From Death Comes New Life

I start this new blog with an entry about an ending of sorts: Elegant Machinery, a lesser-known synth-pop band from Sweden, has broken up.

Elegant Machinery are unknown to the masses but had cultivated a devoted following over the years to become one of the most successful synth-pop acts out of Sweden and Scandinavia.

They started their career in 1988 as Depeche Mode clones in a sea of Depeche Mode clones like Camouflage, Seven Red Seven and Red Flag, who all flirted with brief success in the late '80s and early '90s. But that's not a bad thing - I for one love Depeche Mode and have found the unabashed imitators to be quite good on their own terms.

Unfortunately, Elegant Machinery did not have great timing, as they released their first album in 1991, just when synth-pop was falling fast out of flavor in America and soon in Europe as well. That didn't stop them, however, as they continued to release albums of solid synthesizer-driven dance music for the rest of the '90s.

I'll never forget the first time I heard Elegant Machinery. It was a dark and cold winter night and I was driving my friends around in my car when an extended version of "Process" came on. The vocals only sang the emotional chorus line, and the verses were all caverns of deep, dark house grooves. We were blown away. It's since become a classic among my friends and it will always take us back to that time.

But what really makes Elegant Machinery special and why they warrant a mention here is because in 2008, what should have been well past their prime, they released an incredible album called A Soft Exchange that qualifies as thoroughly neo-electro. Using the same sensitive lyrics coupled with new millennium sonics, Elegant Machinery had not just brilliantly updated their sound but created a new high standard in neo-electro, standing tall in a very different musical landscape then when they started. Elegant Machinery proved that longevity can win the day, and to never count out an old horse. They put their original inspiration, Depeche Mode, to shame with A Soft Exchange. Depeche Mode hasn't had a good album since Violator from 1990. But Elegant Machinery, who started relatively weak around that time, were putting out work that was better than ever in the late 2000s.

Their split this year makes A Soft Exchange even more bittersweet. It will probably be their last album. But I can definitely say they went out on a high note.

So, from the ashes of Elegant Machinery, one of the few surviving synth-pop acts left from the '80s, comes a whole new generation of electronic artists devoted to bringing us similar music, but with a whole new twist. And that's why I'm here.

One small look back, one giant look forward.