DOES Anybody Know WHAT THE HELL Happened to This 80s Band?--Does Anybody Care? | Professor of Rock
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 4 ต.ค. 2024
- Coming up. It’s a subject we’ve talked about quite a few times on here. How does an artist or band blast onto the scene and hold the world hostage for several years and then disappear as quickly as they came? Well, in 1988 the underground band Information Society took over radio with zero gimmicks and zero support from their label. It was all about their music. Their first song What's On Your Mind (Pure Energy) blew up the charts and had everyone singing along, as did their second Walking Away… Then they had another big hit and POOF, they went up in smoke and disappeared… From overnight success to commercial extinction, what led to the demise of Information Society? Find out next on Professor of Rock.
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It’s time for another edition of our series Bottled Lightning where we celebrate a song or album that was king for a day. Here honor artists and bands and that rocketed up the charts… but for reasons unknown weren’t able to sustain that success. Called by some ‘one hit wonders’, we celebrate them instead as lightning in a bottle. On previous episodes we have covered Come On Eileen by Dexy’s Midnight Runners, 8675309 Jenny by Tommy Tutone, and She Drives Me Crazy by Fine Young Cannibals.
But today we taking a deep dive in Information Society, a band who barely missed the top of the charts with their hit song ‘What's On Your Mind (Pure Energy)’. And after that they actually had another top 10 hit with their next single ‘Walking Away’. For a short while these guys were actually a global sensation and seemed to have a lot of promise. And yet after their debut album, they all but vanished. We’re going to try and figure out why and where they went.
Information Society was formed in 1982, in Minneapolis, Minnesota by friends Paul Robb and Kurt Harland. During their early years, the band would go through a rotating cast of characters as they tried to nail down a stable lineup. In 1983, Paul and Kurt led the way in putting together ‘The InSoc EP’, a 5-song set along with Pamela Brustman and Kristin Leader on keyboards. Afterward, the latter two would part ways with the band and be replaced by James (aka Jim) Cassidy who played bass. In 1985, Information Society released a second EP, ‘Creatures Of Influence’. But that record featured a short-lived appearance by Murat Konar on vocals while Kurt took some time off from the band. ‘Creatures of Influence’ contained the underground hit ‘Running’, which gained popularity with Latin audiences in New York and Miami.
When ‘Running’ started picking up speed in 1986, it grabbed the attention of producer Joey Gardner, who then pitched it to Tommy Boy Records. Now with Kurt back in Information Society and Murat moving on, Gardner remixed the track. The single started getting airplay, so Tommy Boy signed the band, with the newly recruited Amanda Kramer on...
Poll: What is your pick for the COOLEST SYNTH DRIVEN SONG of the 80s?
INXS - Don't Change
New Order "Blue Monday"
Take on Me A-ha
subdivisions -rush ...
“Just Can’t Get Enough” Depeche Mode
Leonard Nimoy did a Q&A many years ago and someone asked him if he had heard "What's On Your Mind?" He leaned close to the microphone and said, "PURE ENERGY". The crowd went nuts!!
LOVE IT!
What a cool story!!!
WOW! I had no idea. Very cool! Thank you.
That’s pretty awesome!
That’s a cool story! Nice❤
Shocking that Information Society aren't British.
Why is it shocking?
@@bicyclist2 i honestly thought they were British, like that band that sings "Unbelievable".
I thought that they were British too!
@@bicyclist2he kind of sings with a British accent
A Dutch Radio show described them as the American Pet Shop Boys.
I hope karma has caught up with the thief that was brazen and heartless enough to steal from a child. What a total douche nozzle. You're dad was cool enough to help you out when you had just learned a harsh lesson about trusting strangers. I'm glad it worked out in the end. And it doesn't seem like that unfortunate event has jaded you too much.
I always enjoy the day a bit more after a helping of The Professor's infinite knowledge. 👍
Special place in hell for people like that.
Information Society is a very under appreciated synth-pop band from the 80s. The follow up album, Hack, was great as was their next release Peace and Love Incorporated. They did break up for a while, but they had a resurgence in the mid 2000s with Synthesizer and more recently with Orders of Magnitude. Still putting out music with the recent release of Odd Fellows. Still love listening to this band till this day.
peace and love was like their ultra. It was good, but was a relative disappointment that felt behind the times rather than being ahead of the times like their previous 2 albums. It was clearly on the downslope as there was a lot of crap on that album.
