRAEL
UKRAINE MICHAEL BEN DAVID
KALUSH ORCHESTRA I.M
STEFANIA This could go one of two ways - and, quite
Another real contender for the title this honestly, we’re still a little undecided. On
year is Ukraine’s Kalush Orchestra, who the one hand, it pretty much could be a
will compete with their entry Stefania. final four musical number from ‘RuPaul’s
Ahead of the Contest, they’re hotly Drag Race’, but there’s something about
tipped to emerge triumphant and given it that’s pretty damn good. Let’s see what
the support for the country right now, Europe thinks…
we can really see them going all the way.
CZECH REPUBLIC
WE ARE DOMI
LIGHTS OFF
One listen to this storming electro pop
banger and we were hooked - this
might just be our favourite from the
2022 Eurovision offering. Does it have
‘winner’ written over it? We’re not sure.
But it definitely earns a spot on our
Eurovision playlist for the long haul!
FRANCE
UNITED KINGDOM ALVAN & AHEZ
SAM RYDER FULENN
SPACE MAN The combination of vocal trio Ahez and
We won’t beat around the bush - the UK’s multi-instrumentalist Alvan is a genius
recent track record at Eurovision has pairing that delivers one of the highlights
been pretty dire. But the stars may have of this year’s Eurovision entries, with a
aligned this year as Sam Ryder’s Space slick instrumentation that’s sure to go off
Man seems a popular pick across Europe. on stage at the Grand Final. We can see
Let’s hope it translates into votes! this one doing very well.
QUIZ | Eurovision
FLYING
THE FLAG
FOR YOU
In the spirit of the 66th
Eurovision Song Contest,
put your knowledge of
the musical extravaganza
to the test with our truly
international pop quiz!
1 What’s the title of the music

that’s opened the Eurovision
14 Bonnie Tyler represented
the UK in the 2013 Contest,
but which former contestant
Song Contest for over 60 years?
Ireland’s Johnny Logan won scored a global hit with a dance
8 the competition twice with
which two songs?
cover of Total Eclipse of the Hea
rt?
2 Which country won the first

Eurovision Song Contest back
in 1956?
What is the maximum duration
9 Which country has only
participated in Eurovision once? 15 for a Eurovision song?
How many countries competed

3 in the first Eurovision?
Celine Dion won Eurovision 16 What’s the most recent UK
Eurovision entry to top the
10 for Switzerland in 1988 with charts in that country?
4 Cliff Richard finished in

second place in 1968 with
Congratulations, but who beat
Ne Partez Pas Sans Moi, which
translates to what in English?
Which non-European country
him to the top?
17 joined the contest in 2015?
11 Which dance troupe shot

to fame after serving as the
Eurovision interval act in 1994?
The 1969 Eurovision Song
5 Contest had multiple winners
- can you name them all?
18 James Newman’s 2021
Eurovision entry Embers
scored nil points, but what was the
Helena Paparizou scored name of the first UK act to score zero?
12 Greece their first Eurovision
6 ABBA won Eurovision in 1974
with Waterloo, but which
victory in 2005 with My Number
One, but what was the name of her Which country has won
song of theirs failed to make the
cut the previous year?
2001 entry with Antique? 19 Eurovision the most times?
PHOTO REUTERS / ALAMY STOCK PHOTO
7 Bucks Fizz star Cheryl Baker

competed in the 1978 Contest as a
13 After finding fame on ‘The
X Factor’, which twins twice
represented Ireland at Eurovision?
20 Where will the 2022
Eurovision Song Contest
member of Co-Co with which song? be held?
Ahh... Just A Little Bit; 17 Australia; 18 Jemini with Cry Baby; 19 Ireland - seven times; 20 Turin, Italy
Hold Me Now; 9 Morocco in 1980; 10 Don’t Leave Without Me; 11 Riverdance; 12 Die For You; 13 Nicki French; 14 Jedward; 15 Three minutes; 16 Gina G - Ooh
5 Lulu (United Kingdom), Salomé (Spain), Lenny Kuhr (Netherlands) and Frida Boccara (France); 6 Ring Ring; 7 The Bad Old Days; 8 What’s Another Year and
ANSWERS: 1 The Prelude to Marc-Antoine Charpentier Te Deum; 2 Switzerland’s Lys Assia with Refrain; 3 Seven; 4 Spain’s Massiel with La, la, la;
COVER FEATURE | Rick Astley
NEVER
GIVING
UP
In 1987, Rick Astley set the charts alight
with two of Stock Aitken Waterman’s biggest hits
- Never Gonna Give You Up and Together Forever -
as featured on his stellar debut album ‘Whenever
You Need Somebody’, which celebrates its 35th
anniversary this year!
WORDS CONNOR GOTTO
hen 21 year old Rick Astley launched into the charts
W with his debut single in 1987, not even he could have

predicted the career that was to follow.
Fresh-faced and armed with a slick quiff, sharp suits and
a stellar voice, he quickly became a global phenomenon thanks to a series
of prize pop smash hits courtesy of writing and production trio Stock
Aitken Waterman.
In the UK, he scored an impressive run of four Top 3 hits from his first
studio album ‘Whenever You Need Somebody’ and, in the US, gave Stock
Aitken Waterman a pair of chart-topping singles.
Now, 35 years on, the record is being feted with an expanded reissue,
featuring the remastered original album, alongside B-sides, remixes, and
Rick’s own reimagined versions of its original singles.
Decades on, ‘Whenever You Need Somebody’ remains one of the
quintessential releases of the late 1980s and a highlight from Stock Aitken
Waterman’s catalogue, but his journey to the top was a long ride…
I was an artist one
minute, and the next
minute it was like,
‘Go and get the tea,
Rick. Go and put the
kettle on, will ya?’
THE APPRENTICE
Born in Newton-le-Willows, Lancashire, Rick
dabbled with music throughout his upbringing and,
during his teenage years, discovered the drums,
which led to him joining a number of bands, with
which he fine-tuned his playing. It was during a gig
with one of those groups, FBI, at the Monk Sport and areas that gave me an apprenticeship you couldn’t
Social Club in Warrington, that he was spotted by possibly have had. All the other artists weren’t around
Pete Waterman, performing one of his original songs to see that. Kylie and Jason obviously came a little bit
and attracting the attention of the up-and-coming after me, but they weren’t in the studio making tea
mogul with his distinctive vocals. and hanging out and saying, ‘Can you go and get
“We did covers and those guys all started doing that 2” tape’, or, ‘Can you go and reset that keyboard,’
The Beatles and ‘50s rock and roll stuff,” recalls Rick. or, ‘I tell you what, go and take that sequencer part
“And I thought, ‘Well, that’s great, but we’re never out of that and go and put it on there’. So, I kind of
gonna get anywhere just covering those songs’ - got the underbelly of it a little bit and I think that was
great songs as they are. So, I wrote a song, and I think invaluable.’
when you turn up at rehearsal and sing your song
everyone just looks at you and goes, ‘OK big head, A STAR IS BORN
you’d better sing that’. That’s kind of where it started.” Rick may have been happy spending his days in
This was in late 1985, at which time Rick was 19 the studio with Stock Aitken Waterman, but once
years old and Stock Aitken Waterman had already a year had passed he was ready to step into the
achieved success with the likes of Dead or Alive, recording booth and begin work on his debut album.
Divine and Hazell Dean. Their transition to the Fortunately, in the time that he’d spent with the trio,
mainstream was underway, but as Rick notes they’d they’d developed enough of a rapport to pen him the
yet to score a “proper monster crossover”, so when perfect hit.
he signed on with Pete on a Youth Opportunities “I stayed at Pete Waterman’s flat for months and
Programme, he didn’t realise that he was about to
become a part of the legendary Hit Factory.
“It worked out really well, because I got to do It worked out really well, because
an apprenticeship. I got to sit in, go and get the
sandwiches, make the tea, reset the desk every I got to do an apprenticeship. I got
morning, like all the other kids did,” he notes. “But
I’m doing it for producers and engineers, and we’re to sit in, go and get the sandwiches,
making No. 1 records. When the artist came in, we
weren’t allowed to be in the room when they did the make the tea, reset the desk every
vocals - unless they were cool about that. But most
people want everyone out when they do the vocals,
morning… But I’m doing it for
other than the people producing and the engineer.
So we didn’t hang around for that. But it was pretty
producers and engineers, and we’re
amazing to be around the people actually making making No. 1 records!
those records.”
It wouldn’t be until July 1987 that Rick would
finally release his debut solo single Never Gonna went in with him every morning in the car, listening
Give You Up, but at the time he was so immersed in to him chatting on his massive ‘80s mobile phone.
the goings on inside The Hit Factory that he didn’t I went to the pub with the three guys every night,”
mind waiting his turn, as he cut his teeth behind the says Rick. “When Pete finally got around to getting
scenes and honed his craft. the guys to write Never Gonna Give You Up, he
“I was dual. I was an artist one minute, and the knew what sort of music I really loved. We’d been
next minute it was like, ‘Go and get the tea, Rick. Go to a couple of clubs up in Newton-le-Willows and
and put the kettle on, will ya?’ So, I sort of snuck into Warrington, because he knew some DJs up there. He
knew I loved Luther Vandross, Alexander O’Neal, all
those kinds of American soul records. So, they made
me like an English Pop version of that, which is what
Never Gonna Give You Up is.”
They had the perfect hit to launch the album and
transform Rick into a global superstar, but there was

one problem. “I think the main sticking point and the
issue for them was that I looked 12 years old,” Rick
laughs. “I didn’t realise they were all chatting about
it at the time, but they were all a little bit worried that
the way I looked didn’t suit the way I sang. And so
would people believe it? Would they be able to get
into it, going, ‘That can’t be him! What is this?’” took the world by storm, becoming one of the Top
All of their doubts were cast aside, however, and 10 selling albums of 1987 in the UK and, in 1988, one
the track was a flyaway success, leading to Rick of America’s Top 20 year-end best-sellers. Success
signing a deal with RCA records, under which he at home was a thrill, but the response to the album
recorded the remainder of the album. Alongside overseas came completely out of the blue and made
the Stock Aitken Waterman-penned Whenever You Rick the only artist to deliver Stock Aitken Waterman
Need Somebody, Together Forever, It Would Take two US No. 1 hits, with Never Gonna Give You Up
a Strong Strong Man and Don’t Say Goodbye, Rick and Together Forever.
leaned back on his songwriting skills, penning album “They were trying to catch up a little bit, they
tracks such as Slipping Away, No More Looking For were like a year behind,” he muses of his success
Love and You Move Me. Stateside. “So after Never Gonna Give You Up, they
“We signed to RCA, which was really lucky for me went straight in with Together Forever, which was
because Peter Robinson, who’s the head of A&R, the fourth single everywhere else. But they were both
wanted to hear me sing, and they had nothing for No. 1s. And then the American label kind of said,
me to sing to,” he shares. “So I went home, took the ‘We’d like to put It Would Take A Strong Strong Man
vocals off my four track demos and sang them, and out, because it’s hinting that it’s a Motown song -
Pete Robinson really liked my songs.” because of the way it’s put together and everything -
Although none of Rick’s self-penned tunes were but it shows something else from Rick’. So we did; we
released as singles the first time around, the second
album saw him deliver She Wants To Dance With Me,
which became a global hit and led to a performance I think the main sticking point
at the star-studded American Music Awards.
“I ended up with four songs on the first record, and the issue for them was that I
I ended up with a couple of singles on the next
one - one of which was a Top 10 in America,” he looked 12 years old. I didn’t realise
beams. “Obviously, I’ve never written a hit song
before and all of a sudden I’m coming to America they were all chatting about it at
and I’m singing She Wants To Dance With Me from
the second record, at the American Music Awards in
the time, but they were all a little bit
front of Whitney Houston, George Michael, I think
Michael Jackson himself was there. I’m like, ‘Hang
worried that the way I looked didn’t
on a second, hold the phone. I wrote this!’ It was suit the way I sang.
really, really weird.”
Looking at the decision to sign with RCA over
Pete’s PWL, he wonders whether it was part of the
producer’s plan all along to help nurture his talent. didn’t have a No. 1 with it, but I think it did the job. We
“Without signing to RCA, without Peter Robinson had a No. 7 or No. 8, something like that.”
saying, ‘Look, I want to nurture Rick songwriting’ At the height of their success, Stock Aitken
and Pete Waterman kind of getting that and thinking, Waterman were often criticised for their
‘Yeah, that might actually make it a bit better. We’ll ‘manufactured’ brand of pop music, but as Rick
write the big hits for him in the beginning, but we’ll notes, the trio were “capable of doing anything”. He
see what happens afterwards’... I don’t know, there says: “If you go back to Princess, Mel & Kim, Dead or
were a lot of lucky things that came around because Alive… certain records they made, they were nothing
of that. I’ve got both of the Petes to thank for that.” like the records they made later. They unfairly got
put into this pot of, ‘Oh, they make the same record
RIDING THE WAVE every time’. They don’t; they just do what massive
Upon its release, ‘Whenever You Need Somebody’ producers do, which is they just stick in their lanes.”
Looking back on the album 35 years on, Rick
only has fond memories of his debut LP, but admits
he often finds it difficult to disassociate from his
20-something year old self while listening back to his
early work.
It’s difficult when
it’s your own record
that they want to
release, because
you’re a bit like,
‘Really? If someone
wants to listen to
it they can get it
anywhere’. But I
think I’ve come
full circle.
“In terms of the memories that it brings back for

me, it’s pretty crazy,” he says. “The weird thing about
age and life is, I’m 56, and it feels sometimes like it
was a couple of years ago that we made that record.
And then other times, I get out of the car after a long
drive and I’m creaking, thinking, ‘Yeah, that was a
long time ago that I made that record.’ [laughs] I just
think age is a strange thing. And I think it plays tricks And I don’t think that’s a dirty word. The nostalgia
on your mind.” of owning a record that you threw out years ago,
especially on a nice coloured vinyl, is not about the
RICKROLLING music. You can listen to music anywhere, that’s
In the early 1990s, Rick retired from music at the age not what it’s about. It’s about going into a shop and
of 27 after releasing three hit albums, and instead seeing it and thinking, ‘That just made me giggle.
devoted his time to being a dad to his daughter That just reminded me… You know what, I’m going
Emilie with his wife, film producer Lene Bausager. to buy that either for me, or my wife, or my husband,
In the early 2000s, he returned to the industry, or whatever. It’s a thing that triggers something in
but it wouldn’t be until later in the decade that his you. And so I kind of understand it.
comeback really began - somewhat unintentionally “Honestly, it’s difficult when it’s your own record
- off the back of an Internet phenomenon, when the that they want to release, because you’re a bit like,
music video for Never Gonna Give You Up became ‘Really? If someone wants to listen to it they can get it
the subject of a viral trend known as Rickrolling. anywhere’. But I think I’ve come full circle.”
As part of the phenomenon, pranksters would Rick might have one foot in the past with his latest
send unwitting recipients what appeared to be a release, but his eyes are firmly on the future and he
link to a website, but when they clicked they were insists that, going forward, he doesn’t want to rely on
directed to the iconic visual and played his chart-
topping track. In July 2021, the music video for Never
Gonna Give You Up reached one billion views on
YouTube in July 2021, becoming only the fourth In terms of the memories that it
1980s song to reach this milestone.
“It’s a bit weird, if I’m honest,” he admits of the
brings back for me, it’s pretty crazy.
track’s enduring popularity. “I’m really grateful for it -
don’t get me wrong - but it’s almost like it’s taken on
The weird thing about age and life
its own life.” is, I’m 56, and it feels sometimes
The appeal of his early work may continue to
surprise him, but Rick insists the nostalgia of his like it was a couple of years ago that
classic era is a particular attraction, specifically when
it comes to the accompanying visuals for his songs we made that record.
that have come to define an era. “We’ve got such
strong photographic, definitely video images of
people, and they are kind of locked into our heads. his classic releases to keep his career alive. In 2016,
It’s about the colours and, even with certain periods returned to the top of the UK charts with his seventh
PHOTOS AUSTIN HARGRAVE; PETER NEILL
and times, it’s also the clothes. studio album ‘50’, and the success has compelled him
“If someone says Madonna to me now - no to continue writing new material.
offence to Madonna - I don’t think about what she “I’ve loved this last couple of years of making some
looks like now. I think about her in Like a Virgin. Even new records and getting back into that. We did this
though she had a million different images, I’m still record called ‘50’ a couple of years back, when I
locked into that one.” turned 50, and it was such a game changer and such
It’s that sense of nostalgia that convinced Rick to an amazing thing to do. I wouldn’t say I’m addicted
reissue ‘Whenever You Need Somebody’ to mark its to it, but it’s just really nice every time we go on tour
latest milestone, as he admits his initial response to to have a couple of new songs to play - because
calls for a deluxe edition was, “Why?” Now, he says, there’s a part of the audience that just wants the old
“I actually kind of understand the whole thing of - ones, but we’re finding that people are a bit more
I’m gonna call it nostalgia, because that’s what it is. open to us playing a couple of new songs. I really
love that and I don’t ever forget how lucky I am for
that. So, we’ll see. We’ll see what’s what.”
l ‘Whenever You Need Somebody: 35th

