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MusicRadar
MusicRadar
Entertainment
Andy Jones

“They’re the best synth band in the '80s not to have a hit”: 6 under-appreciated synth-pop acts from the 1980s that deserve your attention

ED Depeche Mode Human League OMD Fin Costello Mark Hollis Talk Talk Crisis Redferns Roland
China Crisis.

SYNTH WEEK 2026: At the end of the 1970s, synthesisers had started to become more affordable - well, they were less than the price of a car – and with this increased popularity, there was only ever one outcome: synth-pop!

Synth-pop was a label lazily given to pretty much anyone with a keyboard during the 1980s, a trend that we’re happy to continue with this feature, and could encompass everything from wild and wacky joy (think Happy Talk by Captain Sensible) to pomp and lengthy opera (Ultravox’s towering Vienna).

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