Listening to the Music the Machines Make: Inventing Electronic Pop 1978-1983

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Listening to the Music the Machines Make is the revolutionary story of electronic pop from 1978 to 1983, a true golden age of British music. This definitive account explores how krautrock, disco, glam rock and punk inspired a new generation to rip up the rulebook and venture toward a new frontier of electronic music – one that laid the foundations for Hip-Hop, house, techno and beyond.

Including an extensive collection of archive images throughout, Richard Evans’s kaleidoscopic narrative draws on years of research, a plethora of archive press materials and the input of key figures, including Vince Clarke (Depeche Mode, Yazoo, Erasure), Martyn Ware (The Human League, B.E.F., Heaven 17) and Daniel Miller (The Normal, Mute Records).

From the gritty and experimental to the camp and theatrical, this book charts the careers and impact of electronic pop’s earliest innovators and luminaries, from Devo, The Normal, Telex and Cabaret Voltaire to Soft Cell, Gary Numan, OMD, Duran Duran, Depeche Mode.

Review

'Evans' meticulous research is synthesised into a lively and informative narrative that finally grants the genre the respect that it deserves' --Classic Pop 5*

Meticulously researched … this book is essential. --Spin

'A comprehensive and highly readable overview of a once-future' --Mojo, 4*

About the Author

Richard Evans has worked in the music industry for over thirty years in a variety of roles, including positions at London Records, Factory Records and MTV Europe.

In 1998 he set up marketing consultancy The Fan Base and has been connecting musical artists with their audiences ever since. He is the founder of the This Is Not Retro website and record label and has worked for Andy Bell, Vince Clarke and Erasure since 2009.

Richard is based in Dorset where he lives in perpetual fear of being asked what his favourite record is.

Review:

4.2 out of 5

84.62% of customers are satisfied

5.0 out of 5 stars An outstanding book - rigorously researched, beautifully written. Marvelous!

P. · 7 December 2022

This book will no doubt be an indispensable reference for any music lover; it contains many webs of meaning that emerge from the curiously understudied history of electro-pop. Evans provides a sweeping study of the genre, filling in many gaps in journalism and popular music scholarship about this particular style of music in a way that cuts across many different genres, artists, bands, albums and sound worlds. Despite the rigour and painstaking attention to detail, this book is approachable in tone, and is clearly borne out of the author's deep love for, and lifelong engagement with the vibrant and wonderful musical subjects he writes about. Vince Clarke's input proves fascinating, of course, and is the icing on the cake of a VERY good book that will aid musicologists, fans, and lovers of electronic music (and its incredibly vast and varied history) for years and years to come.

5.0 out of 5 stars Mine all mine....

G. · 18 July 2024

I played in a lot of these bands with my Consertmate MG-1 Synthesizer (Moog) So, obviously I would recommend this. Great read...

4.0 out of 5 stars Electronic music book

R.D.S. · 8 May 2023

Should be an interesting read

5.0 out of 5 stars Well researched and highly readable

D.I.F. · 31 January 2023

Richard Evans' book is a well-written and well-researched book on electronic music 1978-1983. Its great strength is that the author has returned again and again to the contemporary music papers to try and understand how the music was received at the time. This is also the book's weakness in that it does not allow a qualitative judgement and perspective on the music to emerge from studying its longer-term reception. Nevertheless, what a great achievement.As someone who devoured Sounds, NME, and Melody Maker at the time I was surprised to see in retrospect how mean-spirited and needlessly petty many of the reviewers on these papers were when dealing with electronic groups. Of course there were exceptions, and Paul Morley and Jon Savage in particular come across now, as I found then, as both eager and erudite, and usually generous in their praise or constructive in their criticism. I did not read Record Mirror at the time, so I now discover from the book that I would have found the writing of Sunie there equally engaging and stimulating had I been aware of it.The study concentrates on the big names in electronic music at the time which sadly allows more shadowy figures like Robert Rental, Thomas Leer, and Fad Gadget to slip out of the picture prematurely, though all are at least mentioned however. Soft Cell's 'Mutant Moments' EP hopefully will be considered in any future edition and I hope space might be found for the likes of Nigel Simpkins ('X.ENC.'), the Tea Set '(Parry Thomas'), and Orior (Elevation'), all of whom produced one-off gems in this era.

3.0 out of 5 stars The text is too small and faint.