Anniversary Edition’ is out May 20 on BMG.
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A NE
IN
INS IN
BR A THE
Nineties pop-dance outfit Oceanic on their Radio 1 ban, speed-
stripping on ‘Top of the Pops’, and being treated as a cash cow
WORDS IAN BERRIMAN
O
ceanic rocketed into the lessons from 10, and was writing songs I think 950 all sold from
charts in 1991 with their from about 12. this one shop, because
rave-friendly smash hit the DJs in Legends
Insanity, with suggestive Where did the band name come from? in Warrington were
lyrics about “dream tripping”, before David: There was a synth, the Kawai hammering it. Everyone in Warrington
scoring two further Top 40 hits with K1, and one of the patches was called was going mad for this song, and nowhere
Wicked Love and Controlling Me. Oceanic. Being dead lazy, I was like, else. One night, a local DJ comes into
Producer David Harry and singer “We’ll call this track Oceanic” – that our studio and goes, “I heard that track of
Jorinde Williams met when Harry and track ended up becoming the B-side of yours last night in Legends. It rips the roof
third Oceanic member Frank Crofts – Insanity, Reality. On this particular EP, off the place.” I thought he was pulling our
who had a dance project called Systems we made it look like a sampler of four leg! Dead Dead Good’s A&R guy heard it in
Exclusive – were auditioning singers. different acts. When Jorinde started Legends, then went looking for it.
When Williams sang lyrics she’d devised doing her thing, we quickly needed a Jorinde: We weren’t entirely happy with
for another, unrealised project over name. I basically said, “Fuck it, we’ll just the first version. I’m glad we re-recorded
an instrumental they’d been working use what we called that track.” it. Looking back, it was so out of tune and
on, Harry realised they had something messed-up.
special on their hands. Insanity was reworked for indie label
After a remix, the track eventually Dead Dead Good. How did that come Did the lyrical content cause any
became the year’s ninth best-selling about? problems?
single, but to begin with, Insanity was Jorinde: Dave and Frank did a deal for David: We effectively got banned on Radio
only big in Warrington… a four-track EP with 3 Beat Records in 1, but it was an unspoken thing. It was the
Liverpool. Then the guys sent them out drugs connotations. I think we broke a
How did each of you start making to local DJs. record for a song that was as successful
music? David: There was a record shop called as it was with the least amount of airplay.
David: I listened to Empire State Human Hot Wax in Warrington. Of the first 1000 Even when we were in the Top 10, Radio 1
by The Human League, and that was it. didn’t play us on daytime.
Frank and I got together in a band. It was Jorinde: They only played it in the chart
basically synths, lead guitar, a bit of bass. Wowing the rundown.
Later on we progressed to real drums. Warrington crowds David: And they wouldn’t ban it, because
in the early days of
We only did a handful of gigs, though. Oceanic they already did that with Frankie.
Jorinde: I’m reasonably shy, and don’t Jorinde: It was a mute – a soft block!
like putting myself forward. I was a
bullied kid, and had a skin condition. How did having such a big hit
My mum thought it’d be a brilliant affect you?
idea to chuck me on a stage in a talent David: It was a nightmare. It was
competition – which I won. That got “slaughter the cash cow”. We could’ve
me interested. She gave me the ‘Cabaret’ had gigs every night for two years if we
soundtrack and loads of ABBA, and I wanted – and nearly did. Jorinde got
learned how to harmonise. I had piano larynx problems.
QUICK READ | Oceanic
Jorinde belting
out the group’s
biggest hit on
‘Top of the Pops’
was shut up, screech, and hope for the

best. I made the note for six and a half
bars. Then I could feel my voice starting
to break, so I went “Yay!” and did a spin.
Why did the group eventually split up?

Jorinde: At the time we recorded the
album, early ‘93, I couldn’t even speak.
I was on about six months’ vocal rest.
For the fourth single, we wanted to
release a ballad about saving the planet
[Ignorance]. The label saw it differently,
but we pressed forward. We got a girl
from another band to vocal it [River City
People’s Siobhan Maher]. We probably
shouldn’t have done that.
David: I wanted to do Using Me...
Jorinde: We out-voted you!
David: At that point I left and
said, “You carry
on, because you’re
Oceanic (l-r): I THINK WE BROKE making fucking
Jorinde Williams stupid decisions.”
and David Harry A RECORD FOR A Jorinde: It was a
SONG THAT WAS stupid decision! It
was a lovely song,
AS SUCCESSFUL AS but it wasn’t on-
IT WAS WITH THE brand. We were
[Punches the air] trying to justify the
“Fuck you!” LEAST AMOUNT OF fact that we were
Another time, the more versatile. Like
boys arranged with
AIRPLAY! I said, the label had
a shop to wear tops to do minimum
Jorinde: When we got a licensing deal with a four on, because we were at commitment – which is exactly
with a larger label, they had one vision number four. I had no knowledge what they did. They sunk it
for us. We didn’t realise that if we didn’t of this, and I’d separately done a without trace.
follow their vision exactly, they’d do deal with another shop to wear
PHOTOS KATE GARNER, BBC / TOP OF THE POPS
minimal commitment. a catsuit. I realised I had one bar in the Looking back, how do you feel about
David: My description to Warner was: middle eight to get the shirt off, then that time?
“Soft Cell, OMD, Erasure, but with a girl have the catsuit for the second half. Jorinde: The good outweighs the bad
singer.” A day or two later, they did a First time it worked, I managed to get by a country mile. We met a load of cool
press release and called us a rave band. the shirt off. Second run-through, it did people on the way. Some of my best
That’s all they were interested in. not work. I was like, “I’m just gonna do friends are from those days.
Jorinde: They wanted eight Insanitys. it – it’s either gonna work or not.” Thank David: I’d go along with that. Though
Christ, it worked. the fallout from it, and the lasting effect
You performed on Top Of The Pops The least pleasant was Christmas Day. of never achieving what you should
four times. How did it feel? They’d just changed the rule so that have, will always weigh on me.
Jorinde: It was the biggest “Fuck you” you had to sing live. I was like, “I’m not
to the school bullies! My first ‘Top of the gonna make that long note. I can hardly l David Harry has a tech reviews
Pops’, the edit starts on a big drumbeat. make the verse, let alone ‘Take me channel on YouTube: youtube.com/
So the first thing I did was “Bang!” awaaaaaay’ for eight bars.” All I could do DavidHarry.
FRIENDSHIPS MOVE
INS ID E
‘A-HA:
THE
M O VIE ’
a-ha (l-r) Pål Waaktaar-Savoy, Magne

Furuholmen and Morten Harket
FEATURE | a-ha
ON:
Ahead of the UK release of their

tell-all biopic, filmmaker Thomas
Robsahm goes behind the scenes of
the project that documents synth-
pop trio a-ha’s rise to fame in the
1980s and battle to maintain success
in the decades that followed...
WORDS GREG LANSDOWNE
ost bands have their differences, but when
M it comes to Norwegian synth-pop legends

a-ha rumour is they can’t stand the sight of
each other!
It’s an idea that’s encapsulated in the opening shots of
‘a-ha: The Movie’, in which the trio are seen getting ready for
a concert in separate dressing rooms, but things clearly aren’t
quite as bad as they are often portrayed.
The UK release of the film coincides with the British leg of
a substantial and hugely-successful world tour and there’s
even a new album coming out in the autumn; the prospects
of which were extremely unlikely, according to Magne
Furuholmen, who said of their recording process in 2018: “In
the end we just wanna bash each other’s brains out!”
Colleagues Morten Harket and Pål Waaktaar-Savoy also
put their sides of the story in ‘a-ha: The Movie’, during which,
for all the incendiary elements, the fact the original band
remains together after 40 years is seen as a rightful cause
for celebration.
STRONG AS STEEL
When three perfectionists come together – all of whom have
a different idea of the end result in their pursuit – a constant
battle of wills inevitably ensues. But as with any close-knit
family, constant bickering comes to a head when someone
from the outside attempts to interfere, bringing them back
together to draw strength and resist collectively.
One such example cited in the biopic involves John Barry,
the long-time James Bond musical arranger, who branded the
band ‘Hitler Youth’ after a fraught experience collaborating on
15th 007 movie ‘The Living Daylights’.
Lars Horntveth, seen in the film battling to keep control as
arranger/producer during rehearsals for the highly-acclaimed
MTV Unplugged acoustic shows in 2017, had a similar effect in
galvanising the core trio, with Harket telling the band’s official
website at the time: “Lars deserves the credit for bringing the
band closer together than we have been for a very long time.”
However, Thomas Robsahm – who wrote the film and
co-directed with Aslaug Holm - found all three in a
lucid and obliging mood across the many interviews
conducted over several years. “They were really easy to
work with and accessible most of the time,” he states, before
A young Morten
performing live
around Oslo
Magne, along with Pål,

initially went to London
without Morten
FEATURE | a-ha
WHEN I FIRST HEARD

ABOUT THESE BOYS THAT HAD
GONE TO LONDON TO BECOME
POP STARS, I THOUGHT IT
WAS RIDICULOUS… EVEN
THOUGH I HOPED THEY WOULD
MAKE IT, BECAUSE NORWAY
REALLY NEEDED TO SUCCEED
IN SOMETHING!
a-ha signed a
deal with Warner
Brothers in 1983
a-ha spent several years
in London struggling to
make ends meet
When Morten ran out

of hairspray he would
turn to white paint!
A lot of patience was

required before a-ha
became a chart success
Following acclaim
for Take On Me,
a 1986-87 tour
spanned all corners
of the globe
a-ha experimented
wildly with their image
before settling on a
quintessential style
FEATURE | a-ha
clarifying, “Separately.”
Therein lies the rub; Robsahm originally intended for the
film to be about the making of an album – together rather than
disparately – when he first approached Furuholmen in 2009.
The a-ha keyboardist had attended the premiere of ‘Angel’ in
2009, which Robsahm produced as well as being responsible
for the soundtrack, and commended him
on his work, leading to broaching the
subject of making a film about the band’s
next album.
All three members of
a-ha were keen to work with I THINK IT WILL
Robsahm, but there was one
‘tiny’ problem – there would STRENGTHEN
be no new album, as the
THEIR LEGACY,
following year would see their
farewell tour ‘Ending on a BECAUSE IT
High Note’, before splitting
up for good.
SHOWS THAT
As it turned out, ‘for good’ A-HA ARE ABOUT
meant until 2015, when they
got back together to play at SO MUCH MORE
the Rock in Rio festival, as well THAN THAT ONE
as record a new album, ‘Cast
In Steel’. SONG.
It seemed that Robsahm’s
dream scenario for his a-ha
project would come to fruition after all,
except the trio were never all in the same
studio together during the making of that
record. Still, the band was a going concern again, so there was
still an opportunity to make his film – albeit not in the way he
initially envisaged.
“Most of all I wanted them together, recording new music,”
he explains. “That would have uncovered much more. But, I
couldn’t even get them in the same room for a talk. Despite
that, it was worth [the struggle]. And I hope it was worth the
wait for the fans.”
THE WAITING GAME

While many parts of the world have already had an
opportunity to see ‘a-ha: The Movie’, it’s a different story in
the UK, as the project’s release was put on hold in line with
their live dates. It’s a virtue that has been necessary for loyalists
over the years, owing to the many band hiatuses.
Dates rescheduled from 2020 in Bournemouth, Liverpool,
London and Birmingham will now coincide with the film’s
release and the bumper a-ha package is a due double reward
for all those who have stuck with the band through times of
feast and famine.
Waaktaar-Savoy and Furuholmen, joined a while later by
Harket, spent a number of years in London honing their craft
and image, before finally hitting the big time in 1985. Starting
out in upmarket Notting Hill Gate, then moving to Willesden
Green, as Waaktaar-Savoy put it: “We took a step-down each
time we moved”. According to Furuholmen, the group “lived
below the poverty line for a while,” but their self-belief and
being immersed in the sights and sounds of all that was
great about British music at the time - from Soft Cell and The
Human League, to Yazoo, Depeche Mode and Echo and the
Bunnymen - made them all the more sure they wanted to –
and deserved to – see their names up in lights.
a-ha continue to draw
crowds for their shows
around the world
I WANTED THEM Pål on stage, delighting

fans with four decades
TOGETHER, RECORDING of hits
NEW MUSIC. THAT

WOULD HAVE
UNCOVERED MUCH
MORE. BUT, I COULDN’T
EVEN GET THEM IN THE
SAME ROOM FOR
A TALK.
Magne in rehearsals
working on the
group’s live set
FEATURE | a-ha
The trio at their most

