YU

YU is C.U. Squirm, Rod Miles, and Bently Shaft.
"Socks and Sacks":

"Not Only My Hand & Me":

"The Big Picture":

"Huxley's Tune":

Silver Apples

Silver Apples were a home-made synthesized rock band from the height of the flower power days. their third album, The Garden, was recorded between '68 and '69 but was unreleased until 1998.
"Again" from The Garden:

Carol & Snowy Red

In 1981 Carol recorded this 7" with Snowy Red (aka Micky Mike), a prominent Belgian electronic artist.
Side A "Breakdown":

Side B "So Low":

Cromagnon

from the album Orgasm (1969), considered by some to be a prophetic vision of black metal:
"Caledonia"

"First World of Bronze"

Stark Reality

"Acting, Thinking, Feeling (Part1)", live 1968:

Bernthøler

"Exterieur Nuit" (1982)

"Japanese Garden" (1982)

Todd Rundgren

Todd Rundgren with "Born to Synthesize" (1975)

Alan Parsons

From his solo album, On Air (1996):
"Cloudbreak"

Helios Creed

Helios Creed was a member of Chrome along with Damon Edge in the late '70's-early '80s, and with the dissolution of Chrome he went on to record several solo records. from the album NUGG the Transport (1996):

King Crimson

classic prog, "Larks' Tongues in Aspic" part I circa 1973

This Heat

recorded for John Peel in '77.

Judy Henske & Jerry Yester

Judy Henske had made a name for herself in Hollywood as a singer/songwriter and part-time actress (she was with Woody Allen for a while). She met Jerry Yester, a respected folk musician himself, in 1963 and they began making music together occasionally. Judy and Jerry were married at the time they recorded Farewell Aldebaran (1969) for Frank Zappa's Strait Records. The couple eventually split up and went their separate ways musically.
"Rapture" from Farewell Aldebaran

Noh Mask

Michael Silverstein was involved in a couple of moderately successful Belgian post-punkish bands (Digital Dance, The Names) in the late 70's and early 80's. In 1984, he joined up with singer Bernard Dradin in Japan and the two took a decidedly sharp turn into New Wave territory. They quietly released the EP Gaijin and quickly followed it up with the 12" Oriented LP under the name Noh Mask.
"Empire of the Signs" from Oriented:

"Twilight in Tokyo" from Oriented:

Mystery Maker

old christian tune from 1977, "Blind Man"

Seyoum Tilahun

another ethiopian pop gem from the 80's.

Snow Canon

personal favorite, an audio-visual collaboration from 1981. Music: Steve Roach, Graphics: Denise Gallant and Brian Samuels.

Popol Vuh

"Kyrie" from Hosianna Mantra (1972)

Johnny Hammond

John Robert "Hammond" Smith, playing some classic jazz-funk from late in his career, "back to the projects" from Gambler's Life (1974).

The Cocteau Twins

"Essence" from Four-Calendar Cafe (1993)
"Oomingmak" from the album Victorialand (1986)

The Durutti Column

Prayer

Sketch For Summer

A Certain Ratio

Manchester group formed in '77. Peel session of the 1982 single, "Knife Slits Water."

Lost Gringos

from Nippon Samba (1982)
Vida de Ines

Nippon Samba

Tambo Machay

Ohne Dich

Magnetic Fields

The following songs appeared on the album Holiday (1994). Songs by Stephin Merritt.
Strange Powers

All You Ever Do Is Walk Away

Eric B. and Rakim

"In the Ghetto" from 1990's Let the Rythm Hit 'Em.

SPK

1986 single, In Flagrante Delicto.
band member Graeme Revell also wrote music for many films.

Les Rita Mitsouko

"Don't Forget the Nite" from their 1982 single, Minuit Dansant:

Throbbing Gristle

"Walkabout", from the album 20 Jazz Funk Greats, recorded 1979 on Industrial records, re-released on Mute in 1983:

Non Band

"Duncan Dancin'" from their 1982 self-titled LP:

Dennis Yost

Dennis Yost with the Classics IV. "Stormy", from the album of the same name, 1968.