The lead singer's voice is very reminiscent of Phil Oakey's from Human League...
To be honest, that's who I thought did the song. 😂
Me as well!@@patrickprosser8227
Good call Flave!
@@patrickprosser8227 Right on!
I always thought he sounded like Tom Bailey of The Thompson Twins.
I knew it was Information Society before I clicked, I know from the pictures of the band members. I'm a huge Information Society fan. I had this self titled album, and "Hack", on cassette tape, and then a little later I bought, "Peace and Love Inc" on CD. I'm so glad to hear you talk about this band. They're so underrated. I'm very surprised and delighted to see a reference to New Retro Wave. The song is by "The Midnight". Thank you.
I always assumed they were British. Not from Minnesota.
Same here!
They are exactly what Midwest kids trying to be British sound like 😂
Me too.
Minnesota of all places. You would think they would come from at least NYC or LA.
@@xxlilly_playsxxkiz9980 - new york people suck
Loved these guys and their HACK! album is still one of my favorite albums. They were so far ahead of their time!
Agreed. HACK is my favorite album by InfoSoc. I consider it a concept album of computer samples for the Information Age. Which is why I think critics didn't like it much... they were behind the times.
INSOC was one of those albums that I dreamed about before I could own it. The local grocery store in my small town had a copy of the cassette album in the plastic antitheft container, and I looked for it every time we walked in to buy groceries. At some point I had enough money to buy it, and it was still there. I was so excited and I listened to it on repeat for months and years to come until it was stolen out of my car with the rest of my favorite albums. It was years later when I found out that my best friend had been eyeing the same tape back in the day, and was heartbroken when it was gone. We weren’t friends at the time, but it was one of many albums that we were both obsessed with before we knew each other. The 80s were really a special time for music junkies.
I can't tell you how many of my friends used this song on their answering machines back in '88 and '89! It was too funny at the time, but I think back now and can't help but smile remembering those same people. Thanks for the trip down memory lane!
Information Society's song "Repetition" is absolutely EPIC and should have been a world wide #1. I can't hear that song with stopping my tracks.
I danced with my high school crush to "Repetition." haha. Good memories.
@@devenscience8894 What a special memory!
Still have the vinyl of that song and play it from time to time. It’s my favorite song of theirs. So underrated.
Wow
Growing up on 70s music I honestly despised this stuff when it first came out but learned to love it!
Very cool!
Me too! Now I love 80’s music. Oddly enough I think there would never have been The Dead’s Shakedown Street or The Stone’s Some Girls without the trends of the 80’s.
same, kept it in the closet tho,
I loved this group back in their days. I graduated high school in 1989 and he had a grad night trip to Disneyland Southern California. I by chance came across a small stage setup and saw the Information Society perform. I had no idea they were performing that night, and I was completely starstruck. I was so excited to see them. Thanks for the show
I missed it by a year!
Our trip was in ‘88…
@@guslevy3506 also watch performances from Samantha Fox, New kids on the block, and I think two others. Did you see any performances in '88?
Did you graduate in a school in Orange County?
Saw them at our '89 Grad Nite in Disney World. They were terrific.
I was there for Grad Night in 1989, too!! That is so cool!
They were great live!
Information society was a good group in the summer of 1988. There was a lot of great lightning in a bottle songs in the summer of 1988.
Agreed. Thanks Wayne!
I met InSoc about 10 years ago when they were doing a show for _Hello World. I was a big fan of the album. Kurt and I hit it off talking about music and he took my email address and ended up becoming pen pals for a few years. They're all good, down to earth guys. Their Orders of Magnitude covers album is really good too.
Hearing Mr Spock on this was a treat! The band had a great danceable vibe! Shame there wasn't more!
I saw the Psychedelic Furs a few months back, and I kept wondering who that keyboardist was as she looked so familiar!
I was a dancer/instructor & choreographer back then, and had a great piece done to What's on Your Mind. Loved several of their tunes.
I still jam to their hits. They never get old! One of my favs, Repetition.
Love your intros where I am trying to figure out who you are talking about!
Very cool! DId you get todays?
I don’t really have a problem with it. You can always read the video description if you can’t wait. That’s why people that complain about waiting to find out who it is really doesn’t make sense.
Information society was one of my favorite bands in the late 80s. They had a great sound and great bass.