tight-knit in a concert
environment
The feature is brimming with pre-fame imagery of the band, breakthrough hit to justify standalone shows in so many
offering a rare look at how the unlikely trio came together and territories is testament to the longevity and talent of a-ha –
formed one of the iconic and enduring groups of the decade, alongside the ‘classics’ they are still mixing in new songs.
and highlighting the outré elements in the cultivation of a-ha’s
eventual aesthetic. Furuholmen labelled Harket “a poser with GLOBAL AMBITIONS
attitude” while Waaktaar-Savoy revealed their lead singer For all the perceived regrets and what-might-have-beens,
would use paint when he ran out of hairspray. maintaining a band’s original line-up into a fifth decade is
The white flecks in the hair were eschewed by the cause for admiration. While some reviews – as well
time Take On Me finally started to race up the charts as the trailer for ‘a-ha: The Movie’ - linger a little on
around the world – at the third attempt in the UK – with the internecine struggles within the band, Robsahm
chunky Norwegian knitwear, ripped believes the finished product is one
jeans and leather thongs worn around of overriding positivity for what has
the wrists frequently adorning the I KNEW ABOUT THE already been and what lies ahead.
pages of music magazines. “I think the band still have it in them
CONFLICT IN THE
While a-ha set out to garner favour to make great music. It’s all up to
with the more high-brow music press, BAND BEFORE I them, really,” he asserts of his
they ended up becoming darlings of Norwegian compatriots.
Smash Hits and Number One and the
STARTED FILMING, BUT In keeping with most subjects, the
Steve Barron-directed video for Take I WAS NOT SURE IF three members of a-ha were unable
On Me – after a less memorable, earlier to form a unanimous opinion about
version that seemingly had a key remit THEY WOULD FOCUS the merits of the film. As a result, they
of using as much blue as possible – ON IT OR NOT. THEY decided collectively not to do any
paved the way for a pin-up tag that promotion in support – opting to let it
would take many years to shake off. As DID. ALL THREE. FROM speak for itself.
Furuholmen concedes: “It’s nobody THE FIRST INTERVIEW. “One (Pål) is not happy about it,
else’s fault that we became a teen band. two are,” Robsahm explains. “But since
We posed for all the shoots.” they don’t agree, I guess they decided
Whatever regrets that may have come out of those not to promote it. Fair enough. I knew about the
early years in the limelight, selling 11 million copies of conflict in the band before I started filming, but I was
their debut album is hard to argue with. not sure if they would focus on it or not. They did. All
The ongoing ‘Hunting High and Low’ tour, commemorating three. From the first interview. So, yes, it would not be honest
the release, began in 2019 and will finally end this summer - if I left all of that out.”
with a long, Covid-induced break in between - having taken in One of the recurring themes in the documentary revolves
around 30 countries along the way. around the band losing the American market almost as soon
Retaining a fan-base sizable enough 37 years after your as they’d captured it. While a-ha reached the top of the
2022 marks 40 years
charts with Take On Me all over the world (except for the UK, since the group’s original
of course, where it stalled at No. 2, behind Jennifer Rush’s The formation in 1982
Power of Love), it was reaching No. 1 in the US that particularly
caught the attention back in their homeland.
Yet, to many in America, a-ha will forever remain
a ‘one-hit wonder’ – despite follow-up single The
Sun Always Shines on TV peaking at No. 20 on the
Billboard Hot 100.
The group was on tour in North America
for three months around the release of YOU NEVER
second album ‘Scoundrel Days’, but the
single Cry Wolf stalled at No. 50 in the charts
KNOW WHAT’S
- becoming the only single from that LP to NEXT WITH
chart and marking the last time the band
would ever do so Stateside.
A-HA. IT MIGHT
In ‘a-ha: The Movie’, Furuholmen cites the INSPIRE THEM
band’s insistence on releasing Manhattan
Skyline as a single – to highlight their TO MAKE
versatility - as the wrong thing to do in ANOTHER NEW
terms of keeping the American audience
onside. Meanwhile, failing to attend the ALBUM. OR IT
premiere of ‘The Living Daylights’, for which
they provided the theme song – instead
MIGHT BE THEIR
opting to fulfil the prior engagement of a LAST TOUR…
concert in Japan – helped to perpetuate
their reputation of being a difficult band
to work with.
Besides one night at the Irving Plaza, New York
in September 2005, a-ha faded from consciousness
across the pond for more than two decades until the success
of 2009 album ‘Foot of the Mountain’ empowered manager
Despite their
differences, the band
are pushing forward
with new music
FEATURE | a-ha
Harald Wiik to target North America once again. They would truly piqued once all the hype surrounding ‘that one song’
go on to play six dates in the US, besides another in Canada, had begun to subside: “When I first heard about these boys
in 2010, but as it was part of a farewell tour, any momentum that had gone to London to become pop stars, I thought
derived from that charm offensive was instantly relinquished. it was ridiculous. Also, the first version of Take On Me did
Covid delayed the latest bid to replant their flag on US soil, not convince me, even though at that point I hoped they
PHOTOS WARNER; BIRGIT SOLHAUG; MAGNE FURUHOLMEN; VIGGO BONDI;
but three dates at The Wiltern, Los Angeles and one at Radio would make it, because Norway really needed to succeed in
City Music Hall, New York in April 2022 is a new statement something. When I heard The Sun Always Shines on TV, that
MORTEN HARKET; HENNING KRAMER DAHL; JOHN RATCLIFF; MOTLYS
of intent. changed everything. Since then I’ve been a fan.

“Well, it’s still the biggest market in the world and it’s “There are great things in every era of a-ha, but if I have to
everybody’s dream to make it in America, I guess,” says choose one, it would be the ‘East of the Sun, West of the Moon’
Robsahm. “Even more if you’ve done it once.” and ‘Memorial Beach’ album period. I felt they were their
own when they became a real band again, it felt like a natural
LASTING LEGACY progression to go back to the Bridges-roots (the first band
‘a-ha: The Movie’ was released in North America around the formed by Waaktaar-Savoy and Furuholmen) when the ‘80s
time of the band’s shows out there, with Robsahm attending were ending.
a number of screenings to spread the gospel. Take On Me With the ‘Hunting High and Low’ tour continuing until
will serve as a beacon for most US attendees – the number the end of July, followed soon after by the album, and
of films and TV shows, as well as having even served as the accompanying film, release of ‘True North’, it would seem
walk-up music for a baseball player, is legion – and the oft- there is plenty of life left in a-ha.
told story of its multiple releases and iconic use of rotoscope Having got to know a fair bit about what makes them all tick,
cinematography is heavily leaned upon throughout the film. Robsahm would agree - but with a caveat: “You never know
Robsahm nonetheless believes US film-goers will leave the what’s next [with a-ha]. It might inspire them to make another
theatre with a new-found understanding of a-ha’s standing new album. Or it might be their last tour…”
in the pantheon of musical history: “I think it will [strengthen
their legacy],” he asserts, “because it shows that a-ha are about l a-ha: The Movie hits UK cinemas on May 27.
so much more than that one song.” Greg Lansdowne is author of ‘Living a Fan’s Adventure
Like many inveterate a-ha fans, Robsahm’s interest was Tale: a-ha in the Eyes of the Beholders’
Matters
of the
heart
Three decades after releasing Propaganda’s hit debut
‘A Secret Wish’, Claudia Brücken and Susanne Freytag
reveal the events that drove them back together for its
long-awaited follow-up ‘The Heart Is Strange’!
WORDS JOE MATERA
INTERVIEW | xPropaganda
S
ynth-pop outfit Propaganda’s original
run may have been short, but their legacy
is enduring.
Having originally formed in Düsseldorf,
Germany in 1982, the group soon caught the
attention of British upstart record label ZTT Records,
co-founded by uber-producer Trevor Horn, who
signed the band for their 1985 debut ‘A Secret Wish’.
The album showcased the band’s trailblazing
electronic sounds and the vocals of its two female
stars - Claudia Brücken and Susanne Freytag -
earning critical acclaim and fame that, in its wake,
led to cracks that broke up the band two years later.
With just one original member, a new line-up
xPropaganda (l-r): recorded one more album - 1990’s ‘1234’ - before
Susanne Freytag and Propaganda split for good and, despite numerous
Claudia Brücken attempted reunions, all proved fruitless.
FIXING FOUNDATIONS
“[The past reunions] never worked out because
there were lots of people having different opinions,”
explains Susanne today. “Then again, sometimes
we really didn’t know why it didn’t work out too -
except that it just didn’t - and because of that, they
just didn’t happen. The reasons are numerous really,
everything from some tapes being leaked in the
early 2000s, to the publishing company telling us
they weren’t interested. There were various reasons
really and it is quite disappointing when a reunion but for the purpose of extending our set. Yet,
doesn’t happen. On the other hand, you can’t make once we had four songs, we were doing so well
it happen.” that we decided to keep the flow going and just
Fast forward to 2022 and both Susanne and kept on writing more material. Then we finally had
Claudia have teamed up with original producer enough material for an album, so it was a natural
Stephen Lipson to form a new outfit, xPropaganda, progression really.”
and record ‘The Heart Is Strange’ - their first album Although more than 30 years had passed since
together in more than three decades. the trio sat down to write material for ‘A
The project evokes the spirit and sounds Secret Wish’, when it came to the new album,
of classic Propaganda and was originally the collaborative process proved not only
conceived back in 2018, when the pair came inspiring, but picked up effortlessly where
together to perform two sold-out they had originally left off. “It
shows in London. ONCE WE HAD was actually really easy and it
“It’s incredible to have a whole felt really natural for, not only us
legacy based on that one album,” FOUR SONGS, WE two, but also to be working with
says Claudia, “but when we WERE DOING SO Stephen Lipson again,” affirms
played those two shows in 2018 Claudia. “Susanne and I had
at The Garage in Islington, it WELL THAT WE already been working together
wasn’t an ambition for Susanne throughout the years on various
and I to go out with just ‘A
DECIDED TO KEEP projects, so it was complete utter
Secret Wish’ material to play. THE FLOW GOING ease and enjoyment, and it was
We realised we really needed seamless and didn’t feel like all
some more material, as we were
AND JUST KEPT ON this time had gone past. And
drawing on B-sides and things WRITING MORE from a writing point of view, it
like that, and also playing a song was done fairly quickly, in about
again in the encore. Because of MATERIAL. THEN a year and a half or so.
that, we decided that we really WE FINALLY HAD “When it came to recording
needed some more stuff. From the album, the good thing was
that it started us onto this path in ENOUGH MATERIAL that we were all in London -
making this new album.” except for Susanne, who was in
Susanne concurs: “And
FOR AN ALBUM. Hastings, but she would come
because the material we were CLAUDIA to the studio sessions all the
performing was old, there was a time. And this was all before
need for newer material, aside of lockdown, so luckily we had it all
course from any other additional material we written and pretty much had done the vocals,
had. Stephen Lipson was on stage at these two which were recorded just a month before the
shows too and he enjoyed it as well and from first lockdown happened. And when it did
there we said to each other, ‘Let’s do a few happen, all the recorded elements were already there,
new songs…’” so it was really good for Stephen to work on it during
“It became clear during the rehearsals for the lockdown and put it all together and piece it together.
shows that we needed to extend our set,” continues “Although it was this awful kind of miserable time
Claudia. “And it was at that point we started writing, during the pandemic, to have mixes sent to us by
Stephen, it was always the highlight for us. He would
say, ‘Check it out and tell me what you think. Am I
going in the right direction?’ It was a great way to
help us get through that whole Corona time. We
wanted to finish the album first and have it totally
done in its entirety before we approached Universal
Music to ask if they wanted to release the record.”
THE X IN FRONT OF
PROPAGANDA IS
TO DISTINGUISH
OURSELVES FROM
PROPAGANDA AS IT’S
NOT THE SAME SET
UP OF THE ORIGINAL
BAND… THE OTHER
TWO WOULDN’T
HAVE LIKED US TO
BE USING THE NAME
PROPAGANDA.
SUSANNE
I HAVE A WHIRLPOOL OF
DIFFERENT INFLUENCES AND
I REALLY LIKE CINEMATIC
AND ATMOSPHERIC TYPE
MUSIC. THERE IS ALSO
THIS WHOLE DÜSSELDORF
ELECTRONIC SCENE THAT
SUSANNE AND I ARE STILL
KIND OF IMBUED IN.
CLAUDIA
NEW BEGINNINGS
Despite reviving the classic Propaganda
sound, Susanne and Claudia are happy with the
latest iteration of the group and are keen for fans
to differentiate their new music from that
of Propaganda. I didn’t feel like, ‘Oh no, why them and not us?’ It
“The x in front of Propaganda is to distinguish was more like, ‘Wow, that’s great, I’m so happy for
ourselves from Propaganda as it’s not the same set them’. So due to the success they were getting a lot of
up of the original band” explains Susanne. “As this attention from the press and audiences.”
is Claudia and me and, though we were part of that “Because the Frankie thing was happening at the
original band, this is also a different thing too. And same time, all the other bands on the label couldn’t
the other two - Ralf [Dörper] and Michael [Mertens] just sit around and wait for Trevor to produce them,”
- wouldn’t have liked us to be using the name Claudia points out. “In a way, Trevor had signed all
Propaganda anyway, so we negotiated around that these acts in the early days and so formed the ZTT
by suggesting we call ourselves xPropaganda.” Records label. He was also the only producer at that
They also note that ‘1234’ wasn’t the same band point, which is why he produced our debut single
that recorded the debut LP and, while Susanne was Dr. Mabuse for us. But due to Frankie’s success, it was
involved, her contribution was minimal. “In the suggested that Stephen Lipson would take over and
beginning I had made the choice not to be part do our album ‘A Secret Wish’ - and in a way
of it and for lots of reasons,” she explains. “But it worked out really well for us, as we loved
after a while I became quite sentimental, where working with Stephen and still do.”
I was going, ‘Oh, why am I not For both women, their
part of it?’ So, when they asked individual influences were
me if I wanted to take part in one I THINK THAT pivotal when it came to forging
or two songs, I turned around
IT IS TRUE THAT the unique sound that was
and said, ‘Yes’. Propaganda. “I have a whirlpool
“But I never had a connection FRANKIE GOES TO of different influences and
to it, really. In the end, though, I really like cinematic and
I thought it was a bit pointless,
HOLLYWOOD’S atmospheric type music,” reveals
but I did it because they asked SUCCESS DID Claudia. “For example, there is
me to. I don’t have any feeling or this track on the new album,
connection to this album at all.” OVERSHADOW US. No Ordinary Girl, which for me
“To be honest, I don’t think I’ve BUT AT THE SAME is a bit French and very cultural
ever listened to it in its entirety,” sounding, so those influences
Claudia admits. “I only heard the TIME, IT WAS AN shine through on it. There is also
single at the time, Heaven Give EXCITING THING TO this whole Düsseldorf electronic
Me Words, when it came out, scene that Susanne and I are still
but I kind of didn’t feel it was BE HAPPENING! kind of imbued in. Obviously,
the same band and music, so I you also have Stephen who has
SUSANNE
wasn’t thinking much of it. It was his own influences too, which
because I had kind of just moved he expresses and carries through
on at that point.” his production and choices he makes.”
In hindsight, the pair are in agreement “Our roots and my influences are in the
that Propaganda was poised for far greater Neue Deutsche Welle [New German Wave]
success than they had achieved, crediting the scene,” concurs Susanne. “And in bands
global success of their label mates Frankie Goes To such as Kraftwerk and Liaisons Dangereuses which
Hollywood for casting a shadow on their prospects. influenced me in the ‘80s and this mad French band
“I think that it is true that Frankie’s success did called Les Rita Mitsouko. And women performers
overshadow us,” shrugs Susanne. “But at the same too, like Patti Smith, were always such a huge
time, it was an exciting thing to be happening and influence on me, along with film music.”
FUTURE VISION
Generally speaking, artists who evade trends in
favour of a forward-facing approach are often
snubbed during their original run, only to be feted
years down the line, when their sound and influence
begins permeating the musical landscape of the day.
‘A Secret Wish’ was a cutting edge record that pushed
the boundaries of what was possible sonically in
pop music, and played a major influential role
in the burgeoning 1990s electronic and dance
scenes, leading to a whole new younger audience
rediscovering the band’s music.
“The technology that Trevor and Stephen
were using, like the Synclavier [digital sampling
instrument], were all new at the time and not a lot of
people were able to handle it,” says Claudia. “Stephen
was one of the very few using the Synclavier at the
time. And we were surrounded by all this amazing
technology and talent and beautiful
musicianship, so it was quite extraordinary.
“It was quite mind blowing really, because
we were really a complete
unknown band at that point
and for us to be able to get WE HOPE TO
the attention and the money
DO ANOTHER
to be able to be experimental,
it was an incredible freedom ALBUM FOR SURE,
for us to have. It was a
very unusual set up really
SO I REALLY THINK
and to be working with THAT IT WILL
amazing musicians was
just incredible.” HAPPEN AND I DO
Propaganda found HOPE IT DOES!
themselves immersed in
a growing scene that was SUSANNE
building itself around the
music coming out from
Horn’s studio, and which was meeting with
much commercial success and acclaim.
“Through all the connections that Trevor
had - because everybody at that point wanted to
work with him - and because of that, Trevor would
just say, ‘Hey, fancy coming along for a session?’
and they would,” recalls Claudia.
“One highlight for me was working with David
Sylvian. He came into the studio one day to record
some pieces of music that he did for us, and from
that he made a musical contribution on the track
p:Machinery. Steve Howe also turned up too, as he
was working on a project with Trevor, and at the
same time Stephen was looking for someone who
could do a jazz solo. He then opened the door in the
studio and there was Steve Howe! Stuff like that was
extraordinary. Another incredible

