4 Rare 80s Albums [Part 4]

Four more of my favorite 80s new wave/synthpop albums. Please help seeding them. By the way tune in to more of these series for the coming long weekend!









The Expression - The Expression [1984]



A wonderful debut album by an Australian band, that unfortunately didn't have the luck to gather in its well deserved success. Band members were Tom Haran, Neville Dowling, Andrew Wong Yen, and Stephen Manassah. "Present Communication", "With Closed Eyes", "Total Eclipse", "Keep Appointments", "Dawn, Day and Sleep", "Nothing Changes" and "Satisfied Strangers" were the melodic highlights, full of romanticism, crowned by the longing voice of lead singer and main writer Tom Haran.



The singles "With Closed Eyes" and "Total Eclipse" should have been worldwide hits, but ...



01 Present Communication

02 With Closed Eyes

03 Dawn, Day And Sleep

04 Total Eclipse

05 Keep Appointments

06 Right To A Slice

07 Decisions

08 You And Me

09 About Tomorrow

10 Satisfied Strangers

11 More Like A Feeling Than A Taste

12 Round And Round

13 Nothing Changes

14 Three Four Day





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I Start Counting - My Translucent Hands [1986]



Pop experimentalists I Start Counting favored English artiness with a sense of fun. Unlike many other electronic groups from the '80s, I Start Counting never settled into a single formula; the band continued to tinker with its sound, shifting effortlessly from light to dark, accessible to avant-garde. I Start Counting was formed in the early '80s by David Baker and Simon Leonard. In 1984, the duo was signed by Mute and released its debut single, the quirky "Letters to a Friend." "Letters to a Friend" easily distinguished itself from the glut of synthesizer-laden records from the mid-'80s with Baker's distinctly British talk-sing style and the psychedelic feel of the keyboards. The follow-up, 1985's "Still Smiling," was hailed as another instant classic from the band. Writing and recording songs from their basement, Baker and Leonard finally released an LP, My Translucent Hands, a year later. I Start Counting gained a significant cult following in the U.K. and the U.S., especially among American suburban teens who were discovering Depeche Mode and Kraftwerk in dance clubs.





01 Introduction

02 My Translucent Hands

03 Catch That Look

04 You and I

05 Lose Him Baker, Leonard

06 Keep the Sun Away

07 Cranley Gardens

08 Which Way Is Home

09 Letters to a Friend

10 Still Smiling

11 Small Consolation

12 (There Is Always the) Unexpected





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Nine Ways to Win - Self-titled [1983]



Nine Ways to Win was a UK new wave band that released only one LP. The band members were Steve Creese (Percussion), Raul d'Oliveira (Trumpet), Stuart Gordon (Violin), Steve Lovell (Guitar), Ronald MacDonald (Saxophone), David Rhodes (Guitar), Nine Ways to Win (Main Performer), Martyn Swain (Bass), Peter Acock (Saxophone), Georgia II (Vocals (Background)), Johnathan Hughston (Vocals), Pete Thomas (Saxophone), David Ferguson (Keyboards). Close to You and Painting over Cracks are the highlights though I love the whole LP.



01 Close to You

02 Painting over Cracks

03 Second Cross on the Hill

04 Ashes and Diamonds

05 Breaking Bread

06 Lights All over the World

07 Waltz

08 All Sit Down

09 High-Wire

10 Time for Keys





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Wa Wa Nee - Self-titled [1986]



Led by the songwriting team of Paul Gray and Steve Williams, the band signed with CBS Records in 1985. Wa Wa Nee had four singles in the Australian top 40 from their debut album release of the same name. They included "Stimulation" which reached number 2 nationally in Australia in 1986, "I Could Make You Love Me", reaching the top 10 in the same year, and both "One And One (Ain't I Good Enough)" and "Sugar Free" making the top 40. The latter also reached the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 top 30, although this was their only success there.

The band's self titled debut album went platinum in Australia.





01 One And One (Ain't I Good Enough)

02 Teacher

03 Stimulation

04 Jelly Baby

05 Gone

06 Sugar Free

07 When The World Is A Home

08 Man Child

09 Love Reaction

10 I Could Make You Love Me