As an eighties kid, synth pop has been pumping in my blood ever since that first day I turned on my MTV. There’s some debate as to who’s considered a synth pop band and who isn’t. For this September Music Twitter challenge – #SynthPopSeptember – I’m focusing more on what’s considered synth pop, not who. The songs I’m featuring on Mental Jukebox this month aren’t solely composed of synthesizers. There may be drums, bass, and dare I say, electric guitars. But each of these songs were picked because the synthesizer is core to its being.
While synth pop’s hey day is indisputably the eighties, the genre has enjoyed multiple resurgences, including the mid-2000s when bands found new ways to create melodic pop hooks using synthesizers. Some bands rocked a little harder like LCD Soundsystem. Others went more experimental like Grizzly Bear and Animal Collective. Still, others kept the focus on infectious pop melodies, like Phoenix and MGMT. In 2007, there was no song more emblematic of this era than “Kids”.
It seemed like “Kids” was everywhere, becoming an anthem at parties and clubs with its signature synth hook. I still remember the power of that song, especially when it was delivered on giant club speakers. The single came in with an air of carefree optimism at the start of the recession. It was like an escape. Listening back to it now, I’m reminded of the power of music – its ability to change the dynamic and the mood of the room in an instant.
“Take only what you need from it.”