I REALLY LIKE THE moment was when Stewart
Copeland from The Police walked
MANDY SMITH in and played drums on Duel.”
“Yeah, it was fantastic, it was
VERSION OF DUEL! like meeting your idols every day!”
I THINK IT’S REALLY chimes Susanne.
Like a fine wine, ‘A Secret Wish’
LOVELY WHEN has aged well over the years and,
PEOPLE PICK UP of its impressive tracklist, Duel has
become a choice cut with other
ON A SONG THAT artists as a go-to cover. Mandy
YOU HAVE WRITTEN Smith and Sophie Ellis-Bextor are
two pop artists who have recorded
AND TOTALLY their own take on the song -
REINTERPRET IT, IT IS which comes as a refreshing
delight to the duo.
A COMPLIMENT. “It’s nice to hear how people
interpret your songs, and I think
CLAUDIA
it’s really interesting,” exclaims
Susanne, before Claudia adds, “I
really like the Mandy Smith version! I think it’s
really lovely when people pick up on a song that
you have written and totally reinterpret it, it is
a compliment.”
With ‘The Heart Is Strange’, a new chapter in the
group’s history has begun - one that sees the group
invigorated and inspired again, with the possibility of
more music in future highly likely.
“There is a track that didn’t make it onto the
album and a few other ideas too, so we are hoping
there will be a follow-up,” reveals Claudia. “It’s such
a pleasurable experience when you work with
people where there are no issues and everybody
knows their place and their role - you can just
get on with the work. It is very satisfying
indeed. But another album also depends
on Stephen and what he is doing, as it’s
important for him to be there too as he is the
sound of xPropaganda.”
Susanne smiles: “We hope to do another
album for sure, so I really think that it will happen
and I do hope it does!”
l ‘The Heart Is Strange’ is out May 20 on ZTT

Records. xPropaganda will play London’s The
Garage on May 24.
PHOTOS KAI FREYTAG, JIMMY KING
COL O U R
L IFE
INTERVIEW | Hanson
Celebrating 30 years together as a

group, Hanson look back on their pop
legacy and reveal how going their own
way on their latest album proved the
brothers are stronger together
WORDS CONNOR GOTTO
in y o u r S
ibling boy band Hanson debuted on the
music scene in 1997 with their earworm hit
MMMBop, topping the charts worldwide and
earning legions of fans in the process.
Although the track launched the boys on a global
scale, they’d already been playing local gigs in their
hometown of Tulsa, Oklahoma for five years, during
which time they’d self-recorded two independent
albums - ‘Boomerang’ in 1995 and ‘MMMBop’ the
following year - the latter of which featured the original
version of their breakout smash.
In the decades since, the group has continued
making music and touring the world as a unit but,
when it came to creating their latest LP, Taylor, Isaac
and Zac were eager to take a different approach
that showcased their musical inclinations and
demonstrated each member’s individual flair.
The result is ‘Red Green Blue’, a 15-track collection
divided into three distinct sections, in which each
member co-writes and -produces five songs, sharing
their outlook on life, love and enduring success. But
opening up about the process, it’s clear working on the
album was an eye-opener all round!
SEEING RED
“Putting together an album is sort of similar to and the spark of the song”. He shares: “That childlike
putting together a setlist for a show,” says Taylor, view is so now, so present and so positive. It’s
whose ‘Red’ section opens the LP. “You take people focused on fighting all the things we get so caught
in, usually dip down in the middle, and then rise up in as adults.
again at the end.” “The childlike heart still has that, ‘Well, no - this is
The formula of creating a studio record is nothing what’s important to me and I’m still expecting these
new for the singer-songwriter; he was just 11 years good things to happen.’ Expecting to fall in love,
old when he penned MMMBop, since which time expecting to go on the adventure… And so, adding
the trio has maintained global success for 25 years. that little piece, I just felt like it helped make the
This time, however, things are different for the statement more clear.”
hitmaker who, aged 39, is coming out of two years There’s an irony in all that. When Hanson first
of downtime and heading out on the road for a started out, the boys were children themselves,
mammoth world tour, for which Hanson were keen brimming with wide-eyed optimism and a
to deliver new music to their loyal followers. determination to take on the world and make a name
“The ‘Red Green Blue’ album is different from for themselves in the music business. Decades on,
anything I’ve ever done. In a way, it’s the opposite to Taylor is turning to his own family to recapture that
the approach we’ve taken for years, which was very carefree feeling and channel it back into this music.
much about the three of us and how we collaborate,” Not only do his children reignite that spark
he muses. “On this project, we’re coming up to 30 within him, but playing music allows the singer-
years [since the group formed] and going, ‘We want songwriter to travel back in time and tune in to that
to put out new music’.” part of himself all these years on. It’s something he
According to Taylor, the album was “born out of addresses directly on Rambling Heart - “my other
thinking what was interesting to everyone at this heart song”.
point and trying to change the process,” which led “This song is just about the journey and being
to himself, Isaac and Zac all working on their own a musician,” Taylor smiles. “How, when you have
tracks individually, before bringing them together to that thing that you love or the people that you love,
complete the finished project. wherever you go is your home. Wherever you’re
“It produced some great things, but it was painful expressing yourself and being who you are - in
for me,” he insists, “because it was a process of, you
don’t have your hands around everything. [You’re]
not able to know how the whole thing’s gonna be.” That childlike view is so now,
It’s a unique concept for the group, which
emphasises the “different inclinations of different so present and so positive. It’s
members of the band,” and when it comes to the title
of the project, the colour trilogy harkens back to the focused on fighting all the things
Hanson brothers’ formative years.
“For as long as I can remember, the three of us we get so caught up in as adults.
have been associated with those three colours. That
goes back to what my folks did with toothbrushes this case music, specifically - that’s the glue for
and who knows what,” he remembers. “So over time, everything.”
I guess they became the favourite colours of each of Taylor may be 30 years older than when he first
us. I would absolutely say that red is my go-to colour; started out in the group, aged nine, but reflecting
it means something to me, I feel connected to red. candidly on the passing of time, he insists that,
It’s passion, it’s conviction, it’s life. It’s kind of violent, inside, he still feels like that kid ready to chase
you know - it’s all that stuff.” his dream.
For his part, Taylor delivered a selection of “earnest “I think it’s interesting, people talk about age and
and emotional” numbers that see him “strip things I’ve just hit the last year of my 30s. I remember
back to do less harmony,” with several cuts relying thinking, ‘That’s just so incredibly old,’ he laughs.
on just acoustic guitar and vocals. “They’re all talking “But it doesn’t [feel old] - it just seems like now, it’s
about that sort of suffering through growth and just now. Wherever you are, it’s just there. Age is
finding the kernel that is going to pull you through,” totally relative; it depends on who you talk to. I know
he says. 25 year olds who seem like they’re already old, like
Kicking off the set with the single Child at Heart, they’ve just sort of hit their groove. And I’ve met 50
the opener offers an introspective look at the floppy year olds that seem like they’re still 20, you know?
haired teen-turned-family man, whose kids are at “So, age and that hopefulness and that childlike
the centre of everything he does - and as a dad of heart is not just about being technically young, it’s
seven, it’s not hard to see why. It segues into a demo about it is that sense of being excited about what’s
snippet featuring his kids, which “captures the idea next and reaching for what’s next.”
INTERVIEW | Hanson
TAYLOR
ISAAC
INTERVIEW | Hanson
GREEN PASTURES
“My approach initially for the ‘Red Green Blue’ album times while trying to record that vocal,” he admits.
was to deliberately make it different,” quips Isaac “There’s just something about it. It’s a little bit like, it
of the “interesting process” of piecing together the was kind of written at the right time. There was a lot
band’s latest studio effort. “I don’t think a lot of bands going on in my life personally and it’s a song about
could do what we ended up doing. Because all three saying, ‘Look, there’s always reasons to say goodbye,
of us are singers by trade, it allowed for us to kind of there’s always reasons to say this relationship won’t
lean into this a little bit more. And then to expand work, there’s always reasons for conflict…’ But that’s a
upon that, you say to yourself, ‘What is my voice? matter of perspective, right? And sometimes, you’ve
What does it really sound like and look like?’ And I just got to say, ‘Listen, I know we’re in it. I know it
think for me, I wanted to lean into some of the more sucks. But I’m not going anywhere. I’ll work through
personal, more songwriter, even rootsy elements of it with you. And I’m willing to sacrifice my pride, my
who I am.” ego, the things I want, because who we are is more
While the sound is unique to him, Isaac’s important than what I want’.”
inspiration when it comes to lyrics is similar to Although inspired by his personal relationships,
that of his siblings; life, love and - most important Isaac refers to the track as a “life song” and, when it
of all - family. His first single from the record, the comes to his approach to writing his portion of the
country-inspired Write You a Song, was born out of LP, seeking out the bigger picture was integral to the
his daughter Nina telling him, “Hey, Daddy - I don’t process and embedded in his affinity to the colour
have any songs,” which prompted the musician green. He says: “It represents life. In some sense,
to hit the studio with longtime friend and former there’s almost a spiritual component to it. Like the
American Idol contestant Paul McDonald, who co- spirit of life. It’s always been my favourite colour.
wrote his latest tune. “My favourite colour is actually a kind of a deep
“She was very upset about it,” he recalls. “She said green, almost like a hunter green. To me, I think even
to me, ‘Daddy, you wrote all these songs, but I don’t psychologically, I’ve always loved being in a forest
have one that’s just mine.’ It was very dramatic and and seeing the green leaves and stuff,” Isaac adds,
very cute all at the same time. And so Paul ended up calling his connection with nature, “something I
- of all things - saying, ‘Hey, I’ve got this idea. What if deeply identify with.”
we wrote a song about the idea that you’re going to It’s a refreshingly grounded mindset from the
write a song for someone?’ [...] I was like, ‘Well, it just
so happens that my daughter said to me two days
ago, ‘Daddy, I don’t have any songs. You’ve never
written me any songs.’ So that’s the idea we were For me, I wanted to lean into
leaning into.”
The heart and soul was there, but what does
some of the more personal, more
Nina think of the finished product? “Oh, man, she
loves it. She absolutely loves it,” he beams. “In fact,
songwriter, even rootsy elements
it was funny because my wife was actually out of of who I am.
town at the time, so I was both trying to write a
song and watching my three kids. My sons are very
self-sufficient; my eldest son just turned 15 and my singer-songwriter who has spent the majority of his
youngest is about to be 14. Then there’s a five and life in the spotlight and, looking back on 30 years of
a half year gap and our daughter’s eight, so about the group, he admits that the period from being 16 -
halfway through the day she found her way into my at the time when MMMBop was released - to 41 has
home studio and was just hanging out the whole flown by.
time. It was a very fun experience. “I was basically the age my eldest son is now,
“It’s funny, because it feels very cheesy in a certain making ‘Middle of Nowhere’ - and that is trippy,” he
way, but that’s kind of what the whole song was. I laughs. “He’s starting to get it, which is really funny.
think we could use a little bit more cheesiness in Especially in the last couple of years, he’s been like,
the world sometimes. It’s easy to find really intense ‘Dad, um, what the heck?’ It connects with him in a
things, but I kind of think right now, we could all use visceral way, because he saw a picture of me that was
a healthy dose of cheesiness.” taken at the MTV Europe Music Awards, where I was
Write You a Song might hold a special sentimental standing with Steven Tyler and Jon Bon Jovi.
meaning, but another track on the ‘Green’ record, “He kind of flipped out, like ‘Dad, I love Bon Jovi
No Matter The Reason, is an equally poignant and I love Aerosmith! What is going on?’ I was like,
moment for the star. “I’ve never gotten choked up ‘I’ve lived a lot of life, man!’ It’s been a wild experience
doing a vocal before and I got choked up multiple and it’s been a great experience!”
BLUE YONDER
“In my mind, the ‘Blue’ portion is really called ‘Blue going to get these solo records out?’ And we’re like,
Yonder’, which is an ode to going out into the great ‘Whoa, whoa, whoa! We’ve just, we’ve just entered the
space beyond and the adventure of what happens world stage and you’re already trying to figure out
when we just have no boundaries,” reflects Zac of his how to dissect us!’ So I think that became a mantra
contribution to the project, which comes at the tail that we really grew into.”
end of the set and rounds out the album. Although comfortable with his position in the
While Taylor and Isaac look noticeably inward group, Zac admits he’s determined to keep pushing
on their songs, Zac channels his own experiences himself creatively and, when he struggled to tap
into a collection of five outward facing tracks about into the songwriting sphere, he revisited past group
overcoming adversity and establishing a place in the projects to reignite his spark. It’s a subject he tackles
world. It’s a process that began five years ago, when on Don’t Let Me Down.
the group was celebrating its 25th anniversary, as Zac “I’m singing to myself, because as much as I know
began to question the drive to keep going. what I’m capable of, you go into a new scenario, and
“When we hit the 25th anniversary of the band, to you go, ‘Fuck, it’s me versus Taylor, versus Isaac, in
me there was a mental shift that said, ‘It’s not really a way it’s never been’,” he chuckles. “Don’t pull your
just about making music anymore’,” he explains. “So, punches. Don’t leave anything on the table [...] About
I just started thinking about records more like, ‘What two in the morning, I wrote Don’t Let Me Down just
kind of stories are we telling? How are we deepening sitting in my hotel room. I started listening to our
the connection and the understanding of the band?’.” records - Hanson records and projects we’ve done
From that place, he began crafting songs away and things that people haven’t heard that I’ve made
from his siblings, some of which feature on the - and I went, ‘I like this, I’m proud of this.’ And all
new LP, such as Where I Belong; a Brian Wilson- of a sudden, that song just went like, ‘You have you
influenced, symphonic number that’s been “sitting have this. You know what you need to do. Take your
around for a long time”. moment. Here’s the rhythm and here’s the melody.’ It
“I didn’t want to write it with Isaac and Taylor, was like my self-confidence was refounded.”
because it was so… sometimes you know you need As the drummer of the group, it’s fitting that Zac
to not be polluted by other people’s ideas,” he laughs. ends the record and symbolic of his position as the
“There’s nothing wrong with what they would want backbone of Hanson - a role he mirrors in everyday
to do - they would want to do something great - but
it wouldn’t be what it was supposed to be.”
He continues: “The story of the song is really about When we hit the 25th anniversary
feeling isolated, lost and looking for your place. For
all the good we’ve had, as a person who’s done the of the band, to me there was a
same job since I was six… You kind of reach about 30
and go, ‘Is there something else I’m supposed to be mental shift that said, ‘It's not really
doing? Is there something else that I haven’t done?’”
That’s part of the reason that Hanson embarked just about making music anymore.
on their latest venture in the first place. “People have
asked us before, ‘Why don’t you do solo albums?
Why do you guys stay together like this?’ And it life. It’s encompassed in the colour blue, as he
seemed kind of like an interesting way to address explains: “Blue is very constant and that’s kind of
the fact that we are a band with three singers, three my role as a drummer. But as a person, people who
guys who can produce their own records and write know me personally know it’s very important to
their own songs alone. But we choose to be together,” me to just be solid and be there for you. If you need
he explains. somewhere to stay, my house is always open. If you
For his part of the project, he sought to inject joy need a friend to talk to, I’m always there. If you need
into the music and prove why, three decades on, somebody to bail you out of jail or whatever - if I’ve
Hanson continue to work together. “[Being in the got it, you can have it.
band is] a beautiful compromise, because what we “Blue is also very, very, very versatile. It’s why
are together makes us better for the most part. it’s the sky and the sea. There’s blue race cars, but
There are moments where you need to just say, then it’s also the most soothing, healing colour. So,
PHOTOS JONATHAN WEINER
‘This one’s mine, I got it,’ but I think what we found I like how versatile it is and how it means so many
- especially early on - is people were immediately different things, and so I hope it comes through.”
trying to dissect us and tear us apart and say, ‘OK,
which one are you? Are you the funny one, or the l ‘Red Green Blue’ is out May 20 via 3CG
silly one, or…’ And we had to come so hard together records. The ‘Red Green Blue’ world tour begins
to stay together. in Europe in June and plays North and South
“At week one, people were like, ‘OK, how are we America through November.
INTERVIEW | Hanson
ZAC
INTERVIEW | Jack Savoretti
LIVING
FOR
THE
LATE
NIGHTS
Having topped the charts with his
latest album ‘Europiana’ - a record he
fought to record and release under
unprecedented circumstances - Jack
Savoretti is better than ever as he
returns for his big encore!
WORDS CONNOR GOTTO
s one of Britain’s premier musicians, Jack Savoretti’s
A success seems unstoppable - but his rise to the top didn’t