Grace Jones

"Demolition Man" from the album Nightclubbing (1981)

Derribos Arias

Another band to spring from La Edad de Oro in Spain during the early 80's.
"Europa" from the 1983 album En La Guia, En El Listin:

"A Flúor" single, 1982

Medusa

the emcee goddess, Medusa with "power to the P," underground hip hop from early 1990's Los Angeles.

RAH Band

1985

Joe Raposo

he did the music for Sesame Street and The Electric Company in their early days.
Snake:

Monkeys:

Seahorse:

Fish:

Flower:

Jimmy Hotz

seen here showcasing his crazy synthesizer (which he invented):

"Vision Ships" from Beyond the Crystal Sea, recorded and produced by Jimmy:

Boney M

Boney M is Frank Farian (real name Franz Reuther), German songwriter/producer. After writing some disco songs he hired a group of singers and dancers from Aruba to front the band (ala lip-synching) and promote his albums. They gained moderate popularity in 1976 thanks to the group's live performances on German TV.
"Ma Baker" from the 1977 album Love For Sale:

Tangerine Dream

Ricochet is the first live album recorded by Tangerine Dream in 1975. This is part of it.

Sylvia Love

instant love - 1979

extraterrestrial lover - 1979

Golpes Bajos

a few more songs from my favorite bunch of Spaniards.
"cena recalentada" ("leftovers") from the 1984 album A Santa Compaña:

"lagrimas" ("tears") from their 1983 self-titled debut EP:

"no mires a los ojos de la gente" ("don't look people in the eye"), also from the Golpes Bajos EP:

Alessandro Alessandroni

Italian-born composer and multi-instrumentalist, Alessandroni primarily composed for film and did many collaborations with Ennio Morricone throughout the 60's and 70's.

Dean Friedman

1977 single, "Ariel"

YES

the answer for every question.
closing track from the oft-overlooked 1978 album Tormato (1978).

The Pharcyde

1993 single "4 Better Or 4 Worse." thanks to Lamaraba for turning me on to this.

Los Iniciados

Alexander O'Neal and Cherrelle

a nice R&B groove from 1985. stay tuned for a brief interview..."hey, what a team!"

Jan Akkerman and Paco de Lucia

here's something to make you reevaluate the talent and skill you think you have: world class virtuoso performances from the guitar elite.

Howlin' Wolf knows

Alaska y los Pegamoides

Nina Simone

The High Priestess of Soul with "Ain't Got No, I Got Life," from the album Nuff Said, 1968:

Psychic TV

Genesis P-Orridge and Peter Christopherson left Throbbing Gristle to form Psychic TV in '81, continuing their strange legacy of putting discomforting noise to video.

"Godstar", 1985:

Amon Düül II

Amon Düül II grew out of an improvisational music collective that had been known simply as Amon Düül, a musical counterpart to a larger communal society in Germany. As Amon Düül became somewhat more cohesive, the name change to Amon Düül II happened in 1969 and more albums were recorded. Many members of the group flowed in and out of circulation and played with other bands as well.
"Between the Eyes" from the Rattlesnakeplumcake / Between the Eyes 7" single (1970)

Godley & Creme

Kevin Godley and Lol Creme first recorded together as a song writing duo in the 50's, but later teamed up to form 10cc along with Stewart and Gouldman. when 10cc split up in '76, Godley and Creme continued recording together as a duo throughout the '80s.
10cc's 1975 single, "i'm not in love" from The Original Soundtrack:

10cc live in 1974:

Godley & Creme live, 1981:

1985 single, "cry":

Cabaret Voltaire

cabaret voltaire was one of the early avant-garde electronic groups of the british new wave, playing alongside bands like joy division, throbbing gristle, gary numan, and the human league as they stepped into the limelight. Cab kept their heads low all through the synthpop era, constantly releasing a slew of underground material and pushing the envelope for electronic music. in the late 70s, their use of tape samples and home made loops put them at the forefront of what was then the cutting edge of electronic music and now known to be far ahead of its time. through the years they've managed to keep quite a dedicated following; their 17th full length album was just released this may, 2010.
the following are a few selections from a series of videos recorded in 1990 promoting the album Groovy, Laidback and Nasty (follow the links below to see more).

rescue me (1990/96) from Nick Cope on Vimeo.

