Song of the Day: 'The Damned Don't Cry' by Visage

Damian was away part of the weekend, so my idle hands wound up in a deep Ultravox and Visage hole, two closely related bands I first discovered during one of my moodier phases in high school. MTV's frequent airing of the "Vienna," "Reap the Wild Wind" and "Fade to Grey" videos sent me out to buy the bands' first few albums. And my friends Kristen, Greg, Lisa and I all exchanged Christmas presents in the Dobson library during lunch in 1984, where Lisa got me Visage's "Beat Boy." (I vaguely recall someone bought Lisa Squeeze's "45 and Under" and I think I got Greg an import by Stephen "Tin Tin" Duffy.) Visage's haunting "Fade to Grey" set the New Romantic movement in motion, but "Beat Boy" was the band's first album without Midge Urge -- whose fingerprints were on many touchstones of the '80s New Wave -- so it paled in comparison to its predecessors. (The safe-sex anthem "Love Glove" was its shining moment.) As beloved as the eponymous debut remains, it's "The Anvil" that really excited me in retrospect. How they were able to follow up an iconic single like "Fade to Grey" with something as equally thrilling is remarkable -- Midge Ure is undoubtedly to thank for today's chilling song of the day -- but in addition to "The Damned Don't Cry" the LP also features classics like "Night Club School" and the Moroder-esque "Again We Love." Visage's pioneering vocalist and nightclub impresario Steve Strange died in 2015, a sad loss for one of the most colorful eras in music history.

P.S. We got Depeche Mode tickets for Monday. I'll tell you about that rabbit hole tomorrow.

Strange Love

Sounds like a fitting ending for a one-of-a-kind man:

Via The Telegraph:

Steve Strange, the New Romantic star, was given a flamboyant send-off as some of pop's biggest stars said a tearful goodbye to the late Visage singer. Boy George as well as brothers Martin and Gary Kemp, of Spandau Ballet, were pallbearers carrying Strange's colourful coffin into All Saints Church, in Porthcawl, South Wales. The cortege was led to a packed service by a marching jazz band wearing maroon and navy suits before Visage's biggest hit "Fade to Grey" boomed out of a PA system. There was a mixture of sadness and celebration as family, friends and fans recalled the life and times of the 55-year-old who died of a heart attack last month while on holiday in Egypt. 

The Welsh singer--whose real name was Stephen John Harrington--found fame in the 1980s as frontman for Visage. Spandau Ballet saxophone player Steve Norman gave a eulogy recalling how Strange took him and Martin Kemp under his wing during the 1970s. 

"We did not have any money back then, and Steve would always pay for our drinks and whatever we wanted," he said. "He was a generous and caring human being with a massive heart. "A lot of great stuff has been said about Steve since his passing - about how he shaped the 1980s - and it is very much deserved. I just wish a few more people had told that to him when he was around ... he was a sensitive soul who needed that affirmation from people."

Steve Strange, of Visage, Fades to Grey at 55

It would be great if THIS were one of those Internet rumors, but with reports of the famed New Romantic being hospitalized in recent months, it sounds like it could be true. I swear it feels like yesterday that my friends Greg, Kristen, Lisa and I exchanged presents in the library at Dobson High School for Christmas 1984 and, I believe, Lisa bought me the band's third album, which had a different cover in the U.S. than abroad. There are actually many good things about getting older, but seeing your idols pass away isn't one of them. 

UPDATE: The Daily Mail has confirmed his death. RIP. 

Marc Green, label manager at August Day Recordings, said: "We are extremely saddened to announce that Steve Strange died at 11.15 local time on Thursday February 12 in Sharm el-Sheikh International Hospital, Egypt. "Steve died in his sleep of heart failure. Steve's family, band members and friends are all distraught at this sudden news of his untimely death. Steve's family request privacy at this extremely difficult time."

The band's biggest -- and best -- song, from 1980

Music Box: Synth Pop Heaven

Three often-overlooked synth classics from the early '80s:

"Love Action (I Believe in Love)" by the Human League. The video for the band's smart followup to the No. 1 international smash "Don't You Want Me" is almost as hot as singer Phil Oakey's wedge haircut ...


"Fade to Grey" by Visage. Steve Strange was never more haunting ...


"Pocket Calculator" by Kraftwerk. Best remembered for "The Model," the band's 1981 single also added up nicely ...

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