Pet Shop Boys
photo: the sound stage · cc by 3.0 ↗Pet Shop Boys — Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe — turned arch, deadpan lyricism and gleaming synth-pop production into one of British pop's most consistent hitmaking partnerships, breaking through with 1985's 'West End Girls.' Their run through Actually and Introspective paired disco and Hi-NRG productions with wry, class-conscious storytelling rare in mainstream pop. Their fusion of intelligence and dancefloor bombast has echoed through synth-pop revivalists for decades.
Kraftwerk's deadpan, machine-pulse electronic pop is a foundational reference point for the synth-pop scene Pet Shop Boys emerged from.
listen forHear the motorik, robotic pulse of Kraftwerk's 'The Robots' inside the driving, sequenced beat of Pet Shop Boys' 'It's a Sin.'
Soft Cell's noir synth-pop melodrama was part of the same early-'80s British synth scene that shaped Pet Shop Boys' sensibility.
listen forCompare the brooding synth theatrics of Soft Cell's 'Tainted Love' to the melancholy sweep of Pet Shop Boys' 'Rent.'
The Human League's crisp, chart-friendly synth-pop was part of the same early-'80s scene that shaped Pet Shop Boys' pop instincts.
listen forSet the icy hooks of Human League's 'Don't You Want Me' against the equally crisp synth-pop of Pet Shop Boys' 'Opportunities (Let's Make Lots of Money).'