Easy Life (1990/96) from Nick Cope on Vimeo.

Magic from Nick Cope on Vimeo.

The Human League

the human league, helmed by Phil Oakey, began as a relatively unknown british avant garde electronic group in the late 70's, but they quickly gained some popularity with the release of Dare in '81 after some line up changes. The following are two singles from that album:

Sandra

a german singer who married a great producer, Michael Cretu. thanks mike.
Sandra's first (and...probably best) single, "(I'll Never Be) Maria Magdalena" from 1985's The Long Play:

Tangerine Dream

spanning 5 decades, Tangerine Dream is one of the most influential electronic groups out there. Alongside others like Kraftwerk, they catapulted the popularity of krautrock outside of Germany into the stratosphere in the late 60's and 70's. They continued on (with a few lineup changes) into the 80's and 90's experimenting with what became known as "New Age" music, and they're still out there today touring every once and a while. "Kiew Mission" from the 1981 album Exit:

Marvin Gaye

marvin gaye performing live, "what's going on/what's happening brother" from the 1971 album What's Going On:

Guru Guru

forming in '68, Guru Guru went on to record 20 albums and jammed around with some of Krautrock's finest performers like Can and Amon Düül. "Electric Junk" from Hinten (1971):

Meantraitors

in honor of my tooth extraction this morning;
russian acoustic punk?

Ennio Morricone

italian composer for lots of movies in the 60's and 70's. "Deep Down" was recorded for the film "Danger: Diabolik" in 1968:

Lionel Davis

after seeing this video, i was immediately impressed by how bad it was, but after digging around on the net for a while, i still don't really know much about mr. lionel davis. his cd, the electric man, is for sale on amazon.com and includes the track below, as well as other sordid hits like "big breast obsessed."

Glenn Branca

Glenn Branca is considered one of the most influential forces in the No Wave movement which started in NYC in the late 70s. ...essentially No Wave was a reaction to all of the synthesized pop taking over the commercial market. it was a complete destruction of pop music, replacing melody with noise and structure with abstraction.
this is an excerpt from "Bad Smells" from 1980's Lesson No. 1 for Electric Guitar:

"Structure", from The Ascension, 1981:

Love

Arthur Lee is most known for his work with the band Love in the late 60s. it's seriously difficult to find vintage video of them online. just go listen to the music.

love arthur lee
Uploaded by samithemenace. - See the latest featured music videos.

Vangelis

i posted a shorter clip of this same video about a week ago. enjoy.

Vocoder

Vocoder formed in Spain in the early 80's and released only one full length album and a few singles before disbanding in '88. they made appearances on the avant garde kids show La Bola de Cristal and a few tv shows in Mexico.
"Mi chica tiene un lio con Satan" ('my girl has a pact with Satan') from their self-titled album, 1987:

1984 single:

OMD

Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark
from 1983's Dazzle Ships:

from self titled, 1980:

from Architecture & Morality, 1981:

R. Stevie Moore

the sheer size of RSM's recordings is staggering; over 35 commercial releases (including 27 full length albums), not to mention a massive library of self-recorded, reel-to-reel tape sessions and music videos on VHS dating from the late 60s to the present day. every instrument and noise is made by RSM, every one of his recordings is available by mail directly from RSM.
Ill (Worst) recorded in 1968, can be found on the Contact Risk (1993) album:

Suicide

notorious electronic proto punk, Suicide with "Ghost Rider" from their 1977 self-titled LP:

MORODER

Giorgio Moroder, the man that put music to top gun, flashdance, american gigolo, the neverending story, and scarface, the man who introduced donna summer to the world, the man who is essentially responsible for setting the world aflame with disco, leaving only the charred remnants of our innocence in its wake. for those of you with no clue what i'm talking about:

it all began with this [obviously fan made video] in 1977 :

...and then in 1984, after conquering disco, he set his sights on the world of pop and all of the impressionable adolescents out there just waiting for the next chart-melting hit. here Phil Oakey (the human league) offers his talent as a sacrifice to the electro god-man Moroder:

moroder didn't stop there. that very same year he planted his demented genius in the minds of children everywhere:

we may never get our lives back from this man.

