text: synthpop synthpop ( also known as electropop and technopop ) is a genre of popular music that first became prominent in the late 1970s which features the synthesizer as the dominant musical instrument . it was prefigured in the 1960s and early 1970s by the use of synthesizers in progressive rock , electronic , art rock , disco , and particularly the " krautrock " of bands like kraftwerk . it arose as a distinct genre in japan and the united kingdom in the post - punk era as part of the new wave movement of the late - 1970s to the mid - 1980s . early synthpop pioneers included japanese group yellow magic orchestra and british bands ultravox and the human league ; the latter largely used monophonic synthesizers to produce music with a simple and austere sound . after the breakthrough of gary numan and his band tubeway army in the british singles chart in 1979 , large numbers of artists began to enjoy success with a synthesizer - based sound in the early 1980s , including soft cell , orchestral manoeuvres in the dark and depeche mode in the united kingdom , while in japan , yellow magic orchestra 's success opened the way for synthpop bands such as p - model , plastics , and . the development of inexpensive polyphonic synthesizers , the definition of midi and the use of dance beats , led to a more commercial and accessible sound for synthpop . this , its adoption by the style - conscious acts from the new romantic movement , together with the rise of mtv , led to success for large numbers of british synthpop acts , including duran duran and spandau ballet , in the united states . in the late 1980s , duos such as erasure and pet shop boys adopted a sound that was highly successful on the us dance charts , but by the end of the decade synthpop had largely been abandoned . interest began to be revived in the indietronica and electroclash movements in the late 1990s and , in the first decade of the 21st century , it enjoyed a widespread revival with commercial success for acts including la roux , lady gaga , kesha , owl city , m83 and chvrches . the genre has received criticism for alleged lack of emotion and musicianship ; prominent artists have spoken out against detractors who believed that synthesizers themselves composed and played the songs . some artists like depeche mode , who helped popularise the genre , were criticised for gender bending . synthpop helped to establish the place of the synthesizer as a major element of pop and rock music , directly influenced subsequent genres including house music and detroit techno , and has indirectly influenced many other genres and individual recordings . characteristics synthpop was defined by its primary use of synthesizers , drum machines and sequencers , sometimes using them to replace all other instruments . borthwick and moy have described the genre as diverse but " ... characterised by a broad set of values that eschewed rock playing styles , rhythms and structures " , which were replaced by " synthetic textures " and " robotic rigidity " , often defined by the limitations of the new technology , including monophonic synthesizers ( only able to play one note at a time ) . many synthpop musicians had limited musical skills , relying on the technology to produce or reproduce the music . the result was often minimalist , with grooves that were " typically woven together from simple repeated riffs often with no harmonic ' progression ' to speak of " . early synthpop has been described as " eerie , sterile , and vaguely menacing " , using droning electronics with little change in inflection . common lyrical themes of synthpop songs were isolation , urban anomie , and feelings of being emotionally cold and hollow . in its second phase in the 1980s , the introduction of dance beats and more conventional rock instrumentation made the music warmer and catchier and contained within the conventions of three - minute pop . synthesizers were increasingly used to imitate the conventional and clichéd sound of orchestras and horns . thin , treble - dominant , synthesized melodies and simple drum programmes gave way to thick , and compressed production , and a more conventional drum sound . lyrics were generally more optimistic , dealing with more traditional subject matter for pop music such as romance , escapism and aspiration . according to music writer simon reynolds , the hallmark of 1980s synthpop was its " emotional , at times operatic singers " such as marc almond , alison moyet and annie lennox . because synthesizers removed the need for large groups of musicians , these singers were often part of a duo where their partner played all the instrumentation . although synthpop in part arose from punk rock , it abandoned punk 's emphasis on authenticity and often pursued a deliberate artificiality , drawing on the critically derided forms such as disco and glam rock . it owed relatively little to the foundations of early popular music in jazz , folk music or the blues , and instead of looking to america , in its early stages , it consciously focused on european