Electronic Sound Magazine Issue 90 Vorige editie

Vice Versa were minor members of the so-called “synth brigade” when they appeared at the Futurama Festival in Leeds in September 1980. They were the fourth band to play on the Sunday, the second day of the weekend event, with around 20 more following afterwards. Perhaps the best way to demonstrate just how low down on the bill they were, the fourth band to play the previous day were The Boko Bobos. You get what we’re saying here, right?

A few months on, Vice Versa gave their keyboard player Martin Fry a microphone and changed their name to ABC. A few more months on, they’d written a lot of new songs, signed to Phonogram Records, taken some advice from Trevor Horn and, believe it or not, chosen to ignore some other advice from David Bowie. When they released their debut album in June 1982, it went straight into the UK charts at Number One and stayed in the Top 100 for an entire year. Now that’s a spectacularly steep ascent.

It’s 40 years since ‘The Lexicon Of Love’, the album that took ABC from underground wannabes to global superstars, and we’re delighted to have Martin Fry – resplendent in his iconic gold lamé suit – on the cover of this month’s Electronic Sound. An unforgettable mix of intoxicating pop tunes, slick and funky rhythms, head-spinning strings and ultra-smart lyrics, every moment of ‘Lexicon’ still sounds brilliant to this day. Martin’s memories of the early 80s, which he describes as “a whirlwind”, certainly make for fascinating reading and we’re confident that you’re going to really enjoy our chat with him.