Frank Zappa & The Mothers of Invention

zappa and the mothers, live studio session for the BBC, 1968. ignore the repetition of the opening bit...:

Alice Coltrane

filmed for BBC, 1992

Ideal

NDW (Neue Deutsche Welle, or German New Wave) has its roots in the Krautrock of the 60s and 70s and grew to encompass the distinctive new wave punk/electronic sound that was being formed in the German underground in the late 70s and early 80s. With NDW there tend to be two distinctive groups; the less successful underground bands from before the turn of the decade and those who came after, the more mainstream (and commercially successful) groups of the latter part of the 80s. Ideal was one of the more critically acclaimed bands of the NDW, and blurred the line between commercial success and underground popularity.
"monotonie," from the 1981 album Der Ernst des Lebens:

a live performance of "Berlin" from their self titled album from 1980:

Q

stacey lynn swain (aka stacey Q), 4 years before "two of hearts" took over the radio and made her famous, was asked to sing vocals on the last track of a 4 song EP that Jon St. James (guitarist and songwriter for Berlin) had recorded. calling themselves Q, the band released one single in the UK, "Sushi," which floated around on college radio for a while. only about 1000 copies were made of the original EP, now known as the Q EP (1982):

Jimi Jimi Jimi Aaja

from the bollywood movie Disco Dancer, 1982. anyone familiar with M.I.A. might recognize this tune.

Gary Numan

synthpop's most enduring androgynous mama's boy.
from 1979's The Pleasure Principle:


from 1980's Telekon:

gary numan still lived with his parents at this point. hehe

Delta One

from Ron Hays Music Image: Odyssey, images by Ron, music by Larry Fast 1981

Vangelis

the greek synthesizer deity responsible for the blade runner soundtrack and the 60's psych prog group Aphrodite's Child probably spent lots of time high up in his secluded studio doing this:


here improvising with Neuronium, a synth demigod in his own right, and an anonymous feminine aide.. no wait, that's Carlos Guirao. 1982.

Righeira

a memorable, but short lived italo disco duo. their first two singles, "No Tengo Dinero" and "Vamos a la Playa" appeared on the legendary Spanish children's show La Bola De Cristal (the crystal ball) in '84. the show featured performances and videos from many popular bands of the time and was hosted by pop singer Alaska (of Fangoria), but was canceled in '88 for it's frequent anti-capitalist slogans and satires...shame.
"No Tengo Dinero" (1983):

"Vamos a la Playa" (1983):

Lamont Dozier

truly classic soul from 1974's Love and Beauty.

MC5

punk's great granddads MC5 kicking out the jams, motherfuckers. this song was first recorded in '68. they were dead by '72.

Golpes Bajos

Spain lit up when the New Wave washed up on the beach in the early 80s, ushering in la Edad de Oro del Pop Español, the golden age of Spanish pop. Golpes Bajos (translated, 'Low Blows') was one of the first and most experimental bands to come out of the scene.
1984.

1985.

1983.

Michael Zager Band

1978. the birth of the "woop woop." thanks, mike.
factoids: Zager produced the one, the only Whitney Houston. Oh, and Herp Alpert.


get a taste of whitney's first recording:

Ethiopia's own 80's purgatory

traditionally, Ethiopian music is based on a pentatonic modal system. ?. apparently it rivals jazz in its complexity.


yeah. so at some point in the 80's they said, "hey, let's replace the traditional instruments with electronic ones and dance to this shit!"


eventually came Neway Debebe, golden boy of Ethiopop in the 80's.


as you can see, videography goes to 1980's Ethiopia to die.

Kano

Italo Disco owes alot to Kano, a trio of Italian disco gods, Luciano Ninzatti, Stefano Pulga and Matteo Bonsanto, and probably owes a lot to Glen White (the fellow singing below) for sacrificing his personal dignity and fashion sense in the filming of this video. The girls dancing behind the plastic sheets don't make this look like it was filmed in a sex dungeon. At all. 1983


Another Kano hit featuring Glen White, 1981...

Mazarati

Another one of the many manifestations of Prince. Most notably known for their 1986 single, "100mph", written by Prince and given to the band. Formed by Brown Mark, former bassist for Prince and the Revolution.