T.G. · 6 November 2024

I wanted to get this book in a physical form, instead of on Kindle, but unfortunately the text is too small and faint for me to read it. I am gutted. I really wish there was a free download code to get a Kindle version when you buy a physical copy, but there isn't. If I'd have known about this problem, I'd have bought the Kindle version instead.

5.0 out of 5 stars Revisiting my 80's UK electronic youth

R. · 11 October 2024

It is a substantial read, but recaptures the 80's of my post punk youth .. I felt 18 again for a few hours 😁

5.0 out of 5 stars Well Written & Incredibly Detailed

I.L.E. · 8 March 2023

There aren't many books about this genre of music available, but even if there was loads then it would be difficult to better this book. A very readable, highly-researched account of a golden age of electronic pop which I thoroughly enjoyed.

4.0 out of 5 stars Norman Wisdom, Johnny, Joey, Dee Dee, good times...

i. · 25 August 2023

Although I enjoyed this I couldn't help thinking the subtitle could have been Reading the Words That Machines Make. So much of the text feels like it was written by an AI programme that had been fed the contents of the music press from the period in question with little of no colour added by the author. The best of these type of books also provide a degree of social and political history, but Evans doesn't open those doors, or any other perspective on what other kind on music was popular at the time. Its still fascinating especially if , like me, can remember actually reading some of the reviews and hearing the music for the first time. Mind you, most of the reviews now read as such drivel, condescending and pretentious, for the critics re-reading them now , it must be like reading your teenage diaries or undergraduate essays.

received used copy

J.C.S. · 6 May 2024

Dust cover was scratched, dusty, a had a tear, and stains, despite it coming sealed in plastic. There was nothing in the listing that suggested this was going to be a used copy. The book itself is great, in terms of writing, but disappointed Bolo is selling used copies of books as new.

Excellent detailed description of the rise of popular British electronic scene

B. · 14 March 2023

Just an excellent read. So enjoyable! I'm cross reading Brian Eno's Diary and just having the best time. Using many sources the author details a month by month evolution of the popular British electronic Music scene starting in 1978.

Milestone!

H.G. · 3 September 2024

absolut milestone in music history books!

Well-Researched!

A.P. · 10 September 2024

I love reading books about more recent music history, and I think I've been spoiled lately with some very well-written band bios and label histories."Listening to the Music Machines Make" is unique in its comprehensive narrative about the origins of electronic music and some of the adjacent genres. I haven't finished it yet (I'm about halfway through), but it seems that each chapter introduces a handful of new (relative to the book, not contemporary) artists into the story.The book is very well researched, Vince Clarke wrote the intro, there's something about every originating artist, venues, labels, and some shows are referenced - the whole thing belongs on the shelf of any serious student of the best music ever created.What negatives do I have about it? Only two stand out. First, as I mentioned at the beginning, I've been spoiled by some great books lately. By comparison (and VERY likely because a couple of those others were so beautifully written that my expectations shifted), this book is a little dry. It's packed full of facts and follows the timeline; definitely gives insight and context ... it's just a little more like most nonfiction I read, so I may enjoy it but someone looking for a novel to read on holiday might not appreciate it as well.Secondly (and keep in mind I haven't finished reading it yet), the book seems to only cover a few years at the beginning of the movement (1978-1983). These are certainly significant years, and it does appear the author intends to continue the series, but for right now that's all we get.I'm impatient. I want more right now.

gesammeltes Journalistengeschwätz

S.S. · 5 October 2024

der Autor bespricht weder die verschiedenen Stile innnerhalb der elektronischen Musik, noch zeigt er deren Entwicklungsstränge aufder Autor beschränkt sich auf das, was in den großen englischen Musikmagazinen seinerzeit geschrieben wurdeder Autor stellt Zitate aus den damaligen Kritiken neutral gegenüber und garniert diese mit den zeitgenössischen Aussagen der Musiker, von denen wir nicht wissen, wie authentisch sie von den Schmierblättern wiedergegeben wurden

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Listening to the Music the Machines Make: Inventing Electronic Pop 1978-1983

Name: Listening to the Music the Machines Make: Inventing Electronic Pop 1978-1983
Brand: Omnibus Press
SKU: K1915841453
Price: 9.24 BHD
Availability: InStock
Rating: 4.5 (13 reviews)

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