God bless the Heffalumps And Woozles, Information Society is back!
No matter how you deconstruct the history of electronic music, Information Society is an essential part of its evolution. On March 11th they present Orders Of Magnitude, a collection of new and previously released songs that have influenced their sound and their style. From the InSoc-ified Winnie The Pooh staple "Heffalumps and Woozles" to the pop side of the Sisters Of Mercy, Orders Of Magnitude offers a glimpse into the influences behind one of the most innovative synthpop acts of our time.
From their first self-released album in 1983 to their latest release, InSoc have grown from a young electronic band, mutating the sum total of their influences, to a veteran collective influencing a new generation of electronic musicians. One important thing remains constant: The music is distinctly Information Society, monster electro bass and beats topped with lush, poppy vocal hooks.
Founded by producer/songwriter Paul Robb and vocalist/songwriter Kurt Larson, the group quickly drafted bassist James Cassidy and went on to storm the club charts in the mid '80s with their Freestyle classic "Running." Inspired by the worldwide response to the single, the group moved to New York to record their major label debut, Information Society, for Tommy Boy/Reprise. Initial buzz was intense, and proved to be accurate; by the time the group got to its first in-store appearance, two days after the record's release, the album was sold out.
After a whirlwind series of live dates, the group went on to release the albums Hack and Peace And Love, Inc. and numerous hits, notably the #1 smash "What's on Your Mind (Pure Energy)," as well as "Walking Away," "Think," "Repetition," and "Peace and Love, Inc." National and international tours followed; outside the United States the group is particularly popular in South America, Spain, and Japan.
Departing Tommy Boy/Reprise Records in the mid-'90s, the group returned to its electro-industrial roots on several independent releases. Kurt Larson took the artistic helm of the group in 1997, and released Don't Be Afraid, which explored the darker recesses of the band's musical imagination. In the early 2000s, re-releases of both "Running" and "What's on Your Mind" reached #1 on the Billboard Dance/Club chart. This renewed interest in the band served as a catalyst for a new round of songwriting, and an EP of new material, entitled Oscillator was released in 2005, followed by the full-length album Synthesizer in 2007.
Summer 2013 found the three original members - Kurt, Paul and James - reunited to discuss working on a new album and the result, _hello world, the first new album of new material from the original lineup in over 20 years, was the offspring. The success of _hello world inspired another round of recording, this time each member explored their influences and inspirations and pooled their ideas to form the nucleus of a "covers album".
Founded by producer/songwriter Paul Robb and vocalist/songwriter Kurt Larson, the group quickly drafted bassist James Cassidy and went on to storm the club charts in the mid '80s with their Freestyle classic "Running." Inspired by the worldwide response to the single, the group moved to New York to record their major label debut, Information Society, for Tommy Boy/Reprise. Initial buzz was intense, and proved to be accurate; by the time the group got to its first in-store appearance, two days after the record's release, the album was sold out.
After a whirlwind series of live dates, the group went on to release the albums Hack and Peace And Love, Inc. and numerous hits, notably the #1 smash "What's on Your Mind (Pure Energy)," as well as "Walking Away," "Think," "Repetition," and "Peace and Love, Inc." National and international tours followed; outside the United States the group is particularly popular in South America, Spain, and Japan.
Departing Tommy Boy/Reprise Records in the mid-'90s, the group returned to its electro-industrial roots on several independent releases. Kurt Larson took the artistic helm of the group in 1997, and released Don't Be Afraid, which explored the darker recesses of the band's musical imagination. In the early 2000s, re-releases of both "Running" and "What's on Your Mind" reached #1 on the Billboard Dance/Club chart. This renewed interest in the band served as a catalyst for a new round of songwriting, and an EP of new material, entitled Oscillator was released in 2005, followed by the full-length album Synthesizer in 2007.
Summer 2013 found the three original members - Kurt, Paul and James - reunited to discuss working on a new album and the result, _hello world, the first new album of new material from the original lineup in over 20 years, was the offspring. The success of _hello world inspired another round of recording, this time each member explored their influences and inspirations and pooled their ideas to form the nucleus of a "covers album".
Orders Of Magnitude is the output and the varied tracklist puts an easily identifiable InSoc spin on synthpop classics like Heaven 17's "(We Don't Need This) Fascist Groove Thang" and The Human League's "Don't You Want Me". They delve into the roots of "alternative" with their take on Fad Gadget's "State Of The Nation" and Snakefinger's "Man In The Dark Sedan" and go WAY back to their youth with covers of the Sesame Street track "Capital I" and the Winnie The Pooh jam "Heffalumps and Woozles". Orders Of Magnitude is the band at their best; it's a tip of the hat to their past and a nod to their future.
Website: http://informationsociety.us/
Video: https://youtu.be/SGbZVpgabWA
Amazon: http://amzn.com/B019D3J1MC