@@ProfessorofRock No I didnt !! My knoledge of 80s sync music isnt near as strong as yours but love hearing your perspective.!!!
@@ProfessorofRockI enjoy it too but a lot of the time the top comment gives the game away and spoils the fun!
I really liked "What's On Your Mind (Pure Energy)", but many of the remaining songs on that first record exposed how green they were. It is a pity they couldn't keep it going.
Edit: The video couldn't be more 1988 if it tried.
Right?
@@eggsngritstn Tomorrow and Repetition, Walking Away were quite good. The ABBA cover was pretty good too
@@eggsngritstn Side one of that album was the one I listen to the most. It kind of goes down after first song on the second side
It’s so sad.
Adam, I love your channel! You ALWAYS open my eyes to unknown facts about many, many bands, most of which I listened to often. I don't know where you get your information from, but keep it up!! Super job!
Thanks for watching!
The singer sounded like Simon LeBon. I thought it was a new Duran song back then! The techno-pop sound I love so much, with the flickering machine rhythms, the orchestra stabs, and the elegant synths had a transient run in the eighties. InfoSoc emerged at the sunset of its day. Nirvana and the Seattle sound was the new dawn in '89. Bands such as Depeche Mode and the Pet Shop Boys continued to sell big, but those bands were established. They'd been selling platinum for years. It was tough for me to see my synth pop derided and hushed in favor of long-haired junkies from the PNW. But that's pop music. I ended up listening to the Pogues and Brian Eno...and Prokofiev! Anyway, my theory is InfoSoc would have had a longer run if they got signed five years earlier. By the end of the decade, the labels were pushing grunge, not techno-pop. Listen to Heaven 17's "Teddy Bear, Cupid, and Psycho." They were trying to sell Italo Disco in 1989! Every dog has his day.
Considering how Duran Duran reinvented themselves in the 80s, I can see that.
Yep, Big Thing era sounding
I'll join the chorus on that. Back in summer of '88, the new Duran album was highly anticipated (at least amongst Durannies). While on vacation I heard What's On Your Mind and thought "this must be the new Duran". When I got back to achool in August I was chided by my much-better-experienced Durannie ex-girlfriend for thinking it was Simon's voice. Decades later my wife heard it and asked me if it was Duran.
@ProfessorofRock - thanks for setting the record straight! I had always heard that the band was buddies with Adam Nimoy and asked him to get his dads OK, so that was sort of right. I met Adam several years ago at a premier for his movie about his dad, and I meant to ask him but forgot! I love the band and their music.
This band came from my High School! My friend at the time discovered that fact, and started listening to them, and of course got me into them. Hack, and P&LI were the soundtracks to a lot of my HS antics. Seriously underrated band.
InSoc is HUGE here in Brazil. Every year they tour here. In December 2024 they are going to come back!
I owned this tape as well, I played it so much I wore it out (as you know tapes weren't meant for longevity).
Years later I bought the CD - I never get tired of this album. These guys were incredible!
Information society reminded me of Human League with a techno twist.
I can hear that!
My high school boyfriend and I loved this band ALL the time!
I even saw them at Grad Night at Disneyland. They were great live and I remember thinking that is was special to see them perform live and, it seems, I was right.
Great story, as always, Adam. Thank you!
I agree with you on them sounding like the Thompson Twins, which I loved too!
Love the personal stories, man. Really puts the frosting on the cake. I hope people continue to have that personal relationship with the music that they like. It’s such an important, visceral part of the experience
I remember meeting this band here in Las Vegas with a representative of Tommy Boy records.I use to get all kinds of 12inch singles. Before they were released Nation wide. I met the four band members. I know that I played this song before any else in Nevada. Like dozens of other songs that were big hits.
I had to think about these guys for a minute, and then it all came back to me. They were great. Thanks for the memory, professor.
I bought this CD when it first came out during my senior year of high school. I played it a lot! It had something called CD+G which supposedly would play graphics on a TV if you had the right equipment. Unfortunately I never found the right equipment.
The Sega CD could display the graphics on CD+G CDs and my main point of reference for Information Society is that the Sega CD came with a CD+G sampler disk, Rock Paintings, that included two Information Society tracks, "What's On Your Mind (Pure Energy)" and "Walking Away".
@@SteveBrandon Absolutely! I remember playing the album on the Sega CD player. Very ahead of it's time!