and particularly eastern european influences , which were reflected in band names like spandau ballet and songs like ultravox 's " vienna " . later synthpop saw a shift to a style more influenced by other genres , such as soul music . history precursors electronic musical synthesizers that could be used practically in a recording studio became available in the mid - 1960s , around the same time as rock music began to emerge as a distinct musical genre . the mellotron , an electro - mechanical , polyphonic sample - playback keyboard was overtaken by the moog synthesizer , created by robert moog in 1964 , which produced completely electronically generated sounds . the portable mini - moog , which allowed much easier use , particularly in live performance was widely adopted by progressive rock musicians such as richard wright of pink floyd and rick wakeman of yes . instrumental prog rock was particularly significant in continental europe , allowing bands like kraftwerk , tangerine dream , can and faust to circumvent the language barrier . their synthesizer - heavy " kraut rock " , along with the work of brian eno ( for a time the keyboard player with roxy music ) , would be a major influence on subsequent synth rock . in 1971 the british movie a clockwork orange was released with a synth soundtrack by american wendy carlos . it was the first time many in the united kingdom had heard electronic music . philip oakey of the human league and richard h. kirk of cabaret voltaire , as well as music journalist simon reynolds , have cited the soundtrack as an inspiration . electronic music made occasional moves into the mainstream , with jazz musician stan free , under the pseudonym hot butter , having a top 10 hit in the united states and united kingdom in 1972 , with a cover of the 1969 gershon kingsley song " popcorn " using a moog synthesizer , which is recognised as a forerunner to synthpop and disco . the mid - 1970s saw the rise of electronic art musicians such as jean michel jarre , vangelis , and tomita . tomita 's album electric samurai : switched on rock ( 1972 ) featured electronic renditions of contemporary rock and pop songs , while utilizing speech synthesis and analog music sequencers . in 1975 , kraftwerk played their first british show and inspired concert attendees orchestral manoeuvres in the dark to throw away their guitars and become a synth act . kraftwerk had its first hit uk record later in the year with " autobahn " , which reached number 11 in the british singles chart . the group was described by the bbc four program synth britannia as the key to synthpop 's future rise there . italy 's giorgio moroder paired up with donna summer in 1977 to release the electronic disco song " i feel love " , and its programmed beats would be a major influence on the later synthpop sound . david bowie 's berlin trilogy , comprising the albums low ( 1977 ) , " heroes " ( 1977 ) , and lodger ( 1979 ) , all featuring brian eno , would also be highly influential . origins ( 1977 – 80 ) early guitar - based punk rock that came to prominence in the period 1976 – 77 was initially hostile to the " inauthentic " sound of the synthesizer , but many new wave and post - punk bands that emerged from the movement began to adopt it as a major part of their sound . british punk and new wave clubs were open to what was then considered an " alternative " sound . the do it yourself attitude of punk broke down the progressive rock era 's norm of needing years of experience before getting up on stage to play synthesizers . the american duo suicide , who arose from the post - punk scene in new york , utilised drum machines and synthesizers in a hybrid between electronics and post - punk on their eponymous 1977 album . the cat stevens album , released in april 1977 , updated his pop rock style with the extensive use of synthesizers , giving it a more synthpop style ; " was dog a doughnut " in particular was an early techno - pop fusion track , which made early use of a music sequencer . reached no. 7 on the billboard 200 chart , while the song " ( remember the days of the ) old " was a top 40 hit . that same month , the beach boys released their album love you , performed almost entirely by bandleader brian wilson with moog and arp synthesizers , and with arrangements somewhat inspired by wendy carlos 's switched - on bach ( 1968 ) . although it was highly praised by some critics and musicians ( including patti smith and lester bangs ) , the album met with poor commercial reception . the album has been considered revolutionary in its use of synthesizers , while others described wilson 's extensive use of the moog synthesizer as a " loopy funhouse ambience " and an early example of synthpop . in july 1977 , donna summer released " i feel love " , written and produced by giorgio moroder , pioneering the hi - nrg genre , and influencing later synthpop acts such as divine and dead or alive . around this time , ultravox member warren cann purchased a roland tr - 77 drum machine , which was first featured in their october 1977 single release " hiroshima mon amour " . be - bop deluxe released drastic plastic in february 1978 , leading off with the single " electrical language " with bill nelson on guitar synthesizer and andy clark on synthesizers . japanese band yellow magic orchestra ( ) with their self - titled album ( 1978 ) and solid state survivor ( 1979 ) , developed a " fun - loving and breezy " sound , with a strong emphasis on melody . they introduced the tr - 808 rhythm machine to popular music , and the band would be a major influence on early british synthpop acts . 