Electricity

About Electricity

"Electricity" is the 1979 debut single of the English group Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark, featured on their eponymous debut album the following year. Inspired by Kraftwerk's "Radioactivity", the song addresses society's wasteful usage of energy sources. Andy McCluskey and Paul Humphreys sing the lead vocals on the track together in unison. As with single "Messages" from the same album, the song features a melodic synth break instead of a sung chorus. It was on the strength of "Electricity" that the band were offered a recording contract with Dindisc, who twice re-issued the single. In 2012, "Electricity" peaked at no. 126 in the French charts. Vince Clarke of Erasure (and formerly chief songwriter of Depeche Mode, Yazoo and The Assembly) has cited "Electricity" as his primary inspiration to pursue a career in electronic music, while BBC Radio's Steve Lamacq has named it as the track that made him want to become a DJ. more »