I was in middle school when this song came out. Before getting out of bed in the morning, I’d listen to the my favorite radio station at the time from 5:30 to 7, and the DJ’s often played What’s On Your Mind.
Its funny to recall that even by the late 90s that the 80s were truly a unique sound, not a progression but a transition in state from the 70s. To now be 40 years downrange its even better. That's what's on my mind.
I think Professor has told the $50 story before, still left me smh. That kid got the money, and 30(?) years later we're getting another PoR story.
I still listen to there music to this day! In 1988 I was 28 year old and I love to dance at the club. When I listen to this music, It make me feel young again.
Actually ,Running from 1985 was their best song, but they had a few good ones. The remake of Lay all your love on me was good too.
Cool!
My parents did the same thing for me… I wouldn’t become obsessed with music till I was eleven after my parents bought me a Cassette stereo and a greatest hit compilation of 70s rock,Alice Coopers greatest hits and his copy of The Cars greatest hits. I figured out that if I didn’t eat at school, I could save my lunch money up and buy music. Took me a bit but cassettes at our local store were like $8.00. CDs were the rage as we most know by the early 90s so cassettes were always cheaper. Plus I bought so many bargain bin tapes. Most often I ended up with bad albums lol. I was young and bought albums based on art work. Well anyway I had just been introduced to the movie Rad by my cousin. I was instantly hooked on that movie but more so on a song in that movie. Real Life’s Send Me An Angel…. I had to have that soundtrack and remember I saw the cassette in the bargain bin. Which was 5.99 and I knew that Friday we would go into town to get groceries, rent vhs movies and that sort. My plan was to buy it then. So I saved my money and when we went to the store I ran to the entertainment section and to the bargain bin.. took me a good minute but I found it and when I went to checkout… my money was gone… I checked my pockets like a hundred times.. I realized I had lost my money somewhere from the car to the music section.i backtracked and yet nothing. I was so down but I just went and found my parents. I didn’t say anything but they could tell. They knew I was going to buy that album. So they asked me where it was? I told them I couldn’t buy it due to losing my money that they knew I had. Without missing a beat, my dad said go get it. So I excitingly ran back to bargain bin and met them at the front to check out. My parents knew how important music was to me. It was like a best friend. Although my Dad did say he would need my help with painting a fence and few other chores. I was more than happy to do so all the while jamming to that album.
I love Information Society! Also I love your Depeche Mode shirt!
My friend got a nice, high-end CD boombox for Christmas and money to get some CDs. He picked up a rap CD and Information Society. The boombox speakers were crap for the rap CD but were absolutely perfect for IS. We listened to the IS CD every day for months. I continued to keep up with them (loved Hack and P&L) until they split. When they reunited, I started back up as well. I even picked up a vinyl version of their self-titled album... what irony. Every time I hear Pure Energy, it takes me back to those months, those friends, and that boombox.
I'd've never guessed that was Kirk and Scotty sampled on Walking Away. 🤔
Being a diehard Trekkie I’ve always loved the sampling in their music. And I love that he referred to them as “just a bunch of dorks”. Great video Professor.
I remember the Information Society and watching the video on
MTV a few times then they vanished. thank you for another awesome
look at classic rock music.🎶🎤🎸🎸🎹🥁🎶
Thanks Roger!
Your Dad was a legend! I'm so glad he understood the importance in the moment. Pure Energy!!
Today on Spotify, I heard this song. Then GO WEST's, King of Wishful Thinking came on. I had completely forgotten about Go West. That song, Call Me and We Close Our Eyes. Those were good songs. I liked them.
God bless your dad. That little story about him made the whole video worth watching.
Golly. I am thoroughly a Gen X-er and I have never heard of Information Society, nor are any of these songs familiar. I didn't think this was possible!😄
Really? Well go listen!
That's one of the best things about this channel--discovering "new" music!
Me neither, seems they never did anything on the Dutch charts
Fascinating, captain. They were pure energy.
Me neither! I’m Canadian - maybe they weren’t big here. Hearing the song What’s On Your Mind for the first time today makes me think of Duran Duran’s Is There Something I Should Know.
Amanda Kramer was Society’s keyboardist on their debut album, but left sometime afterward.
She went on to sing tracks for The Golden Palominos 1989 and 1991 recordings.
