Synth-pop

Synth-pop on vinyl: Depeche Mode, Pet Shop Boys and the eighties

In short: Synth-pop is pop music made with synthesizers and drum machines – cool, melodic and danceable. It emerged in England at the end of the seventies and became a worldwide success in the eighties. The Vinyl Room currently has 422 synth-pop records, including many 12-inches.

What is synth-pop?

Kraftwerk from Düsseldorf and the Yellow Magic Orchestra from Tokyo paved the way. At the end of the seventies young English bands picked up affordable synthesizers: The Human League, Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark, Soft Cell, Heaven 17 – and Depeche Mode, from whom Vince Clarke later went on to found Yazoo and Erasure. The London label Mute became the home of this sound. The eighties brought the Pet Shop Boys, and in Germany the Neue Deutsche Welle with hits such as Nena’s “99 Luftballons”.

12-inches and countries of pressing

Many synth-pop singles also came out as 12-inches with longer versions and remixes. UK, German and Scandinavian editions often differ in mix and sleeve – a collecting field of its own. Catalogue number, runout matrix and label together tell you whether you have a first pressing.

From our stock

First pressings

Synth-pop on Mute

Still sealed

New in

→ Depeche Mode · Mute · Electronic on vinyl · How to spot a first pressing · Grading explained

FAQ

What is synth-pop? Pop music made mainly with synthesizers and drum machines – it grew big in the eighties.

Who paved the way for synth-pop? Above all Kraftwerk from Düsseldorf and the Yellow Magic Orchestra from Tokyo.

Why are there so many synth-pop 12-inches? Because many singles also came out as 12-inches with longer versions and remixes for the clubs.