1978 also saw the release of uk band the human league 's début single " being boiled " , and in the us devo began moving towards a more electronic sound . at this point synthpop gained some critical attention , but made little impact on the commercial charts . british punk - influenced band tubeway army , intended their debut album to be guitar driven . in 1978 , gary numan , a member of the group , found a minimoog left behind in the studio by another band , and started experimenting with it . this led to a change in the album 's sound to electronic new wave . numan later described his work on this album as a guitarist playing keyboards , who turned " punk songs into electronic songs " . a single from the album , " are friends electric ? " , topped the uk charts in the summer of 1979 . the discovery that synthesizers could be employed in a different manner from that used in progressive rock or disco , prompted numan to go solo . on his futuristic album the pleasure principle ( 1979 ) , he played only synths , but retained a bass guitarist and a drummer for the rhythm section . a single from the album , " cars " topped the charts . giorgio moroder collaborated with the band sparks on their album no. 1 in heaven ( 1979 ) . that same year in japan , the synthpop band p - model made its debut with the album in a model room . other japanese synthpop groups emerging around the same time included the plastics and . this zeitgeist of revolution in electronic music performance and recording / production was encapsulated by then would - be record producer trevor horn of the buggles in the international hit " video killed the radio star " ( 1979 ) . 1980 also saw the release of where " video killed the radio star " came from , the buggles ' debut album the age of plastic , which some writers have labeled as the first landmark of another electropop era , as well as what for many is the defining album of devo 's career , the overtly synthpop freedom of choice . commercial success ( 1981 – 85 ) the emergence of synthpop has been described as " perhaps the single most significant event in melodic music since mersey - beat " . by the 1980s synthesizers had become much cheaper and easier to use . after the definition of midi in 1982 and the development of digital audio , the creation of purely electronic sounds and their manipulation became much simpler . synthesizers came to dominate the pop music of the early 1980s , particularly through their adoption by bands of the new romantic movement . the new romantic scene had developed in the london nightclubs billy 's and the blitz and was associated with bands such as duran duran , visage , and spandau ballet . they adopted an elaborate visual style that combined elements of glam rock , science fiction and romanticism . duran duran have been credited with incorporating dance beats into synthpop to produce a catchier and warmer sound , which provided them with a series of hit singles . they would soon be followed into the british charts by a large number of bands utilising synthesizers to create catchy three - minute pop songs . a new line - up for the human league along with a new producer and a more commercial sound led to the album dare ( 1981 ) , which produced a series of hit singles . these included " don 't you want me " , which reached number one in the uk at the end of 1981 . synthpop reached its commercial peak in the uk in the winter of 1981 – 2 , with bands such as soft cell , orchestral manoeuvres in the dark , japan , ultravox , depeche mode and even kraftwerk , enjoying top ten hits . in early 1982 synthesizers were so dominant that the musicians union attempted to limit their use . by the end of 1982 , these acts had been joined in the charts by synth - based singles from thomas dolby , blancmange , and tears for fears . the proliferation of acts led to an anti - synth backlash , with groups including spandau ballet , human league , soft cell and abc incorporating more conventional influences and instruments into their sounds . in the us , where synthpop is considered a subgenre of new wave and was described as " technopop " by the press at the time , the genre became popular due to the cable music channel mtv , which reached the media capitals of new york city and los angeles in 1982 . it made heavy use of style - conscious new romantic synthpop acts , with " i ran ( so far away ) " ( 1982 ) by a flock of seagulls generally considered the first hit by a british act to enter the billboard top ten as a result of exposure