Drop what you’re doing right now and cue up Angel of Death (from A Dead Horse) and When the Kingdom Calls (from Drunk with Passion.)
Prepare to be blown away: she had a head-turning voice then. Throaty, breathy, mesmerizing.
She now plays keyboards for The Psychedelic Furs
I’ll be honest: I don’t remember this band, really. I’m older Gen X (born in 1967), and my tastes were stuck in the 70’s and early 80’s, so I wasn’t listening to anything much newer for quite some time. I just listened to “What’s on Your Mind”, and it reminded me of “Obsession” by Animotion.
The theme to Saturday Night's Main Event
Their album Hack, is one of my favorite CDs ever! One piece of work that is divided over many chapters.
@4:59 I don’t know if this has been mentioned in the comments yet, but my understanding is that the sample was taken from Star Trek: The Motion Picture Leonard Nimoy’s Spock, describing the aggressive extraterrestrial’s core as “pure energy”.
Another awesome background story of music we love and life tale from the Professor!!
Oh yeah, remember watching shows like SpaceGhost and Fantastic Four cartoons
CooL!
@@ProfessorofRock They still need to get a Fantastic Four movie right lol
Thank you for reminding me of "Running" a staple of when I used to spin vinyl at parties, weddings, and other gatherings!
Rock on!
I always thought that Kurt Harland sounded somewhat like Philip Oakey.
That's like the 5th time I've seen this!
I never thought that; I thought both their biggest hits sounded like the Thompson Twins, especially with Tom Bailey on vocals.
@@bobdavis4848I was going to comment the exact same thing
@@dkimuk Thanks; I like all three groups, but I am more familiar with Thompson Twins and saw them in concert, unlike the also great Human League.
So did I.
Loved this band. Had a friend who was such a fan we blindfolded him and drove him all the way to Magic Mountain in California to watch them in concert. It was a tiny little tent they played in. Couldn't have been more than a couple hundred people. It was Awesome!
I'm a died hard Old School, who has mixed emotions about Sampling technology. I think the technology is great for special effects. HOWEVER... if a band Samples anything from another band, WITHOUT getting permission, they should be sued, no exceptions or excuses. This sounds harsh, I know but I don't care! If you're in the music industry, you MUST have a understanding of Copyright laws. If you don't, then shame on you, suffer the consequences! How do you like me now?🤔
Thanks William!
@@williambenner701 agree 👍
Same here!
@@williambenner701 You Tube pulled a bunch of videos due to copyright and Nirvana one of them.
imo you are correct,, in theory ,,,problem is that almost every chord progression possible has been used,, every sound has been done before, most of the Carters songs were sung in the hills of Appalachia for years before A.P. , Sara & Maybelle recorded them in the late 20's,, John Wllliamson of the Stooges borrowed from the bunny hop when creating the riff for ,''SEARCH & DESTROY,'' it would be impossible to ,'' fairly'', regulate copyright laws as strictly as you would like to..
Their tracks were very popular on SoCal radio in 1988…and I saw them tour this record at an outdoor show in San Diego in the Summer of 88 🖤
Morning Professor just wanted to thank you for the link on Weird Al video. Last weekend found out Al touring near me and got tickets to see him next summer. Thank you again!
Rock on! I plan to see him as well!
@@ProfessorofRock Cool we will have to compare. I didn't have the money to do the meet and greet though but close to the stage.
I was 18 when this song came out, starting out in life, it was on every mix tape I made that year!! Edited to say: What a great story about your dad!! Our parents put up with our music, MTV and all our records blaring 24/7, we wore them down and even today they have great memories of the 80's! No time like it!!
I'd love to go browntown with Julie 😅😅
@@Sweet--Richard.4981 well if she lets you in go for it
Downtown with Julie Brown
Was lucky enough to hear them at Disneyland Grad Nite in 1989.
A knife and a fork, a bottle with a cork. That's the way to spell New York.
I definitely remember them, and still listen from time to time
Who would've thought sampling Star Trek would lead to a smash hit??
No kidding!
Star Trek will do that to you.
CC Catch did... ;) Good Guys Only Win in Movies
Spock is iconic, so…
Well there is that one tune by Punjabi MC that everybody knows - that features a sample from the Knight Rider theme 😂
Great episode! Love Info Society!!!
BTW, if you haven't already done a show about Badfinger, I'd love to hear your take on them and the explanation as to what happened to them. I had their debut album and really enjoyed their music and vibe, but they seemed to disappear as quickly as they arrived. Can you tell us why?
