Synth-pop fans take note: genre forefathers Simple Minds and Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark have revealed that they'll be collaborating on a special cover song for their upcoming British tour. According to a press release, the bands will team up to perform Kraftwerk's "Neon Lights" on every date of their series of joint UK live dates. The song, which originally appeared on Kraftwerk's Man Machine album, has been covered by both OMD and Simple Minds separately in the past.
As Simple Minds' Jim Kerr puts it, the song was hugely formative to a whole generation of music listeners. "Kraftwerk were the link between a whole generation of kids in the UK that used synthesizers to define some of the '80s most glorious pop music," he said in a press release. "In our own way we want to honour their influence by performing 'Neon Lights.'"
Adds OMD's Andy McCluskey: "Kraftwerk's contribution to music is timeless. Kraftwerk were the reason why we formed OMD. Simple Minds and OMD listened to Kraftwerk before we started making music, but eventually our individual styles of music ventured into different directions. Simple Minds' early electronic rock albums, Empires and Dance and Reel to Reel Cacophony, defined industrial electronic rock with 'I Travel,' while OMD explored electronic soundscapes and minimalism with our early songs 'Electricity' and 'Messages.'"
While the bands' tour is UK only, that doesn't mean we can't scour the web for YouTube clips of this momentous cover and dream that we were there.
Simple Minds and OMD tour dates:
11/30 Newcastle, England - Newcastle Arena
12/2 Birmingham, England - Birmingham LG Arena
12/3 Manchester, England - Manchester MEN Arena
12/5 Sheffield, England - Sheffield Arena
12/6 Cardiff, England - Cardiff CIA
12/7 London, England - London Wembley Arena
12/11 Glasgow, Scotland - Glasgow SECC
12/12 Aberdeen, Scotland - Aberdeen Exhibition & Conference Centre
As Simple Minds' Jim Kerr puts it, the song was hugely formative to a whole generation of music listeners. "Kraftwerk were the link between a whole generation of kids in the UK that used synthesizers to define some of the '80s most glorious pop music," he said in a press release. "In our own way we want to honour their influence by performing 'Neon Lights.'"
Adds OMD's Andy McCluskey: "Kraftwerk's contribution to music is timeless. Kraftwerk were the reason why we formed OMD. Simple Minds and OMD listened to Kraftwerk before we started making music, but eventually our individual styles of music ventured into different directions. Simple Minds' early electronic rock albums, Empires and Dance and Reel to Reel Cacophony, defined industrial electronic rock with 'I Travel,' while OMD explored electronic soundscapes and minimalism with our early songs 'Electricity' and 'Messages.'"
While the bands' tour is UK only, that doesn't mean we can't scour the web for YouTube clips of this momentous cover and dream that we were there.
Simple Minds and OMD tour dates:
11/30 Newcastle, England - Newcastle Arena
12/2 Birmingham, England - Birmingham LG Arena
12/3 Manchester, England - Manchester MEN Arena
12/5 Sheffield, England - Sheffield Arena
12/6 Cardiff, England - Cardiff CIA
12/7 London, England - London Wembley Arena
12/11 Glasgow, Scotland - Glasgow SECC
12/12 Aberdeen, Scotland - Aberdeen Exhibition & Conference Centre