through video . the switch to a " new music " format in us radio stations was also significant in the success of british bands . the success of synthpop and other british acts would be seen as a second british invasion . synthpop was taken up across the world , with international hits for acts including men without hats and trans x from canada , telex from belgium , peter schilling , sandra , modern talking , propaganda and alphaville from germany , and yello from switzerland . in the mid - 1980s , key artists included solo performer howard jones , who s.t. erlewine has stated to have " merged the technology - intensive sound of new wave with the cheery optimism of hippies and late- ' 60s pop " , ( although with notable exceptions including the lyrics of " what is love ? " – " does anybody love anybody anyway ? " ) and nik kershaw , whose " well - craft synthpop " incorporated guitars and other more traditional pop influences that particularly appealed to a teen audience . pursuing a more dance - orientated sound were bronski beat whose album the age of consent ( 1984 ) , dealing with issues of homophobia and alienation , reached the top 20 in the uk and top 40 in the us. and thompson twins , whose popularity peaked in 1984 with the album into the gap , which reached no.1 in the uk and the us top ten and spawned several top ten singles . initially dismissed in the music press as a " teeny bop sensation " were norwegian band a - ha , whose use of guitars and real drums produced an accessible form of synthpop , which , along with a mtv friendly video , took single " take on me " ( 1985 ) to number two in the uk and number one in the us . declining popularity ( 1986 – 2000 ) synthpop continued into the late 1980s , with a format that moved closer to dance music , including the work of acts such as british duos pet shop boys , erasure and the communards . the communards ' major hits were covers of disco classics " don 't leave me this way " ( 1986 ) and " never can say goodbye " ( 1987 ) . after adding other elements to their sound , and with the help of a gay audience , several synthpop acts had success on the us dance charts . among these were american acts information society who had two top 10 singles in 1988 , anything box , and red flag . british band when in rome scored a hit with their debut single " the promise " . several german synthpop acts of the late 1980s included camouflage , cetu , and celebrate the nun . canadian duo kon kan had major success with their debut single , " i beg your pardon " . an american backlash against european synthpop has been seen as beginning in the mid - 1980s with the rise of heartland rock and roots rock . in the uk the arrival of indie rock bands , particularly the smiths , has been seen as marking the end of synth - driven new wave and the beginning of the guitar - based music that would dominate rock into the 1990s . by 1991 , in the united states synthpop was losing its commercial viability as alternative radio stations were responding to the popularity of grunge rock . exceptions that continued to pursue forms of synthpop or rock in the 1990s were savage garden , the rentals , and the moog cookbook . electronic music was also explored from the early 1990s by indietronica bands like stereolab and disco inferno , who mixed a variety of indie and synthesizer sounds . 21st century revival began to take off in the new millennium as the new digital technology developed , with acts such as broadcast from the uk , justice from france , lali puna from germany , and ratatat and the postal service from the us , mixing a variety of indie sounds with electronic music , largely produced on small independent labels . similarly , the electroclash subgenre began in new york at the end of the 1990s , combining synthpop , techno , punk and performance art . it was pioneered by i - f with their track " space invaders are smoking grass " ( 1998 ) , and pursued by artists including felix da housecat , peaches , chicks on speed , and fischerspooner . it gained international attention at the beginning of the new millennium and spread to scenes in london and berlin , but rapidly faded as a recognizable genre as acts began to experiment with a variety of forms of music . in the new millennium , renewed interest in electronic music and nostalgia for the 1980s led to the beginnings of a synthpop revival , with acts including adult and fischerspooner . in 2003 – 04 it began to move into the mainstream with ladytron , the postal service , cut copy , the bravery and the killers all producing records that incorporated vintage synthesizer sounds and styles that contrasted with the dominant genres of post - grunge and nu metal . in particular , the killers enjoyed considerable airplay and exposure and their debut album hot fuss ( 2004 ) reached the top ten of the billboard 200 . the killers , the bravery and the stills all left their synthpop sound behind after their debut albums and began to explore classic 1970s rock , but the style was picked up by a large number of performers , particularly