Will do!
It was more than one album, but it was a sad story of double loss of big talent, a few hits, bad luck and injustice; "Day After Day" etc.. Of course POR mentioned them in the Nilsson "Without You" episode, but a new whole show on Badfinger would be great.
Man, this guys were among many others that made the 80's worth living. You forgot to mention their beautiful ballad "Repetition"
Greetings audiophiles, melomaniacs, and music junkies!
Hey, Code!
Salutations
@@Whisper_292 hey Whisper.
Hello, hello again
Alright! I hope that everyone enjoyed today's episode!
Thanks professor! The story about your dad was very touching and heartfelt. Information Society ruled!!! Thank you for the great nostalgia that actually means so much to us 80's teenagers. Peace & Love Inc. is a brilliant record also
never heard of them
Serious?
@@ProfessorofRock yup
Neither have I.
Same here😅
@@ueno1 They haven't heard of any of you either. Except maybe POR.
I was a nightclub DJ in Vegas in the 80's and 90's and we had The Information Society perform at our club called The Shark Club when that album came out. I got to hang out with them they were really nice and down to earth.
Hey, y'all.
Hey there!
Morning
Morning in a soft whisper!,🤫
@@AnnaTrail-xp8pr Shhhh.
Good morning, Whisper!
I liked how 'Pure Energy' thumped through the 4 6X9's in My old Ford 4x4 back in the late 80's. Now I own a home, and it Really thumps through the Yamaha Sub I have connected to My PC. Great Show Professor!! ✌
Thank you for sharing your story about getting the tape. The first part broke my heart. 😢 But how it ended was really sweet. ❤
Thank you for this i always wondered why they disappeared. As a New York city kid they'd hang out at some of the clubs me and my crew would be in and it was always amazing to see them come thru, great parties
Love that you Shine the light on INFO SOCIETY. In some markets they were considered a Freestyle Act. It would be so cool if you'd highlight more Freestyle Artists on your platform. Thanks - DJ
I won a copy of the debut album on cassette from the radio for singing the hook when I was caller #8. My mom drove me downtown to the radio station (which was a thing unto itself!) and I couldn’t have been happier!
When this album got big, I was living in Columbus GA. I was scheduled for a two week training session in Birmingham AL and I bought the cassette right before I left. It never left my cassette deck for the entre two weeks. I actually ended up wearing the thing out. Literally. I had to go buy another copy.
Was blown away by Infosoc. I bought the 12” of What’s On Your Mind? Must’ve played it a million times. Also loved the funky little things they would do, like have embedded code on their CDs. Genius stuff. Still listen to them today with the same enthusiasm and interest. Thanks for this episode, Adam!
Being a Chicago native and a long time P.OR. watcher and longer time WDRV listener, welcome to the neighborhood. ✌🕺.
Prepping the listening chair and snacks for the kick-offl weekend
Back in highschool, being a drama nerd, I walked into the drama classroom after school and three girls were standing on some tables arranged like a stage. They were lip syncing to this song and one of them was looking directly as they performed the song. Not long after that she was my girlfriend. Oh, nostalgia ❤
Adam - Completely forgot about this band. But loved that song back in the day. Can't believe how deep you get with your research and stories of all these bands. Love what you do, keep up the excellent work. I was always a fan of Alphaville's synth driven music back in the 80's.
Rock on my friend, rock on.
A video about Information Society AND you're wearing a Violator t-shirt. A man after my own heart! 😍InSoc has been one of my favorite bands since I was 9 years old. I just adore them.
As a hard core Trekkie I immediately recognized Nimoy in the song, but I didn’t know what episode it was from… until now. Thanks!
Oh wow! So glad you covered these guys… I always wondered what happened to them!
InSoc still plays the odd show here and there. Though Kurt moans a bit about getting older, the group still has a ton of energy on stage and Paul's compositions continue to carry a geek-centric electronic charm that's straight out of the vision of the future from 1990s video games.
More of their music was popular in the Minneapolis area when I was growing up, in particular I think the song "Mirrorshades" with Jim on vocals gets a little forgotten, but was played a bunch on the radio here.
Thanks much for this video.
