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The Human League
Kraftwerk
Suicide
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Radioactive Man
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cLOUDDEAD
Casino Vs Japan
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Labels

Suicide

Suicide are Alan Vega and Martin Rev

Uncompromising pioneering duo made up of Alan Vega (vocals) and Martin Rev (keyboards and all the other music). Penniless and living in a performing arts commune in New York they decided to make music as a duo with Rev purchasing a basic drum machine from a pawn shop for $30.

They were loathed by the contemporaries in "conventional" rock bands (they didn't have a drum-kit or even a guitarist!) and were often abused and booed off stage. A knife was even thrown at Rev during a performance in the late 70s. A particularly famous gig in Brussels in 1977 while supporting Elvis Costello, led to a full scale riot with chairs and beer glasses being thrown amongst the crowd. This can be heard on a reissued version of Suicide which includes a recording dubbed 23 minutes over Brussels of the famous gig.

The recently reissued The Second Album includes a second disc "The Rehearsal Tapes" which featured music used in a recent Tia Maria commercial.

I saw them play live at the Mean Fiddler, London in November 2002. They were on tour to support their new album American Supreme. If anyone knows where I can get some of those enormous shades sported by Martin Rev please contact me.

They count amongst their fans artists as diverse as Bruce Springsteen, Surgeon, Soft Cell and Henry Rollins.