The Liverpool music scene in the late 1970's was an exciting and dynamic place to be. Everyone was either in a band, in-between bands or were forming a band. In the midst of all this activity was Eric's Club - a small discreet venue that was a favoured haunt for the people who would later form bands such as The Teardrop Explodes, Echo & The Bunnymen and Frankie Goes To Hollywood.
So it was quite apt that Eric's was the venue of choice for the debut performance of Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark in October 1978.
Founder members Andy McCluskey and Paul Humphreys had originally been inspired by the experimental electronic music of German bands such as Kraftwerk and Neu! Working with radio sets and home made synthesisers, Humphreys and McCluskey christened themselves VCLXI (after a valve diagram on the sleeve of Kraftwerk's Radioactivity album) and began their own musical experiments. This, however, was still a side project the pair indulged in on odd weekends while they were active in local bands such as Equinox, Pegasus and The Id. Although they had gained a lot of experience from working in a traditional band environment, it was never quite the creative platform they were looking for. It was time for a new approach.
Naming themselves after one of their own early songs, Humphreys and McCluskey launched their own unique style of catchy electronic melodies that helped form OMD’s reputation for intelligent pop. Back then, to burden your band with such an unwieldy name as Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark might have seemed unwise, but the obvious commercial appeal of their music provoked enough interest that it eventually led to Factory Record’s Tony Wilson offering them the chance to cut their debut single Electricity on the Factory label.
Electricity (and its flip side Almost) perfectly captured OMD’s infectious blend of melody and melancholia. Electricity, with its frenetic dance rhythm, rapidly became OMD’s theme song and maintained its status as a live favourite up to the present day. Attracting the interest of Virgin, OMD signed to their subsidiary label Din Disc in 1979.
After a brief period of touring, notably as support for Gary Numan, OMD quickly established themselves with a number of classic singles. Messages, with its simple but engaging melody, managed to get OMD into the public eye in 1980 by reaching No. 13 in the UK charts. Later the same year they made the UK top ten and scored their first international hit (5 million sales) with the dance pop of Enola Gay - an up tempo number inspired by the plane that dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima.
The success in 1980 helped OMD to rapidly become one of the UK’s premier pop acts. Their use of extra personnel for live performances led to Humphreys and McCluskey recruiting people in the studio as well with the band soon established as a four piece outfit with the assistance of Martin Cooper (keyboards, saxophone) and Malcolm Holmes (drums).
OMD’s 1981 album, the ethereal Architecture & Morality proved to be one of their finest moments. Blending choral effects and wistful melody the album produced three classic singles: Souvenir with its bittersweet Humphreys vocal, the religiously inspired Joan Of Arc and its epic follow-up Maid Of Orleans. All three singles secured a top 5 chart position and by 1982 had turned OMD into household names.
With 3 hit albums and a string of million selling singles it seemed that the band had a Midas touch. It was about to desert them with the release of their most radical album to date.
The 1983 album Dazzle Ships described a fractured futurist soundscape of ideas that drew on everything from East European radio broadcasts to industrial robots for influences. Although the album concealed some fine pop songs, its lack of critical and commercial success was perhaps responsible for OMD taking a more cautious musical path in the future.
OMD's fifth album Junk Culture from 1984 saw the band steering closer to a more traditional band approach. The instant pop of Tesla Girls, percussive dance flavour of Locomotion and pastoral, dreamlike quality of Talking Loud And Clear proved that they could still deliver classic 3 minute pop songs, while retaining a flavour for the unusual.
Producer Stephen Hague was drafted in for the 1985 album Crush and the subsequent 1986 album The Pacific Age. Hague managed to give the songs on both albums a polished edge, while retaining an essential energy that was vital to the songs. Singles such as So In Love and (Forever) Live & Die drew on OMD’s flair for writing engaging melodies, while demonstrating that they were taking much more of a traditionalist approach to song production.
This period also saw the band touring extensively in North America. If You Leave, specifically written for the John Hughes movie Pretty In Pink, was a huge success. However, the consistent schedule of touring took a toll on the band both professionally as well as personally and the 1988 single Dreaming was, at the time, the last single written by Humphreys and McCluskey.