come overnight.
Having launched his career in 2007, the singer-songwriter
fought to get his music heard, releasing three albums over eight years
with no such luck. But in 2015, his fortunes changed and his fourth LP
‘Written In Scars’ peaked in the Top 10 at No. 7, with follow-up ‘Sleep No
More’ going one better.
In 2019, he released his sixth album ‘Singing to Strangers’; a record
that not only saw him collaborate with Kylie Minogue and inherit lyrics
from Bob Dylan, but also took him to the top of the UK Albums Chart for
the very first time.
More than a decade into his career, it’s an achievement Jack wouldn’t
have dreamed was possible five years earlier, so when the world shut
down in early 2020 he looked beyond the adversity and set to work
crafting his next project: the glorious, sun-soaked ‘Europiana’!
FEELING FABULOUS
“After ‘Singing to Strangers’, it almost felt like a
curtain call,” says the musician on the origins of his
latest chart-topper. “I felt like it had taken my life up
until now - at least professionally - to make that kind
of record and to have the courage to really tap into
my Italian roots and actually go to Italy and make an
album. A lot of the musicians made fun of me, they
said, ‘This is an Italian album sung in English.’ And
that was the first time I really tried to be bold without
following some sort of a wave, I guess.”
Born in Westminster, Jack has an Italian father and
half-German, half-Polish mother, who raised him in
London before moving the family to the Swiss city
of Lugano. Produced by Cam Blackwood - who also
oversaw ‘Europiana’ - that project saw him relocate
to Rome, where he set about recording at Ennio
Morricone’s studio, and was met with critical and
commercial acclaim upon its release. But when it
came to working on the follow-up, however, things
couldn’t have been more different.
Although riding high on the success of ‘Singing
to Strangers’ and its subsequent tour, which saw
Jack play a headline show at London’s Wembley
Arena, his world was turned upside down when the
country was plunged into lockdown. “It was the end
of our movie - it felt like one of those Walt Disney
moments,” he recalls. “And then the world stopped.”
Faced with a period of downtime, Jack retreated to
his family home in Oxfordshire with his wife, actress
Jemma Powell, and their three children, and soon
after began tapping into his creativity as he looked to
the future. “I started writing and, I think like anybody,
I started on piano and guitar writing things about
isolation, fear and loneliness and went down that
rabbit hole,” he explains. “But very quickly, I realised
I didn’t want to really partake in that, and whenever
what was happening was over, I wasn’t going to
want to be singing about it.”
Instead, Jack adopted a more positive outlook
and, along with his family, began a
new tradition - Fabulous Fridays -
which saw the close-knit unit end These are
each week with a themed night,
during which they’d dress up, play all songs for
music and eat cuisines inspired
by whatever subject or country open windows, celebrations that Jack’s daughter asked him
was the topic of the evening. “Papa, why don’t you make music like this?”,
“The theme went from ‘West Side open rooftops, which inspired the hitmaker to tap into his
Story’, to Made in Italy, to Mexican love of European music, which served as
Night, to Spanish Night - all these and sweating the backdrop to his formative years, and pen
different things,” he smiles. “And
for that whole week, we would talk
under the stars. an album that drew from those sounds and
references - “from Julio Iglesias to Daft Punk” -
about what we would wear, what
we would eat, and what music we
I wanted to mix and carve out a new genre, ‘Europiana’.
would be playing for the party. And

that started throwing me back into
it up with the LET’S GO!
When it came to creating the album, Jack set to
listening to all this music that I whole ‘Encore’ work at London’s Abbey Road studios with his
was listening to as a child growing band of musicians to recapture a moment in
up on holiday, which was a lot of vibe. time, heavily influenced by the disco movement
Spanish, French, Italian music.” of the 1970s. “Disco in Europe was a very
It was during their weekend different aspiration to disco in America,” he
I started on piano and

guitar writing things
about isolation, fear
and loneliness and
went down that rabbit
hole. But very quickly, I
realised I didn’t want to
really partake in that.
explains. “Disco in America was kind of forbidden. It admits he started “getting a little bit scared” about the
was illegal at one point. It was something you would direction of the record, and sought advice from none
only get in these kind of underground clubs, either other than legend of the genre Nile Rodgers, who
gay clubs or African American clubs. It was like the ended up featuring on the latter track, which served
counterculture of music. as the lead single from ‘Europiana’.
“In Europe, it wasn’t that. By the time it got “Nile Rogers was so important to be a part of this,
to Europe, it represented the glamour of that because he is kind of responsible for bringing that
underworld. It had become mainstream and sound to Europe,” Jack insists. “He was the musical
suddenly super glamorous. Studio 54 - it was all that. director at all these discotheques in Italy, where
That’s what the Europeans were trying to emulate I actually grew up. He was famously the musical
with it.” director in this club and my father actually saw him
That was the task at hand, he says, to recreate the play. He started working with a lot of Italian and
sound of “European musicians trying to imitate French artists, and then later on moved to Berlin and
American disco,” citing tracks such as Dancing in the was working there. And he brought that disco sound
Living Room and Who’s Hurting Who from the LP as to Europe [...] I mean, it’s crazy what he touched. I ran
prime examples. But as the sessions continued, Jack a bit down a rabbit hole when I started working with
him and couldn’t believe the stuff that he had

worked on.
“Because I’d had that success with ‘Singing to
Strangers’ and the Italian thing, I started to say, ‘Wait
a minute, am I actually just getting carried away?
Am I just jumping on this kind of bandwagon that
I’ve built myself?’ And then working with Nile, I AFTERPARTY
needed that seal of approval from the Godfather. I Released in the summer of 2021, ‘Europiana’ was a
always say he’s the Godfather of Europiana. And he smash hit, giving Jack his second No. 1 album, but
was the one that was really like, ‘No man, go for it! the circumstances surrounding its release were
You’ve got to always have a reason for making an far from ideal and, amid global uncertainty, it took
album - and you sound like you’ve got a reason.’ him almost a year to take the record out on the
And I thought, ‘OK, that’s good enough’.” road - with the European leg of shows bumped to
Another big name to feature on the album is late 2022. Despite the success, it put a dampener on
John Oates, but that pairing came about in a far the campaign and led Jack back into the recording
less likely fashion. It was after one of the family’s studio to work on more tracks, revisiting the brief so
Fabulous Friday’s that Jack stayed awake long that the LP could get another shot at the spotlight.
after Jemma and the kids had gone to bed, “It’s almost [another] album - and that’s how
drinking and chatting with friends around I wanted to look at it,” he says of the ‘Encore’
the world via FaceTime, when he slid into repack. “Especially after this experience, where
the musician’s Instagram DMs to request we put out an album and it was like throwing
a collaboration - and to his a pebble into the ocean because
surprise, woke up to find a reply of Covid and lockdown. I don’t
with John’s phone number. Nile Rogers was feel like ‘Europiana’ got the life
“I was actually listening to a lot it deserved, because of the work
of Hall & Oates, which I’m a huge so important that we put into it and how hard
fan of, and for some reason I it was to get it made. And then
had the audacity to write to him, to be a part of when we actually did it, nothing
‘When are we going to work
together, buddy?’,” he laughs.
this, because was going on. There were no
live gigs - I didn’t tour until this
“I still have the message in my
DMs. And I remember waking
he is kind of month!
“So when I saw that the tour
up the next morning and it felt
like I had texted an ex-girlfriend.
responsible for was happening, it was like, ‘Let’s
keep this going!’,” he insists.
I was just suddenly terrified. And bringing the “Let’s really go and double down
I said to my wife, ‘I think I DM’d on the European thing, which is
John Oates last night’. But he had disco sound to why there’s an Italian song
answered and he gave me his on it. There’s proper disco,
phone number - I mean, he was Europe. I mean, there’s French electro vibes on
an easy date, he didn’t put up it, and then the ballad. I just
much of a fight.” it’s crazy what thought, let’s go to town with it
Their collaboration, When and have our super-subs come
You’re Lonely, is another he touched. off the bench and finish this
highlight from the record and run in style.”
its direction gave Jack and his players another ‘Encore’ features Jack’s recording of Dusty
reference point for the LP. “I love that song so Springfield’s You Don’t Have To Say You Love
much because John Oates is on it. And even Me in a medley with the Italian original Io Che
when we were making that song before John Non Vivo Senza Te, along with five original
had agreed to really be part of it, the band was like, tracks - including single Dancing Through The Rain,
‘This is this is kind of like yacht rock’,” he recalls. “I co-written by his friend, artist, writer and illustrator
said, ‘Exactly, it’s yacht rock, but the yacht is in the Susie Evans-Pollard.
Mediterranean. It’s not in Miami. It’s not in Santa “After a few drinks, I’ve always told her that
Barbara. It’s in the Med.’ anybody can write a song - you’ve just got to dig a
“That’s exactly what we had - that was the mental little deep, and you’ll find treasure. Everybody’s got
picture - the whole time in the studio was yacht rock, treasure buried somewhere; it’s just who’s good at
but the yacht is in the Mediterranean.” digging for it,” he says. “It was when the elections
were happening in the States, and when I woke up
that morning Trump was winning. And it really
threw me. It really hit me hard. It really made me feel
like I was losing my understanding of the world in
which I live.
“While I was watching it, Susie sent me this poem,
called Dancing Through The Rain, and I started
reading it while I was sat watching the news. And I
thought, ‘Screw this, I’m not gonna watch the news,’
and I just ran to my piano and just started playing.
I wanted to send it back to her to let her know, ‘I’m
with you. Don’t worry.’ And I sent it to her, and she career, ‘Before The Storm’, which Jack penned as “a
loved it.” real sort of last hurrah”. “I had just been through legal
When it came to working on the album, he took battles - it wasn’t a good time,” he shares. “Those
the track into the studio and producer Cam told him, songs are sweat, blood and tears. It was a tough time;
“That’s probably the best song you’ve ever written!” my wife was pregnant, I was 27 or something like
Jack recalls: “I was like, ‘Well, great. I didn’t write that, and a lot of other things weren’t working out.
lyrics, but I wrote the song. And that was kind of That album was a real cry for help”
it. When we played it in the studio, the reaction of ‘Written In Scars’ altered his trajectory and, after
everybody that I saw was hope. It just gave everybody reissuing the LP with lead single Catapult, Jack was
this real sense of, you can get through the storm. invited to perform on ‘The Graham Norton Show’. “It
And I really hope that song… I think people need it.” was very funny, because Graham had played us on
Of the other new songs, Jack calls opening radio for many years on his radio show in the
ballad Love of Your Life “the romantic olive in morning, but we had never been invited on
the dirty martini glass that adds a little bit of TV. And when we went on the show - just to
class to the situation,” with the rest of the show, again, my audacity - I just went up to
album being “just pure fun”. him and I was like, ‘Why now?’
“You want to be sunburned He was like, ‘What do you mean?’
and dancing late at night I’m terrified And I was like, ‘Why now? You’ve
listening to it,” he beams. “That’s
how I feel about Late Night and
of trends and been playing my music for so
many years. Why now did you
Why Not. These are all songs for
open windows, open rooftops,
terrified of get me on the show?’ And he
just said, ‘Because I liked this
and sweating under the stars.
I wanted to mix it up with the
ever becoming one.’ I thought fair enough, I
deserved that!”
whole ‘Encore’ vibe.” part of a trend. Riding high at the top of his
game, ‘Europiana: Encore’ is
STILL STANDING And I don’t sure to bag Jack another hit
‘Europiana’ may have been and, when it comes to the next
Jack’s second UK No. 1 album, think there’s stage in his career, he already
but it’s his seventh overall, has plans in the works. “I do have
having debuted in 2007 with any way of that something in mind. A word
‘Between the Minds’ - which that I always go on about a lot
had its 15th anniversary earlier happening now. is romance. I think there’s such
this year. That album charted a lack of romance in music,”
at No. 70 but, in the years that followed, he he muses. “And when I say romance, I don’t
struggled to break into the charts again and, mean love songs. I mean epic, romantic,
looking back on his career, he admits he’s crafted, theatrical sort of songs, that I have
surprised he stuck it out for so long. always loved. So I would love to really indulge
“When I look back, I am still very confused at why in that.
I never let go. I still can’t explain to myself - if I look “I’m terrified of trends and terrified of ever
back 10 years ago, especially - why I didn’t walk becoming part of a trend. And I don’t think there’s
PHOTOS CHRIS FLOYD; COURTESY OF THE ARTIST
away,” he confesses. “I must have been resilient, any way of that happening now. My whole life up
because honestly, people were not kind to us. The until here, especially when you work with big labels,
industry was not kind to us. It really told us to piss off. they want you to follow the trend. And my thing is
They wanted nothing to do with us for a long time. always trying to find something beautiful enough
And the fact that I didn’t just take that and leave, I that convinces them to go, ‘OK, go with that. Don’t
must have been a pretty stubborn 20 year old.” worry about the trend. Do what you’re doing.’ And
Following the release of his fourth album ‘Written that’s including myself; I have to commit to myself
In Scars’, however, there was a turning point and, again, I don’t just want to do it for the sake of doing it.
with the backing of BBC Radio 2, the album hit the “So right now, I would love to do something that
UK Top 10. It came after the hardest album of his deserves to be played at the Royal Albert Hall, put it
that way. I’d love to make an album that deserves to
be played at the Royal Albert Hall.”
l ‘Europiana: Encore’ is out May 20 on EMI
I think there’s such