female solo artists . following the breakthrough success of lady gaga with her single " just dance " ( 2008 ) , the british and other media proclaimed a new era of female synthpop stars , citing artists such as roisin murphy , little boots , la roux , and ladyhawke . male acts that emerged in the same period include calvin harris , empire of the sun , frankmusik , hurts , kaskade , lmfao , and owl city , whose single " fireflies " ( 2009 ) topped the billboard hot 100 chart . in 2009 , an underground subgenre with direct stylistic origins to synthpop became popular , . it sprouted new stars in the independent music scene like washed out , neon indian , and toro y moi . american singer - songwriter kesha has also been described as a synthpop artist , with her synthesized debut single " tik tok " topping the billboard hot 100 for nine weeks in 2010 . she also used the genre on her comeback single " die young " . mainstream female recording artists who have had success in the genre in the 2010s are madonna , katy perry , jessie j , christina aguilera , and beyonce . in japan , girl - group perfume , along with producer yasutaka nakata of capsule , produced technopop music combining 1980s synthpop with chiptunes and electro house from 2003 . their breakthrough came in 2008 with the album game , which led to a renewed interest in technopop within mainstream japanese pop music . other japanese female technopop artists soon followed , including aira mitsuki , , , , and sweet vacation . model - singer kyary pamyu pamyu also shared the same success as perfume 's under nakata 's production with the album pamyu pamyu revolution in 2012 , which topped electronic charts on itunes as well as the japanese albums chart . much like japan , korean pop music has also become dominated by synthpop , particularly with girl groups such as girls ' generation and wonder girls . other 2010s synthpop acts include chvrches , m83 and the criticism synthpop has received considerable criticism and even prompted hostility among musicians and in the press . it has been described as " anaemic " and " soulless " . synthpop 's early steps , and gary numan in particular , were also disparaged in the british music press of the late 1970s and early 1980s for their german influences and characterised by journalist mick farren as the " adolf hitler memorial space patrol " . in 1983 , morrissey of the smiths stated that " there was nothing more repellent than the synthesizer " . during the decade , objections were raised to the quality of compositions and the limited musicianship of artists . gary numan observed " hostility " and " a lot of ignorance " toward synthpop , with detractors erroneously believing that " machines did it " . orchestral manoeuvres in the dark frontman andy mccluskey recalled a great many people " who thought that the equipment wrote the song for you " , and asserted : " believe me , if there was a button on a synth or a drum machine that said ' hit single ' , i would have pressed it as often as anybody else would have – but there isn 't . it was all written by real human beings , and it was all played by hand " . according to simon reynolds , in some quarters synthesizers were seen as instruments for " effete poseurs " , in contrast to the phallic guitar . the association of synthpop with an alternative sexuality was reinforced by the images projected by synthpop stars , who were seen as gender bending , including phil oakey 's asymmetric hair and use of eyeliner , marc almond 's " " leather jacket , skirt wearing by figures including martin gore of depeche mode and the early " dominatrix " image of annie lennox of the eurythmics . in the us this led to british synthpop artists being characterised as " english haircut bands " or " art fag " music . although some audiences were overtly hostile to synthpop , it achieved an appeal among those alienated from the dominant heterosexuality of mainstream rock culture , particularly among gay and female audiences . influence by the mid - 1980s , synthpop had helped establish the synthesizer as a primary instrument in mainstream pop music . it also influenced the sound of many mainstream rock acts , such as bruce springsteen , zz top and van halen . it was a major influence on house music , which grew out of the post - disco dance club culture of the early 1980s as some djs attempted to make the less pop - oriented music that also incorporated influences from latin soul , dub , rap music , and jazz . musicians such as juan atkins , using names including model 500 , infinity and as part of , developed a style of electronic dance music influenced by synthpop and funk that led to the emergence of detroit techno in the mid - 1980s . the continued influence of 1980s synthpop could be seen in various incarnations of 1990s dance music including trance . hip hop artists such as mobb deep have sampled 1980s synthpop songs . popular artists such as rihanna , uk stars jay sean and taio cruz , as well as british pop star lily allen on her second album , have also embraced the genre . artists