OMD ended an era in 1989 with the departure of Humphreys, Holmes and Cooper leaving Andy McCluskey to forge ahead under the OMD banner. This resulted in the 1991 album Sugar Tax. It was a brash and dynamic approach that fused the classic OMD sound with a more mainstream 90’s dance style. Sugar Tax managed to win over a lot of new converts, as well as the die-hard OMD enthusiast, with singles such as the spectacular Sailing On The Seven Seas and the dance pop of Pandora’s Box (a paean to silent movie star Louise Brooks).
OMD followed up on the success of Sugar Tax with the 1993 album Liberator. This album saw OMD broadening their field of influences with the Barry White inspired Dream Of Me (Based On Love's Theme).
Following the Liberator tour, Andy McCluskey took some extended time off to reflect and consider OMDs future. Suitably refreshed, he began writing again - taking a unique musical direction. The result of this work was premiered in 1996 with the release of a new single Walking On The Milky Way and the follow-up album Universal. With its mix of ethereal ambience and epic production Universal captured a sense of wistful mood that hinted at early OMD, yet still had a unique style and character that was very much its own.
OMD were effectively retired for the latter part of the 1990’s while Andy McCluskey focused on management and production, most notably for the girl pop trio Atomic Kitten who scored a No. 1 hit single in 2001 with the McCluskey co-written song Whole Again.
Finally, deciding the time was right for an OMD revival, Andy McCluskey and Paul Humphreys reunited alongside former band members Mal Holmes and Martin Cooper. In 2007 they embarked on an extensive UK and European tour showcasing their classic Architecture & Morality album. As well as playing the album in its entirety, the band also presented a stage show of their most classic hits to a spectacular visual backdrop.
The 2007 Architecture & Morality tour served as a reminder of what an engaging band OMD were live. They had lost none of the power or the impact that they had demonstrated on those early 80’s performances. With a new album on the way and more live performances scheduled for the future, OMD continue to delight and entertain audiences globally.
Electricity: OMD with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra
DVD Released November 30th 2009
On June 20 2009, 80’s synth-pioneers
Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark realised a 30 year dream, backed by the rich resonance of a 75 piece orchestra, the visual majesty of filmmaker
Hambi, and the vision of artist Peter Saville.
Set in the opulent and historic setting of Liverpool’s Philharmonic Hall, OMD performed their imposing back catalogue abetted by the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, after collaborative audio-visual installation The Energy Suite received its orchestral premier.
The hit laden set, dripping with classics such as Enola Gay and Joan of Arc, and stuffed with exclusive firsts, such as the primary live outing of Radio Prague, is captured in all its magnificence on ‘Electricity: OMD with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra’. The band’s determination to utilise the entire orchestra to maximum effect saw Andy McCluskey and Paul Humphreys abandoning almost all the original instrumentation in favour of complete re-workings of the song arrangements. The result is so much more satisfying than the usual “safe” attempts of rock and pop acts to add a little classical colour to their catalogue!
Aided by Hambi’s commanding film backdrop, the blazing and abstract imagery augments the breathtaking theatrics of this unique musical and artistic performance.
The Energy Suite emerged from an 80’s vision, born around the time OMD recorded ‘Stanlow’, an epic musical journey, which featured ambient recordings from Stanlow Oil Refinery on the Wirral peninsular. The imposing beauty of Stanlow at night fuelled their love for industrial architecture in pictorial settings, a love which was shared by iconic artist and designer Peter Saville.
When the genre hopping art pioneer and Factory Records partner Saville first created the neo-classical cover for OMD’s foremost release ‘Electricity’, no-one could have guessed it would lead to a partnership which would span over three decades.
Though Stanlow stirred their combined passions, it wasn’t until McCluskey and Saville, aided by Hambi, created The Energy Suite for an exhibition at specialist new media gallery FACT in 2008, that their infatuation saw an outlet.