a lack of romance in
music, And when I
say romance, I don’t
mean love songs. I
mean epic, romantic,
crafted, theatrical
sort of songs.
PROFILE
MICHAEL
MEDRANO
Michael Medrano has been making waves online for years and
after building an audience of over 150,000 monthly Spotify
listeners, he’s finally ready to release his first full-length project!
ichael Medrano’s rise What’s the first song you ever One time I referenced Ke$ha and The
M through the pop ranks has

been a slow burn.
Having released his debut
track back in 2016, it would be three
years before he attracted widespread
performed?
Chasing Pavements by Adele. I was
post-tonsillectomy, so it was probably
rough, but it was nice to start getting my
voice back.
Smashing Pumpkins in the same breath.
Makes sense when you really think
about it.
Your visuals are always on point. How

attention with Fluids - the electro-pop do you decide your artistic direction?
jam that caused a stir online and saw the When did you realise you wanted to be Thank you! I think having a strong
singer-songwriter secure his place on a musician? artistic identity is very important. I see
the emerging talents list. Middle school when I was accidentally myself as a curator in addition to being
Now, after multiple single releases put into my first band class. The a musician, so I usually am thinking of
- including recent hits Do Your Thing universe has always done weird visuals with my creative partner Isaac
and Naked - he’s gearing up to release things like that for me, I’d never even Luna (hire him by the way, he’s a genius)
his first mini album and, looking back considered signing up, but it changed as I write the songs.
on his life in music, Michael reveals the my life.
artists and sounds that inspired him to Tell us about your new single Naked?
become the pop star we see today. When did you begin writing music? It’s by-far the most “me” record I’ve
8th grade, but I didn’t start taking it ever made. It falls somewhere between
What’s your first musical memory? seriously till about 19 Kesha, 3oh!3, The Gorillaz, and Dick
I remember being really little and Dale. I know that sounds insane, but it’ll
hearing Lovefool by The Cardigans. My Which song do you wish you’d written/ make sense and it’s SO fucking fun. This
mom says I was always singing along in was yours? is really the one.
my car seat. So many… but Fluids is my song, and
no one can ever take that from me. Also What can we expect from your new
What was the soundtrack to your Gimme More, that song is insane. mini album?
childhood? It’s a trashy, sexy escape from reality —
‘Animal + Cannibal’ by Ke$ha. I started If you could go back to any musical just so much fucking fun. It all ends with
my life with Britney, but I think the era, which would it be? a big comedown, so if you cry when
Ke$ha era of music made me the artist I I know you’d expect me to say the disco you’re drunk then I might’ve made this
am today. era, but truth be told, we’re already there. mini album specifically for you.
So, I’d say the evolution of rock n roll
What’s the first record you bought? during the 60s. l Michael’s current single Naked is
‘Baby One More Time…’ by Britney out now.
Spears - well, my mom bought it for Which artists inspire your sound?
me. Lady Gaga’s ‘The Fame’ was the first It’s funny, when I go into sessions my
album I bought by myself though! references are literally all over the place.
PROFILE | Michael Medrano
A
Y S ELF AS
I SE E M
I N A D DITION
OR ICIAN,
CURAT M U S
NG A
TO BEI AM
S UALLY
S O I U
O F V ISUALS
NG NGS .
THINKI H E S O
RITE T
AS I W
Bright Light Bright Light
RECAPTURING A
DISCO
MOMENT
It’s been 10 years since Bright Light Bright Light released his debut
album ‘Make Me Believe in Hope’ and, with a celebratory reissue on
the way, Rod Thomas looks back on his journey to the top!
WORDS CONNOR GOTTO
right Light Bright Light stood at the forefront of
B the retro revival long before it was cool.

For the past decade, the singer, songwriter and
producer, aka Rod Thomas, has been reimagining
the sounds of the ‘80s and ‘90s across his four studio
albums and carving out an impressive career on the electro
pop circuit along the way.
Not only has he amassed a devout fanbase, but he also
mixes in circles with music royalty having collaborated
with Elton John, toured with Cher and remixed tracks for
Bananarama, Dubstar and Erasure, among others.
Most impressively, he’s done it all off his own back, as an
independent artist, without the backing of a major record
label. And when it comes to the man behind the music,
Welsh-born New Yorker Rod Thomas, his zest for life and
passion for his craft is infectious.
INTERVIEW | Bright Light Bright Light
I’ve done all of these
things; I’ve toured and
worked with Cher, Elton
John, Erasure, Scissor
Sisters, Ellie Goulding,
John Grant… all of these
wild people!
FINDING FUN
“I’m a ridiculous human being,” he declares with a laugh. “I’m
silly. I mince around, DJing Ace of Base at clubs for people,
watching Italian horror films and just having fun!”
His ethos is liberating and worlds away from the climate
of his early years; Rod grew up in a small village near Neath,
Wales. Despite his inclination for bold, brash electronic pop “I could never really find a band. It was odd; a lot of people
music, he “didn’t have cool music stores with wild equipment, formed bands in college and school, which I never got to do,”
all the synths and instruments and keyboards that most people he admits. “I think it was different tastes and I think a lot of
would be using” at his disposal, so his early endeavours were bands form initially when they’re like, ‘Oh, we really like this
distinctly different to the Bright Light Bright Light music band,’ and they start playing that band’s songs, and then they
we’ve come to know and love today. jam and it kind of rolls into something else. And I never really
“I just had no idea how you could make electronic music, found people that had the same strange little interests as me,
so I gravitated towards things which I had within reach, like like Ace of Base. It’s not really conducive to forming a band!”
a very cheap keyboard, a guitar, a bass, things like that,” he After graduating, he relocated to London, working during
recalls. “I was just writing songs as songs, without thinking the day at a record company and singing in the evenings,
about production.” in search of a big break. During that time, he released ‘Until
It may not have aligned with his personal inclinations, but Something Fits’ - his only album attributed to Rod Thomas
the experience developed Rod as a musician and marked the - and set to work on its follow-up. Instead of waiting to be
beginning of his journey to becoming a self-sufficient artist, approached by label executives however, Rod took matters
capable of not only writing his own material, but also playing into his own hands and, when his friend Sarah (who later
and producing his tracks. became his manager) sent demo tracks to American producer
That became key when he left Wales to take a Boom Bip - one half of Neon Neon, along with Gruff
place reading English literature and creative writing Rhys - he was invited to Los Angeles for two weeks to
at Warwick University, during which time he started collaborate on tracks.
sharing his compositions with “I was like, ‘Well, that’s never gonna
performances at the Student Union. happen. But yeah, that’s my dream.’
Despite a vibrant music scene, he I like to be very 3D And he said, ‘Yes!’,” beams Rod. “We did
maintained his act as a solo artist, Disco Moment and A New Word To
confessing that finding a group of with the work that Say together, and that was the moment
musicians with similar tastes was when I was like, ‘Oh my God, maybe I
a challenge. I make and I think can make an electronic record.’ And it
really fit the world that I wanted to make.
that, if you are doing It was like, when something becomes
real - it felt amazing! And it gave me the
something which confidence to then start learning more
has a really cool era about production at home.”
or aesthetic attached A NEW IDENTITY

When Rod returned to the UK, he set
to it, why not have about writing and recording more
tracks for his album, but with a revitalised
as much fun with it new sound he also sought to change up
his act and set about rebranding his
as you possibly can? stage persona.
“I feel [my early music] didn’t reflect
my personality,” he states. “I feel, when
it’s more acoustic driven or more band oriented, it tends
to have a certain preconception of somebody being a
bit more serious and a bit more introverted. If it’s a first
name - last name, moniker, then people just presume it’s a
singer-songwriter kind of thing.
“I was like, ‘How do I inject some of that fun back into the
stuff that I’m creating?’ and that just seemed to work more. It
felt like creating a moniker to tie in the production, the writing,
the DJing, and the remixes actually freed me and allowed me
to be much more myself than I was with just my name being
my identity. It’s kind of counterintuitive, but I felt like I could
do more and I could be a bit more free without people being
like, ‘Oh, that’s just that person’.”
When it came to selecting a name, Rod spent two weeks
racking his brains for the perfect alter-ego, but whenever he
thought he’d stumbled upon the perfect choice, he always
reverted back to his first idea: Bright Light Bright Light,
inspired by a quote from Gizmo in the 1984 movie ‘Gremlins’.
“The first thing that came into my brain, without any LEARNING TO FLY
thought whatsoever, was Bright Light Bright Light, and I was With recording complete and the final LP mixed by Andy, Rod
like, ‘No, I don’t think that’s it’,” he says. “I spent about two went out to get a record deal to launch the project - but he
weeks, every day, thinking about what could be a better name found all the doors he tried to open were bolted shut.
and I couldn’t think of a single thing. They were all shit! They “Nobody wanted to sign me,” he insists. “Like, full
were all really shit... And then for some reason, the more I transparency, I’ve done all of these things without a label in
thought about it, the more Bright Light Bright Light felt like it tow and not once has a label ever approached me. I don’t
made sense. know why that is - and I’m not saying it like a sob story,
“I realised how perfect it actually was to use a cinematic but just for anybody who reads this who is an independent
quote in my name, because I don’t think I’d really understood musician, there’s no real logic to everything. I’ve done all of
how much cinema influences my writing and my aesthetic,” these things; I’ve toured and worked with Cher, Elton John,
he smiles. “I always knew that I loved watching films, but Erasure, Scissor Sisters, Ellie Goulding, John Grant… all of these
a lot of the sounds that I use really do come from a wild people! And not a single label has once thought to
soundtrack that I love, or a film scene or a character ask me if I wanted to work with them.”
in a film or something like that. It really has just shaped Although Rod has been hugely successful in making
my life. So it makes total sense for the a name for himself and carving out
name to be referencing a film.” a career that withstood the test of
Armed with the perfect brand, he set I’m a ridiculous time, he admits being rejected by the
about working on tracks for what was major players in the music industry
to become ‘Make Me Believe in Hope’, human being. led to a number of misconceptions
initially collaborating with songwriter surrounding him. “I do get labelled by
and producer Andy Chatterley, with I’m silly. I mince people as vehemently independent and
whom he penned album tracks such as headstrong and foolish or whatever,” he
Love Part II, along with songs like Inside around, DJing Ace reflects, “and it’s like, I’m really not. I just
Out and Same Dream, plus previously- didn’t want to sit there gathering dust
unreleased material set to feature on
of Base at clubs for until somebody decided that I was worth
the 10th anniversary reissue. Despite
amassing an impressive selection of
people, watching potentially having a conversation with.
I just wanted to make music and get it
material, he felt something was missing Italian horror films listened to by the world, so I just got up
from the initial bunch of tracks and and did it myself.”
called on ex-Xenomania member Jon and just having fun! He adds: “There’s a big difference
Shave to hit the studio. between being like, ‘I’m gonna do it
“He is honestly one of the most myself,’ and then being like, ‘Well, no one
incredible human beings I have met in wants to help me, so I’m going to make it
my whole life,” insists Rod. “The first day that we met, happen.’ You know, that’s two very different approaches.
we immediately got on really well. We love all of these And I often get tarred as being sort of cocky and like, ‘I
like disgusting ‘90s dance songs. You know, the trash can do everything myself’ - I’m very aware, I cannot do
solo artists, absolutely tragic pop singles that gave us life as everything myself. But I definitely am not going to sit
teenagers. And we just had such a laugh! here and waste my life, thinking, ‘Oh, someone else
“We did Being Sentimental, which was a B-side, the first time will come and help me soon.’ And then they never
that we ever sat down to write together. I was like, ‘OK, this is do. I’m 100 per cent not willing to waste my life,
a keeper. Like this guy is great!’ Feel It was actually meant to waiting for things to happen.”
be on the second album. I wrote that with a second album in In revisiting ‘Make Me Believe in Hope’,
mind, but we ended up liking it so much that I was like, well, Rod was confronted by those memories
it’s gonna go on the first one because that still hasn’t come out once more, as he recalled his difficult
yet. So might as well put it out now.” period in London, searching for a
big break.
“It was really emotional,
actually. I was really unhappy
in London. I was really, really
unhappy in London,” he
confesses. “I found this old laptop that I brought with me from
London - I forgot that I had it - and I got the hard drive out
and went through all these old recording sessions. My God, I
was not happy! Listening to some of those songs, I was really,
really unhappy. And it’s unfair to say that London was a terrible
time in my life, because so much good came from it, like all of
these sessions, like Jon Shave, Andy Chatterley, Ian Masterson
who I worked with on the second album. Without these
people, I wouldn’t be who I am today and I’m eternally grateful
for all the talent and the time and friendship that I have from with it as you possibly can?” he poses.
them. I made some really good friends in London, and I made “It’s really fun creating the merchandise. It’s really fun doing
some really good steps in the industry. the artwork. Making the videos is really stressful and really
“But it was really tough,” he insists. “And I was listening expensive - but it’s also so much fun to be able to bring to
back to the songs and remembering, like, really shitty label life certain colour schemes and stylistic choices and clothes
conversations, really shitty A&R conversations, really just and everything. I really just tried to make my life as fun as it
feeling like a runt in the industry for so long, that it was hard to possibly can be in every way that I can.”
listen to them. Remembering the process of trying to put the Over the past two years, Rod admits he’s struggled to stay
album out and just feeling like, really, nobody cared.” inspired, particularly as the world was plunged into lockdown
Despite resurfacing emotions and feelings from the past, as he was riding high following a support slot with Cher on the
the process also enabled Rod to experience his debut outing as European leg of her ‘Here We Go Again Tour. The experience,
Bright Light Bright Light with fresh years, and “reclaim” he says, was predictably iconic.
the project as his own. “I’m really proud of this album,” “It’s just really strange to meet somebody that you’ve
he affirms, “and I really think that I did a really good been aware of since you were born,” he laughs. “It’s just
job with it - given the fact that like, no wild to watch this woman span these
label in the world wanted to help! I’m so decades and literally not age at all. Like,
proud of it. And the people I got to meet I’m really proud I stood next to her and I was like, ‘You
through doing it, like all of the fans that I look really young.’ And I know that’s kind
made and all of the collaborators are just of this album and of the thing [that everybody says], but
incredible people, so it brought about she looks gorgeous! She gives off a really
something really fantastic.” I really think that good energy, she’s a really good soul,
she’s so nice. I really am so pleased that I
PLANET POP I did a really good got to meet her in person and just be like,
For the 10th anniversary project, Rod ‘Wow, you’re just fabulous!”
has recorded a duet version of his single
job with it - given Following his stint on the road and
Moves with Steps star Ian ‘H’ Watkins - a
close friend with whom he regularly
the fact that like, no during the pandemic, Rod returned
with his fourth Bright Light Bright Light
appears on the pop superstar’s BBC label in the world album, ‘Fun City’, featuring collaborations
Radio Wales ‘Friday Night H’ show. “All with LGBTQ+ stars including Erasure’s
of the collaborations that I’ve done have wanted to help! I’m Andy Bell and Scissor Sisters’ Jake Shears.
been with my friends,” he says. “We talk Having released the project in September
all the time outside of the show, we text so proud of it. 2020, he hasn’t yet had the chance to
every week and we have a really good tour the album and, when it comes to the
friendship, so I thought it would be nice immediate future, he’s hoping to bring it
to make something of that and make a nice moment.” to life on stage while celebrating a decade of music.
Before their friendship, Rod was already a huge Steps “Normally you create an album, you put it out, you get
fan. “I grew up listening to Steps,” he beams. “For me, it’s to tour it and then you create enough space inside your
wild to think that somebody I was dancing to in my friend’s brain to think of new ideas,” he muses. “But because I haven’t
bedroom to One For Sorrow is now all of a sudden singing on got to tour ‘Fun City’ yet - and it’s been two years now - I feel
my song. Like, that’s bonkers!” like all of that world is still living in my brain. I will say, I’ve
Not unlike the fabulous five, Bright Light Bright Light is done a million things in the last year; I did a movie score, I co-
PHOTOS WARREN PIECE
as much about the aesthetic as it is the music, with each wrote for a tonne of people and I’ve been remixing left, right
era bearing a distinct look across artwork, visuals and and centre. I think I released like 50-something productions
merchandise. “I like to be very 3D with the work that I make last year. So it’s been really busy.
and I think that, if you are doing something which has a really “I have ideas for what I want to put out next vaguely, but the
cool era or aesthetic attached to it, why not have as much fun last two years have really thrown me off my axis,” he adds. “But
I don’t know, I’m starting to work on the material and thinking
about how I can have more fun again next year.”
l ‘Make Me Believe in Hope - Deluxe Anniversary

