Electronic pop music is not dead. It never has been. It just doesn't tend to get in the charts anymore.
The exception at the moment is Girls Aloud, who (whatever you think of them) have been churning out commercial synth pop - and pretty good it is too - since they started. And of course, my favourites, Pet Shop Boys released a career high album (Fundamental) earlier this year that made very little commercial impact but is as good a collection of PSB material as you're likely to find.
So it IS out there. You just have to look.
Luckily, a new compilation CD, Robopop: The Return, has collected together some of the best electronic pop of the last few months, as well as giving us a chance to hear some upcoming acts. If you have any interest at all in synthpop - or even dance music - you're going to love this collection.
It collects the familiar - Goldfrapp, Lorraine and Tiga - with the less familiar. Ping Pong Bitches anyone? But the over-riding impression is of a music genre which is only improving with age and deserves a wider audience.
Highlights include Tokyo Girls by Matinee Club. Matinee Club used to be called The Modern. They flirted the charts last year with two fantastic tracks, Jane Falls Down, and Industry, but fell foul of the chart regulations and were quickly disqualified from the Top 40. It's a shame, as their output is highly commercial, and could easily fill the dancefloor of every gay club the length and breadth of the country. I also love State of Play by Formatic - a track that was recently heard in the Channel 4 drama Sugar Rush. It's a poppers-rush of a track with an aggressive beat. SuperJupiter's Got To Get Some also stands out as a track that could easily reach the high end of the Top 40 if it were given a wider audience.
There really isn't a duff track on this compilation, and as an added bonus the CD release also contains a second disc of remixes. You can download the album now from iTunes, but at the moment they unfortunately are not offering the remix CD.
If you want dance music with a bit of melody and edge, or if you're looking to find something to fill the gap between PSB or Depeche Mode albums, you could do a lot worse than download or buy this CD.
Essential!
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