Using striking and often haunting imagery of five power generating sites in the North West of England based in an arc around the Irish Sea, McCluskey along with long time collaborator Stuart Kershaw composed a provocative yet tender score to lift the iconic imagery and purvey the beauty the trio saw within its stature.
The inimitable gig will be available on general release on December 7th 2009 for pre-orders via the FACT website: http://shop.fact.co.uk/
Jim Kerr from Simple Minds talks to OMD fans
on Myspace
about the Grafitti Soul Tour and OMD.
Hey Jim, thanks for answering our questions! Why are OMD not joining you on the US leg of the tour? (Steve Barnes)
Unfortunately Simple Minds have not put together a US tour as we speak!
You had OMD as your support act along with The Stranglers at the Milton Keynes bowl. What was it about OMD's support act back then that made you want them to support you again on this new tour? Hopefully this tour the generators wont break down :) (Neal McClimon)
The recent idea to invite OMD stems from hooking up with the guys during last year's Night Of The Proms Tour, we spoke about it and agreed it would be a good bill and attractive to a lot of people!
How do you and Andy stay so fit for your tours? is there a lot of physical preparation involved before the tour kicks off or are you just naturally fit? (Paula Sen)
You do need to be fit to tour but thankfully years of experience have shown us how to look after ourselves and to make sure that we reserve the energy for the time spent on stage! Personally I always try to talk as little before and after the shows, resting the voice in particular!
Has the recent and sad passing of John Hughes made any impact on the Simple Minds/OMD tour in terms of set list or even personally, considering that both bands have achieved some success from being associated with some of his work and having hit singles on the soundtracks to the respective films? (Wayne Byrne)
Sure it was sad to hear about John's passing. He was a huge music fan and obviously admired both PMD and SM. His movies really helped us find a new audience.
I heard that you and Andy are friends, do you visit his studio in Liverpool and is there any possibility you would record a future album there? (David Allen)
To be frank, until NOTP last year, I had not seen the guys for the longest time. I have never visited the studio but I hear very good things and obviously he has worked hard to create the facility.
Graffiti Soul has a very authentic feel to it. Most albums these days sound too polished and over produced as they are written on computers. OMD used the legendary Mellotron, have you ever considered using that or some kind of different unique instrument to add to the Simple Minds sound?
(Mark Bennett)
Thanks for your interesting question. Graffiti Soul was recorded "authentically" in one of the UK's legendary and long standing facilities, Rockfield Studios. We did it "old style" in the sense that the musicians set up very close to each other in the one big room. Afterwards Charlie Burchill took the basic recordings and worked a lot on processing them with his effects. This way the album had a classic feel but also many contemporary trademarks. It was recorded very quickly and we prepared well in advance.
OMD wrote about religious issues and other controversial topics. Simple Minds wrote the moving Belfast Child and Mandela day - Do you currently have any strong political or religious views that you want to put through music? (Sean Cavanagh)
Not in the deliberate way we have in the past perhaps, but I think the next Simple Minds could perhaps return to the former themes that you recognise.
Would you agree that OMD’s contribution to electronic music (and dare I say to music as a whole) has been significantly undervalued and at times unjustly criticised? (Sean Damer)
Yes, but only by ignorant people. People who know the true story are well aware of the true profile of OMD both as forerunners of particular sound and as fantastic pop writers!
Would you ever consider a musical collaboration with another band and if so who would you most like to work with..? Is there any chance that you would consider writing a song with OMD (Sean Damer)
I do write with various writers, it is something that I enjoy very much.
"Reel to Real Cacophony" reveals a similar musical attitude to OMD in both bands' origins. While the move towards Americanized pop is quite well known and documented for OMD, what initiated the move for Simple Minds?
(Erik Klaver)
I don’t think we really did do "Americanised Pop", we did what we wanted and enjoyed ourselves all the while. We call it the music of Simple Minds!
In the 80's both simple minds and OMD were pushed into the US market due to their exposure in films by the late (and great) John Hughes, how did that involvement come about for simple minds (Roger Erickson)
It was motivated by the director himself. Music was a big part of his vision, but the music of the UK that was then prevalent particularly in the early '80s was very much to his liking.