Edition’ is out June 3.
RELEASERADAR
A L B U M S | R E I S S U E S | C O M P I L AT I O N S
91
THE ORIGINAL
POP IDOL
Will Young celebrates
two decades of pop
excellence
93 94 95
INFINITE DISCO EUROPIANA: TOYAH! TOYAH!

ENCORE TOYAH!
PHOTO JOSEPH SINCLAIR
Disco diva Kylie

Minogue finally Join Jack Savoretti Relive punk icon
unveils her latest on a splendid Toyah’s classic live
live album musical voyage broadcast
RATINGS EXPLAINED: HHHHH
H BRILLIANT HHHHH GOOD HHHHH AVERAGE HHHHH POOR HHHHH TERRIBLE
RELEASERADAR
Strictly speaking, this isn’t a songs surpassing the five minute mark,
Propaganda album - 30 years after making for a slow-burning collection
the demise of the group, Brücken and that invites you to experience a world
Freytag returned as xPropaganda and, beyond the music.
after heading out on tour in support of Pre-release tracks Don’t (You Mess
XPROPAGANDA Heaven 17, began working on tracks for with Me) and Beauty Is The Truth
THE HEART IS the new LP. breathe new life in the context of the
STRANGE “We always thought it was a shame album, while the smouldering, slow
HHHHH that an album as distinctive and burner Chasing Utopia and stomping
acclaimed as ‘A Secret Wish’ seemed The Wolves Are Returning - a damning
RELEASED: May 20 ZTT destined to be a one-off,” they say. “It commentary on the refugee crisis -
certainly meant a lot to us, and it never stand out on first listen.
FORMAT: CD, 2CD, Standard seemed right that the story stopped The intense, obsessive No Ordinary
Black Vinyl, Blu-Ray Audio there. Girl is as much a performance piece as
(SDE Exclusive) “Working again with Stephen it is a pop song and serves as a prime
Lipson means that we can turn our example of Brücken and Freytag’s
dreams about what the ZTT follow up impeccable storytelling through their
ropaganda stars Claudia to ‘A Secret Wish’ would sound like music and vocals.
P Brücken and Susanne Freytag

reunite with producer Steve
Lipson on their spectacular
comeback LP ‘The Heart Is Strange’.
Marking their first album of original
into a reality. The reality is ‘The Heart
is Strange’.”
Kicking off with the epic opener
The Night, the album builds with
sweeping electronic soundscapes,
Returning with original music after an
extended break is a risk for any act - not
least of all for the former Propaganda
stars, who crafted one of the finest
synth-pop LPs of the 1980s before
PHOTO KAI FREYTAG
material in four decades, ‘The Heart underpinned by strident beats and laced leaving the charts behind.
Is Strange’ picks up where the group’s with expressive, passionate vocals that But decades on, they draw on the
seminal 1985 effort ‘A Secret Wish’ remain as evocative decades on. brilliance of ‘A Secret Wish’ once more
left off, evoking the band’s classic Despite clocking in at eight tracks, and deliver an album that’s equally
sound while remaining slick and ‘The Heart Is Strange’ packs a hefty stunning and more than befitting of the
contemporary. punch, with more than half of the group’s legacy.
REVIEWS | albums
WILL YOUNG
20 YEARS – THE
GREATEST HITS
HHHHH
RELEASED: May 27 Sony Music
CMG
FORMATS:
CD, 2CD, Standard Black Vinyl
ill Young celebrates 20
W years since his ‘Pop

Idol’ win with a career-
spanning retrospective
featuring his best-loved singles.
On February 9, 2002, the hitmaker
went up again Gareth Gates during the
Grand Final of the first series of the TV
talent contest, during which he debuted
his take on Cathy Dennis co-write
Anything Is Possible and Westlife cover
Evergreen, which was released as a
Double A-side as his winner’s single.
In the voting, the pair were neck and
neck, but it was Will who triumphed
with 53.1 per cent of the public vote -
and so began a pop legacy that would
go on for 20 years, and counting. UK Top 5 with his smash hit Jealousy. So far in his career, Will has yet to
Opening with Evergreen and Will’s It’s a collaboration that the pair have open up the vault and unleash outtakes
rendition of the Doors’ Light My Fire, maintained in recent times, including from his archive, so to be given a taste
the tracklist segues into his Gareth on career-highlight All The Songs and of what will undoubtedly be on offer at
Gates collaboration The Long and Will’s cover of Bat for Lashes’ Daniel, the some point down the line is an added
Winding Road, serving a chart-topping most recent song on the LP. bonus from an already packed release.
‘Pop Idol’ triple-hit that pays tribute to The standard edition of the album The inclusion of live recordings
his career beginnings. rounds off with two new recordings - also enhances the offering - although,
So begins a journey through Will’s single Why Does It Hurt and Breaking in actual fact, we’d have preferred a
eight studio albums - from debut ‘From Free - marking the star’s first original selection of B-sides and deep cuts (and
Now On’ to his 2021 covers collection recordings in three years and bringing a couple of remixes, of course), to offer
‘Crying on the Bathroom Floor’ - and the his journey as both a vocalist and an a little more depth and something that’s
best-of also features the No. 1 hit Leave artist full circle. not so widely available.
PHOTO JOSEPH SINCLAIR
Right Now, plus Top 10 smashes such as Meanwhile, deluxe editions of the Wishful thinking aside, though, ‘20
You and I, Your Game, Friday’s Child and project include an expanded tracklist Years: The Greatest Hits’ is a worthy
All Time Love. that boasts performances from live addition to Will’s impressive catalogue
In addition to his early work, ‘20 Years: sessions over the years, with renditions and, as he embarks on a national tour
The Greatest Hits’ also celebrates Will’s of some of his biggest hits and classic with talk of a new studio album in the
more recent releases, including his covers brought together for the first works, serves as a reminder that two
collaborations with producer Richard X, time, as well as two exclusive demo decades into his career, he remains one
who helped propel the star back into the recordings of Your Game and Jealousy. of the UK’s premier pop acts.
RELEASERADAR
that always seems to lead back to his with style.

home unit. Where Taylor and Isaac went back to
Tagged onto the end of the song is basics on ‘Red’ and ‘Green’, Zac’s ‘Blue’
HANSON a snippet from the singer-songwriter’s segment opens with the synth-led Bad,
RED GREEN BLUE original writing session, featuring one paving the way for a more pop-oriented
HHHHH of his kids in the background, while selection sure to appease longtime fans
second cut Rambling Heart juxtaposes of the group while bringing their sound
RELEASED: May 20 3CG his love of being home with his life on bang up to date.
the road. World Goes Around is an uplifting,
FORMATS: Considering the separate nature of reflective look at the state of the world,
CD, 3LP Coloured Vinyl the album, the sense of unity on We offering the promise of a new day and
Belong Together is somewhat ironic, but celebrating the best things in life, while
the final track on ‘Red’ - Semi-Hollow - Wake Up slows things down for the
anson do things their own flourishes into a full band moment, as album’s big romantic number.
H way on their latest studio

project ‘Red Green Blue’.
Clocking in at 15 tracks,
the album comprises three EPs, each of
which has been created by Taylor, Isaac
Taylor pledges his loyalty to the group.
The fuller sound remains through
the rest of the project, as Isaac’s ‘Green’
opens with Greener Pastures, a rootsy
track about looking for the good in every
It comes to a head on Where I Belong;
a forward-facing track that takes
inspiration from the classic Somewhere
Over The Rainbow and sees Zac striving
for a better future - not only for himself,
and Zac, respectively, under one of three experience and striving for the best but the world as a whole.
colourful monikers harkening back to outcome in all circumstances. On paper, a group album consisting
their family childhood. It’s an organic direction that runs of three solo projects shouldn’t work,
It’s a unique concept for a group but, through the five cuts, including but the beauty of ‘Red Green Blue’
three decades into their journey as a pre-release track Write You a Song, stems back to its title; a reference to
band, Hanson are secure enough in which stands out as the strongest the additive colour model, which sees
PHOTO JONATHAN WEINER
their status to branch out and explore number on the record and seems primary colours of light added together
new territory without the fear of destined to become one of the group’s to produce a broad spectrum.
breaking up the unit. signature tunes. In the instance of Hanson, each
Opening with Taylor’s Child at Heart, No Matter The Reason and The Gift member shines his light in different
the ‘Red’ section of the LP cuts to the of Tears strip things back and showcase ways, showcasing their personal
heart of the family man - who is dad Isaac’s slick vocals and poignant lyrics, inclinations, but it’s only when they
to seven kids with wife Natalie - with a before the groove kicks in on Cold as come together that the group’s sound is
largely stripped-back, acoustic sound Ice, closing the project’s second chapter truly complete.
REVIEWS | albums
The concert was later included with sought to “take viewers through a
physical editions of her ‘DISCO: Guest parallel universe from solitary isolation
List Edition’ deluxe repack - on CD, to an alternative euphoric dance-floor
DVD and Blu-Ray - and the show will community of togetherness” - a feat that
now receive a wider release, having Kylie achieved over the past 18 months
been uploaded across digital platforms with an impeccable campaign that
in April. turned her Nashville-inspired ‘Golden’ on
Kicking off with teasers of Magic its head and saw her take the crown as
and Come Into My World, Kylie opens the reigning queen of the dance floor.
her global party with style on I Love It, In some respects, the wide release of
the first of nine tracks from the ‘DISCO’ ‘Infinite Disco’ is bittersweet, as it likely
record to be performed during the indicates that a full ‘DISCO’ tour is off
broadcast. the cards, with Kylie confirming work
KYLIE MINOGUE Lead single Say Something is born has already begun on tracks for her 16th
INFINITE DISCO again thanks to stellar guest vocals studio album. The hitmaker previously
HHHHH from the House Gospel Choir, while said a touring concert would draw on the
a medley of deep cut Light Years and “energy” of the album and teased plans to
RELEASED: May 6 BMG new tune Supernova is a mash-up of switch up her staging for her live return.
epic proportions. “The theme is that you’re all hot and
FORMATS: Speaking of which, the blend of sweaty and in it together,” she said (via
Clear Vinyl, Also available as Slow and Donna Summer classic Love Daily Star). “But could be in a crowded
part of DISCO: Guest List to Love You Baby is another genius room and shut your eyes, let the music
Edition 3CD/1 DVD/1 Blu-Ray reinterpretation from Kylie’s unbeatable and feeling in, and you could be in your
set musical director Steve Anderson, which own world.
quickly became a fan-favourite and “I imagine it as a tour, but done in the
encompasses everything the ‘DISCO’ round. You normally want people to
ylie Minogue brings her era is about. watch the show but I think in this case,
K ‘DISCO’ era full circle with the

release of her iconic ‘Infinite
Disco’ livestream show.
Originally broadcast in November
2020, the concert features tracks from
Alongside standouts from her career,
including All The Lovers, In Your Eyes
and Love at First Sight, ‘Infinite Disco’
highlights the immense quality of the
‘DISCO’ album, with tracks like Last
part of it would encourage you to shut
your eyes and feel the energy.”
But let’s not dwell on what could
have been - fact is, we’ve been blessed
with an incredible live performance
Kylie’s 15th studio album ‘DISCO’ - Chance, Real Groove and Dance Floor against the odds, that will live on as a
which earned the superstar a UK chart Darling more than holding their own landmark moment in Kylie’s unstoppable
record when it made her the first alongside highlights from the past pop legacy.
female artist to top the charts across five three decades. Hit play, sit back and transport yourself
consecutive decades - alongside classics Originally aired at the height of the back to the ‘Infinite Disco’ - again and
from her career. Covid-19 pandemic, the livestream again and again…
PHOTO DARENOTE LTD.
RELEASERADAR
of European music reaching a wider while Dancing Through The Rain opens
audience” and “the first example of that as a piano ballad before building into a
really happening in popular music.” thumping pop anthem.
“I wanted to honour that. It is the Elsewhere on the new set, Why Not
perfect example of the Italian and has a groove that harkens back to the
English languages combining to make 1970s, while Late Night is one of the
magic,” he says. more contemporary-sounding tunes,
It’s a rousing recording, infitting with bringing the project full-circle.
the themes of the album, which bears Along with the feelgood anthems are
an unmistakable cinematic quality, heartfelt ballads, with the self-penned
drawn from his words and music. More Than Ever the centrepiece of
As Jack explains: “‘Europiana’ isn’t a the original ‘Europiana’ story. On the
sound. It’s references and inspirations new release, opener and single Love of
JACK SAVORETTI and the emotions they evoke. It’s the Your Life is another of Jack’s standout
EUROPIANA ENCORE music of my childhood summers, romantic slow-burners.
HHHHH remade for today.” At the core of ‘Europiana’ is a sense
Although not strictly a concept of lasting nostalgia, as Jack looks back
RELEASED: May 20 EMI record, his approach to the music saw on years gone by - from opener I
the hitmaker and his band of musicians Remember Us through to War of Words,
FORMAT: begin sessions with sun-soaked, rosé- both of which feature the vocals of a
2CD fuelled lunches, before heading in to children’s choir - and embraces a past
work on tracks for the project. that shaped him into the musician he
“For weeks we literally lived is today.
‘Europiana’,” he beams. “The band would On ‘Encore’, however, he leaves
ack Savoretti continues his arrive and I’d make a big lunch, eaten yesterday behind and lives in the
J musical voyage through the

sounds that backdropped his
formative years on the newly-
expanded edition of his brilliant
‘Europiana’.
outside with loads of rosé. Then we’d
go inside to write in what is usually my
living room but it became a studio. The
sun and fun seeped into the songs.”
The thrill of the recording process is
present, throwing an afterparty that
turns up the tempo and celebrates the
music and people most important to
him, with an overarching sense of joy,
freedom and euphoria.
Arriving 12 months after the original clear from the onset: the uptempo In the short time since its release,
album dropped, the ‘Encore’ LP features Secret Life and joyous ‘Europiana’ had already earned
six new recordings from the singer- Dancing In The Living its place as one of our
songwriter and is billed as a “sequel” to Room are earworms, favourite albums; now,
the chart-topping record. while Nile Rodgers ‘Encore’ adds another
Alongside the full original album, an adds his disco magic chapter to the story,
additional second disc includes the lead to lead track Who’s painting a perfect sun-
single, a medley of Dusty Springfield’s Hurting Who. On kissed backdrop and
You Don’t Have To Say You Love Me the new edition, the soundtrack to many
and the Italian original Io Che Non Vivo Mea Culpa is a slick summers to come.
Senza Te, which Jack calls “a celebration electronic number,
REVIEWS | reissues
RELEASERADAR
RICK ASTLEY album plus B-sides, TOYAH