Cool story about buying the album. I do miss those music stores, but we have it so much better today. As a blind guy, shopping for music used to be such a pita because I always had to go to the store with someone who knew what I like. I didn't always know what I was looking for and preferred to browse. My late grandma used to take me to Target et al to browse through their CD's and had to guess at which albums I might be interested in. The iTunes store was a revelation because I could finally see for myself what was out there and take as long as I wanted to pick out an album or single track. Streaming is just another step up with insta playing of almost anything.
Professor, you definitely and uniquely fill a niche for us old people trying to catch up on stuff we could never know in the 60's - 90's, i.e. pre-Internet search era, unless we knew 'someone'. While stationed in Idaho, had a new guy show up (Airman First Class), got to know him, found out he'd been working part time in a studio in Boston while doing some classes, before he enlisted. Found out he had been around and was still in contact Tom Scholz. Said Third Stage was in the works, (1984) but Tom had to fight with the record guys. Sure enough it came out in 1986. Point is, you are a Gold Mine of Info. Thank You!!!
Nother subject, any chance you can look at The Storm. Love their music (Both Albums!!), but as they all quickly went back to their Main Gig bands, some more "lightning in a bottle" stuff. Thanks Again!!
Thanks for the trip down memory lane professor. I can also remember going to the store specifically to purchase the tape single for pure energy. Add tape singles that summer were all the rage, and we're a great way to be able to purchase a song without having to purchase the entire album😊 they also came in those strange security plastic sleeves you mentioned. Anyhow thanks again for a trip down memory lane always a treat watching your videos. Thanks for all the work you do to preserve an important time in history for music
Their debut album is the first time I ever remember being immediately captured by a song and an album. It enthralled me like no other album had before.ost of my friends into music thought it too weird,but it just resonated with me. To this day I keep the debut album and Peace and Love Inc. in my play library.
Fun fact: Peace and Love Inc was used as the music for a Six Flags stage show a year or two after its release
My husband loved this song. We bought the CD and everything. We were living in Japan at the time, and of course, no Internet. We wondered what happened to them. We got back to the States and found that they had actually released other albums but we hadn't heard anything from them.
As a former DJ, I had all the remixes of the top songs from that album. But the one song that I found to be very underrated was “Repetition”. Such a moving ballad and well written, in my opinion. Still pull out that vinyl and listen to it from time to time. It’s my most FAVORITE song of theirs.
This band exploded for me. Pure Energy (as we always called it) was a staple on any mix tape I could justify. We were geeks who felt the connection. Finally we had a band. We had fans. You didn't include Spock in a song otherwise. This was played at every bar in college and I'd been the dance floor, or dancing st my table every time. Now, at 58, this song has never left my side. This band ranks up there, for me, as a favorite alongside Rush, Depeche Mode, The Cure, and others. I have never grown tired of them.
Thanks for sharing!
They were for me too!!
Did you like their later stuff?
@@xxlilly_playsxxkiz9980I did. Even though, to me, it didn’t necessarily hit the same, the later stuff all sits well with me.
I think that it’s a case of the music being fun. That, combined with nostalgia, played well.
Kind of the same with Men Without Hats. I continued supporting them and was rewarded with music I still enjoyed, even with it not hitting the same smash success.
As a fan of synth music before, when I first saw the video on MTV upon its release, it was like a revolution of what music was going to sound like moving forward. The sounds were so crisp and the album was engineered and mixed so well that it blew me away (and my neighbors, too, thanks to my double-stack home stereo, lol). That album still sounds as fresh, musically, today as it did when it was released, a testament to these "noobies'" immense understanding of sound and mixing. Gosh, I miss the 80s... the world seemed... electric, so big, and yet so small at the same time... full of endless possibility and potential. "I wanna Know" is absolutely a part of the soundtrack to my life, and for good reason. Thanks for covering them, Adam!
If you like mashups check out “What’s On Your Cloud 9” by Paolo Monti, mixes well with Jamiroquai.
One of the best cassette tapes I ever owned. Listen to Repetition repeatedly, Over the Sea, Tomorrow and the 12 inch vinyl of Lay All Your Love on Me. Just amazing.
wow! I had forgotten about them--- takes me back to my high school days...
I loved Information Society's songs! I always wondered where they went to. Thanks for sharing their story Professor!👍
Every story you tell us about your dad makes me love him more. He was a good dad.
This was the first CD I bought. I still have every dance remix vinyl record. Still one of my favorite bands