Andy McCluskey said he remembers driving and listening to old Simple Minds songs like "The American" over and over and listening to your very early records you recorded with Zoom. When was your first musical encounter with OMD and did you play any particular song regularly? (David Wilson)
I remember cleary when we were recording "Real To Real" that I went into the tiny record shop in Monmouth to buy "Electricity". I loved it and was equally charmed by the B-side, which I think was called "Almost".
30 years on you're still selling out Arenas on your huge tour and having big bands like OMD support you. Why do you think you guys are still around 30 years on where most bands have just withered away. Why do you think Simple Minds and others bands such as OMD have managed to stay on top? (Jennifer Jimenez)
I think so many factors are involved including luck and lots of hard work. More than that I would have to say rather obviously that you need some real and remarkable qualities to endure and to move forward. You also need to have a thick skin and to know how to roll with the punches particularly in those periods when things are not going so well!
Jim thanks for answering these questions for us during your busy schedule - Simple Minds and OMD as well as other bands all listened to the same kind of music when you were starting like Velvet Underground, Lou Reed and Kraftwerk etc. but despite being influenced by the same people you developed your own unique style and sounds. Alive and Kicking and Maid of Orleans sound totally different but both groups shared the same musical interests. Did you consciously make the effort to sound different from the people you listened to and those around you or did the Simple Minds sound evolve naturally? (Alex Campbell)
You are bang on! I am sure that we grew up with the same records and the same sensations derived from playing them endlessly. I think OMD took a much more unique path in the early days when they were pioneering an electro sound. Simple Minds sound came as a result of our personalities and our influences equally
There is huge interest in Simple Minds and OMD Why do you feel the 80's revival has been so strong? (Stephen Hunt)
I guess a whole generation grew up with the 80's sounds and many still want to hear those tunes that they revere. Additionally a whole younger generation has turned on to the sounds of that same period, this explains the interest. That apart, particularly in the case of Simple Minds, we have never stopped playing and recording, meaning that we have maintained a great following that loyally turns up to see us!
Jim States "Particularly in these times it is vitally important for us to give as much value to our audience as possible. Playing a full set of hits and other surprises, I know that OMD will contribute so much towards making each of these shows into memorable events!"
Andy McCluskey adds: "Two bands that started in the same year but 300 miles apart, two young neighbours in each band inspired by the same heroes but driven to make different music. Two unplanned journeys from abstract art to international hits. Indeed forty of them between us! It's going to be a wonderful tour!"
Many thanks to Jim for speaking to us. You can buy your tickets to see OMD Supporting Simple Minds at:
OMD will be returning to perform at the Night Of The Proms later this year. The band will be performing 12 dates in Antwerp, 7 in Rotterdam and 2 in Arnhem. See dates above.
Andy & Paul I'm praying that I can rescue Rachelle Geisheker from her illusion that anything would ever happen with Moby. I'm hoping to take her to one of your concerts in November. Wish me luck please that I'm successful in this quest. She is in need of some tender care. Moby ignores her all the time and many of us at his blog boards are trying hard to make her realize the importance that she snaps out of her Moby fixation. She is waisting her life away on a man that doesn't care for her. I know you care for her. She told me you have taken the time to write her and your administrator has as well. If I do get her to your show I hope you will give us a few minutes of your time to make her feel welcome and more crucial, feel like you want her there. That would be appreciated guys. Thank you.
I just wanted to stop by Your Space Place and say hello. Also wanted to stop by and show some support and love. Here's sending it your way! I'll stop back by soon to see how you are doing. Have a great week!
“We tend to forget that happiness doesn't come as a result of getting something we don't have, but rather of recognizing and appreciating what we do have.” Quote By, Frederick Keonig
Your music is always in vogue to this Dancing Angel.
Many thanks to Jim for speaking to us. You can buy your tickets to see OMD Supporting Simple Minds at: 
Online Now!
