Synthpop wizard Vince Clarke was responsible for some of the most indelible jams of the early '80s, but he took a while to find a stable artistic partnership. Clarke wrote most of the song's on Depeche Mode's classic 1981 debut Speak & Spell, then left the group. He formed Yazoo with Alison Moyet, but they only released two (excellent) LPs before breaking up. Finally, Clarke looked for collaborators by placing an ad in NME, and that's how he found the singer Andy Bell. They became the duo Erasure, and they've been working together ever since.
Erasure went on a crazy string of UK hits in the late '80s and early '90s, and those songs have held up beautifully. Whenever I hear "Chains Of Love" or "A Little Respect" or "Stop!," I'm like, "Damn, I need to listen to more Erasure." These days, they're not the commercial force that they once were, but they're still cranking out new music. Erasure's last proper album The Neon came out in 2020. Since then, they've been covered by the Killers and Robyn. Vince Clarke and Andy Bell have both put out solo records, and Clarke also took part in the supergroup Doublespeak. Now, Erasure are ready to announce that Radio!! Radio!!, their 20th album, is coming out in March.
According to a press release, Radio!! Radio!! builds on Erasure's old synthpop blueprint, but Clarke works in more pianos and acoustic guitars than usual. Lead single "Wings Of Love" has a world-weariness that I don't really associate with this group, but it fits them nicely. Once the album comes out, Erasure will head out on an arena tour in the UK and Europe, with Ladytron opening many of their dates. They're also planning to hit the US. Below, check out "Wings Of Love," the tracklist, and the tour dates.
TRACKLIST:
01 "Baby On The Radio Forever"
02 "Lucky Boy"
03 "Wings Of Love"
04 "Listen To The Beauty"
05 "Where Our Love Hides"
06 "Star Clouds"
07 "Where Are All The People?"
08 "Holy!"
09 "Jealousy"
10 "There Ain’t No Place Like Home"
TOUR DATES:
4/25 - Cardiff, UK @ Utilita Arena *
4/26 - Bournemouth, UK @ International Centre *
4/28 - Liverpool, UK @ M&S Bank Arena *
4/30 - Birmingham, UK @ Utilita Arena *
5/01 - Manchester, UK @ AO Arena *
5/03 - Dublin, Ireland @ 3Arena *
5/05 - Nottingham, UK @ Motorpoint Arena *
5/06 - Hull, UK @ Connexin Live *
5/08 - Leeds, UK @ First Direct Bank Arena *
5/09 - Glasgow, UK @ OVO Hydro *
5/11 - Brighton, North Of Ireland @ Brighton Centre *
5/12 - London, UK @ The O2 *
5/15 - Cologne, Germany @ Palladium
5/16 - Hamburg, Germany @ Inselparkhalle
5/18 - Leipzig, Germany @ Haus Auensee
5/21 - Frankfurt, Germany @ Jahrhunderthalle
5/22 - Hannover, Germany @ Swiss Live Hall
5/24 - Berlin, Germany @ Uber Eats Music Hall
5/26 - Copenhagen, Denmark @ Royal Arena
5/28 - Stockholm, Sweden @ Avicii Arena
* with Ladytron
Radio!! Radio!! is out 3/12 on Mute. Pre-order it here.