WHENEVER YOU remixes, and Rick’s own TOYAH! TOYAH! TOYAH!
NEED SOMEBODY reimagined versions of the HHHHH
HHHHH album’s original singles.
The set also includes RELEASED:
RELEASED: May 20 BMG an expansive May 13
booklet, Cherry Red
FORMATS: featuring
CD, CD (Amazon previously FORMATS:
Signed Exclusive), unseen CD/DVD,
2CD, 2CD + CD photos Limited
Single (SDE from 1987/88, Edition
Exclusive) liner notes by Coloured
Craig McLean, Vinyl
and reflections
Rick Astley’s debut from the singer, Toyah’s 1980 live album is the latest
album ‘Whenever You Mike Stock and Pete Waterman. in her back catalogue to be reissued
Need Somebody’ celebrates its 35th The project was remastered at Abbey across formats.
anniversary with an expanded reissue. Road by Frank Arkwright. The third instalment of Cherry Red
The singer’s first outing features Also due for release is a limited Records’ campaign sees the star’s
the mega-singles Never Gonna Give coloured vinyl edition of the album as Safari Records LP, documenting her
You Up and Together Forever - both of part of Record Store Day 2022, which June 17, 1980 at the legendary Club
which hit No. 1 on the US Billboard Hot will no doubt prove a hit with collectors Lafayette, Wolverhampton, revisited
100 - and topped the UK Albums Chart. and completists, while a limited run and expanded for a new release.
More than three decades on, Rick comes with a seven-track CD single of Recorded on the Rolling Stones’
is taking a break from releasing new Never Gonna Give You Up. Mobile Recording Unit, it’s been
music to honour his first collaboration After staging a comeback in 2016 with remastered from the original master
with Stock Aitken Waterman, with a his chart-topping LP ‘50’, Rick proved tapes by Nick Watson and a CD/DVD
double-disc celebration of his late- he’s still at the top of his game - and this edition features the full concert setlist
’80s output. is the perfect ‘thank you’ to his longtime – including the previously unreleased
It boasts the remastered original fans for a lifetime of support. songs She, a reprise of Danced and an
unedited complete version of Neon
Womb, which originally faded early
Bucks Fizz’s third album ‘Hand Cut’ as the B-Side of live single Danced
is coming back to CD with a deluxe – paired with a DVD of the 1980
double-disc reissue. television documentary ‘Toyah’.
The original album saw the group Originally airing on November
achieve further success thanks to the hit 17, 1980, the feature follows Toyah
singles Run For Your Life and If You Can’t for over half a year, capturing band
Stand The Heat, and peaked in the UK rehearsals and studio recording
Top 20. sessions, alongside other rare behind-
Ahead of its 40th anniversary, the LP the-scenes footage.
has been remastered and expanded, The set is packaged with sleeve
with a host of additional B-sides, notes by Craig Astley and a fully
alternate takes, extended mixes and live illustrated 24-page booklet, also
recordings. featuring an introductory note
BUCKS FIZZ Alongside tracks from the album, the from Toyah.
HAND CUT second disc features recordings from the Meanwhile, a neon yellow vinyl
HHHHH follow-up ‘Greatest Hits’ LP, such as the release features the original album,
singles When We Were Young, London with a new inner bag with rare and
RELEASED: May 6 Cherry Red Town and Rules of the Game. unseen imagery.
Also included is a newly-created It’s uncommon to see live albums
FORMAT: Extended Remix of Running Out Of Time, revisited with such attention to detail
2CD remixed and produced by Dean Murphy but, given Toyah’s indisputable legacy,
Four decades on from the monumental it’s only fitting that the punk legend’s
Eurovision win, the set contains nearly masterful stage show is passed down
three hours of hits, perfect for collectors to a new generation of fans.
and casual fans alike!
RELEASERADAR
KIM WILDE
SELF-TITLED, hits from the early ‘80s, such as
SELECT, CATCH AS Chequered Love, Cambodia, View
CATCH CAN From a Bridge and, of course, Kids
HHHHH in America.
Remastered from fresh transfers
RELEASED: May 20 Cherry Red of the original analogue tapes with
original artwork faithfully recreated,
FORMAT: plus inner sleeves featuring a
Clear Splatter Vinyl (Black, stunning portrait shot of Kim and full
White and Blue, respectively) lyrics, nothing has been spared in
reproducing the star’s earliest works.
Since the albums have already
Kim Wilde’s first three albums are been reissued on wax in recent
back on vinyl with stunning Clear memory - along with 2CD/1DVD
Splatter reissues. expanded sets - it would have been
The singer’s self-titled debut, nice to see a bonus disc included
follow-up ‘Select’ and third LP ‘Catch with the latest pressings. Perhaps
As Catch Can’ have all previously been that’s still to come…
reissued by Cherry Red Records, but But given Kim’s incredible four-
the new iterations align with her ‘Pop decade career, it’s a pleasure to
Don’t Stop - Greatest Hits’ 3LP set, see her work being revisited yet
warranting the latest repress. again and, given how gorgeous the
Featured across the three albums pressings are, it’s not hard to get
are some of Kim’s most popular behind them.
Sparks continue their 21st century vinyl each record.

SPARKS reissue series with another pair The releases coincide with Sparks’
EXOTIC CREATURES of classics. biggest-ever North American tour,
OF THE DEEP & THE This month sees ‘Exotic Creatures which began with a pair of shows in
SEDUCTION OF of the Deep’ (2008) and ‘The Seduction their native Los Angeles and continues
INGMAR BERGMAN of Ingmar Bergman’ (2009) newly- through 2022 with further dates in
HHHHH remastered and pressed onto wax in the Europe.
latest instalment of the set. In line with the group’s renaissance,
RELEASED: May 27 BMG While vinyl editions include the original the reissues are a must for longtime
albums, CD and digital versions feature fans and new followers, showcasing the
FORMATS: a host of bonus materials - much best of their latter-
CD, 2LP Standard Black Vinyl of which is previously years output
unreleased - with along with the
packaging that remains select cuts from
faithful to the original LPs the recording
and captures the essence of process that delve
even deeper
into the world
of Sparks.
REVIEWS | reissues
unreleased songs, B-sides and ROXY MUSIC

remixes from the record. STRANDED &
A decade on, the album COUNTRY LIFE
stands the test of time, HHHHH
sounding on point
with current chart RELEASED: May 13 Virgin
trends and proving the
singer-songwriter aka FORMATS:
Rod Thomas has always Standard Black Vinyl
been one step ahead of the
game when it comes to pop Roxy Music’s third and fourth
excellence. albums have been freshly
BRIGHT LIGHT Although not a commercial hit upon remastered for a pair of vinyl
BRIGHT LIGHT its initial release, ‘Make Me Believe in reissues celebrating the group’s
MAKE ME BELIEVE Hope’ was met with critical acclaim 50th anniversary.
IN HOPE (DELUXE - coming fourth on The Guardian’s Originally released in 1973
ANNIVERSARY Reader Choice: Best Albums of 2012 and 1974, respectively, ‘Stranded’
EDITION) poll - and with stellar singles like Disco and ‘Country Life’ saw the group
HHHHH Moment, Feel It and Moves, it’s not hard continue their success, peaking
to see why. at No. 1 in the UK with the former
RELEASED: June 3 Most impressive about the reissue, and debuting in the US Top 40
YSKWN! / Rod Thomas though, is the additional material, with the latter.
offering a deeper insight into his They marked the beginning
FORMAT: creative process and showcasing the of a new era for the band,
4CD, Cassette sheer volume of work that went into following Brian Eno’s departure,
producing the first Bright Light Bright which also saw multi-
Light LP. instrumentalist Andy Mackay
Bright Light Bright Light celebrates the Oftentimes, anniversary reissues and guitarist Phil Manzanera
10th anniversary of his debut album feel slightly undercooked, with only a offer songwriting contributions,
‘Make Me Believe in Hope’ with a mega slither of extra content, but this package alongside Bryan Ferry.
expanded reissue. delivers on all fronts, leaving nothing In honour of their latest
Clocking in at 49 tracks, the 4CD left behind. Or so we think - if there’s milestone, both records have
deluxe re-release features the original even more, we’re in for a ride when the been given fresh, Half-Speed cuts
LP, released in 2012, alongside a host of next anniversary comes around! by Miles Showell at Abbey Road
Studios in London, bringing the
music to life with more nuance
The LP was produced in collaboration than ever before.
with Icelandic producer and arranger To reflect the enhanced audio,
Jóhann Jóhannsson, infusing the album artwork has been
consciously cinematic sensibilities with similarly revised with lyrics and
the star’s signature melodramaa and a deluxe gloss laminated finish.
soaring string arrangements to the fore. Both releases offer a refreshed
Containing no less than 32 bonus take on a particularly exciting
tracks across two additional discs, the moment in the band’s history
3CD edition includes original demos, and part of a legacy that
remixes, rarities, alternate versions and continues today.
live renditions of album tracks,
recorded around the time of the
album’s sessions.
MARC ALMOND Meanwhile, a 2LP edition
STRANGER THINGS includes the original record across
HHHHH three sides, with a fourth containing
five additional bonus tracks.
RELEASED: May 27 SFE Despite receiving critical
acclaim, ‘Stranger Things’ wasn’t
FORMAT: a commercial hit upon its original
3CD, 2LP Clear Vinyl release, peaking outside of the Top
100 in the UK.
But with the passing of time, this
Marc Almond’s 11th album ‘Stranger reissue offers a second look at the
Things’ is revived in conjunction with album and allows the music to
his 65th year celebrations. truly shine.
RELEASERADAR
VARIOUS
ARTISTS
ULTIMATE ’90s
ANTHEMS
HHHHH
RELEASED: May 13
BMG
FORMAT:
5CD Gina G.
Next up are cool cuts from
the likes of New Order and Faith No
It’s time for the ultimate More, while the fourth set brings in the
‘90s party with this five-disc ranging, expansive release. mid tempo beats for a celebration of
celebration of the decade’s Opening with the double-punch of rhythm and blues.
biggest and best anthems. Cher’s Believe and Mark Morrison’s From Rick Astley and Alison Moyet
From the sugary sweet pop of Kylie Return of the Mack, disc one is packed to Tina Turner, Pretenders and Roxette,
and Jason’s PWL years to R&B grooves with contemporary chart successes, there’s something for everybody on
from En Vogue, Eternal and Jade, there’s while CD 2 heads to the dancefloor with the final tracklist, rounding out the set
something for everyone on this wide- irresistible offerings from Moloko and in style.
Coming soon… NEW MUSIC
CRAIG DAVID CHRISTINE MCVIE UB40 FEATURING

22 SONGBIRD (A SOLO ALI CAMPBELL
COLLECTION) UNPRECEDENTED
RELEASED:
September 30 BMG RELEASED: RELEASED:
June 24 Rhino June 17 UMC
FORMATS: Standard CD, Standard
Black Vinyl, Deluxe 2CD, Deluxe 2LP FORMATS: CD, Standard Black FORMATS: CD, Standard Black
Black Vinyl Vinyl , Limited Edition Sea-Foam Vinyl
Green Vinyl
The garage superstar’s eighth studio A collection of covers and self penned
album, celebrating 22 years since he re A selection of songs from two of the tracks, inspired by the pandemic and
leased his debut album ‘Born To Do It’ in Fleetwood Mac star’s solo albums – the state of the UK at the moment,
August 2000. 1984’s ‘Christine McVie’ and 2004’s ‘In released in tribute to the late Astro.
The Meantime’ – plus two previously
unreleased studio recordings.

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EUROVISION 2022 | THE ULTIMATE GUIDE

RETROPOP JUNE 2022

RICK ISSUE 4 | £4.99

Connor Gotto, Editor

32 RICK ASTLEY 11 TOP OF THE POPS 24 KATRINA AND

78 Ultimate ‘90s Anthems and

STEPS HEAD BACK

BRITNEY SPEARS CULTURE CLUB are PINK FLOYD have NICOLE

LOOP memoir following

Prince and the

BLUE BRING HEART & SOUL

tour was due to open but, confirmed he and his

PHOTO COURTESY OF THE ARTIST

LOOP solo LP ‘The Nearer the

to UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency

Top Of The Pops tales

BUCKS FIZZ KATRINA QUIZ

he 2022 Eurovision Song Contest

T kicks off on May 10 with the first

SEMI-FINAL 1 - MAY 10 SEMI-FINAL 2 - MAY 12

STAGING THE SPECTACLE

T at the 66th Eurovision Song

I Contest took place in Dublin,

I overnight success with their

1 What’s the title of the music

2 Which country won the first

How many countries competed

4 Cliff Richard finished in

11 Which dance troupe shot

7 Bucks Fizz star Cheryl Baker

hen 21 year old Rick Astley launched into the charts

W with his debut single in 1987, not even he could have

transform Rick into a global superstar, but there was

“In terms of the memories that it brings back for

l ‘Whenever You Need Somebody: 35th

FOLLOW US on social media @RetroPopMag

WHAT YOU GET:

was shut up, screech, and hope for the

Why did the group eventually split up?

a-ha (l-r) Pål Waaktaar-Savoy, Magne

Ahead of the UK release of their

M it comes to Norwegian synth-pop legends

Magne, along with Pål,

WHEN I FIRST HEARD

When Morten ran out

A lot of patience was

THE WAITING GAME

I WANTED THEM Pål on stage, delighting

NEW MUSIC. THAT

The trio at their most

of intent. changed everything. Since then I’ve been a fan.

extraordinary. Another incredible

l ‘The Heart Is Strange’ is out May 20 on ZTT

Celebrating 30 years together as a

s one of Britain’s premier musicians, Jack Savoretti’s

A success seems unstoppable - but his rise to the top didn’t

would be playing for the party. And

I started on piano and

him and couldn’t believe the stuff that he had

l ‘Europiana: Encore’ is out May 20 on EMI

I think there’s such

M through the pop ranks has

Your visuals are always on point. How

right Light Bright Light stood at the forefront of