Thåström / Peace Love & Pitbulls

Thåström is a much beloved rock star in his native Sweden, but virtually unknown in the English-speaking countries. His only foray into singing in English was with the short-lived band Peace Love & Pitbulls, whose industrial-tinged rock began to gain a following right before they disbanded. There's a lot of hard rock and dark, noir-ish folk in his solo works.

Kate Bush

Kate Bush is definitely one of the most influential women in pop/rock.  So many artists made it huge by turning elements of her sound into mainstream hits, from Tori Amos to Florence & The Machine.

The Black Crowes

The Black Crowes turned a serious fixation on Exile-era Stones, Faces, and a bit of Skynyrd into a long and pretty successful career.

Type O Negative

I meant to post this before Halloween. Better late than...

Dragon

Dragon was a band from New Zealand who were fairly successful in their homeland and Australia in the mid-1970s. They broke up at the end of that decade but resurfaced a few years later with a more polished sound. They had a fairly big hit in 1984 with "Rain" and subsequently had their 1987 album released internationally under the name Hunter. They never really caught on in the US, but they are now in the Australian RNR Hall of Fame. Some of their 80s stuff reminds me of The Call. There's some real gems here.

The Smithereens

I always thought the Smithereens were the East Coast's blue collar rock band of the '80s. The Replacements represented the Upper Midwest. Social Distortion represented Cali. I don't know if that makes any sense, but they had some of the '80s best rock songs, regardless.

RIP Tom Petty

RIP Tom Petty!

Robyn Hitchcock

A long and storied career. One of the few artists who can successfully be quirky, clever and earnest all in the same song.

Cubanate

The '90s was such a great time for electro/industrial music, especially for those of us who never got into the grunge or Britpop that dominated radio. Cubanate was essentially Marc Heal, spewing high-energy aggression out like no one else. This album treads a fine line between noisy electronic music and pure white noise, but it's just on the right side of that line.

ABC

It would be easy to write-off ABC as a lightweight New Wave version of Roxy Music... although Roxy's last 2 albums could be written off as the same... but that's missing the point. It's the perfect soundtrack to your next cocktail party.

Echo & The Bunnymen

It's autumn somewhere... and from out of a foggy haze, with green trenchcoat and tussled locks... it's Mac the Mouth, here to sing us some lullabies.

Gene Loves Jezebel

Beyond the silly clothes and hair and videos of their early years, Gene Loves Jezebel became a solid band by the time of 1987's "House of Dolls" album and continued until their last, 1999's "VII" - and then suddenly reappearing 18 years later for 2017's Dance Underwater.

Tears For Fears

I could see how Tears For Fears might be on a lot of people's "overplayed" list, as they produced songs so tied to the '80s they've almost certainly gotten more airplay since that decade ended than during. But that shouldn't stop "Songs From The Big Chair" being heard as the masterpiece it is.

A Flock of Seagulls

Being the butt of so many jokes and the go-to picture for bad '80s hair-dos, one can easily forget A Flock Of Seagulls made some decent music.

Japan... the band

Imagine naming your band after a country in this Internet age... but nonetheless, David Sylvian, Mick Karn and Co. made pretty original sounding music. After starting as a very punky group, they quickly morphed into something which clearly owed more than a small debt to Roxy Music, but with Karn's fretless bass playing and often quirky rhythms, they became a far more unique entity.

Hugo Race + True Spirit/Fatalists

Hugo Race was in Nick Cave's Bad Seeds for 1/2 a minute in the early years. As he continued on a solo career, he initially mined the same territory as early Bad Seeds' records. His most recent stuff is actually how I envisioned Nick Cave would sound at this point in his career and, personally, I find Hugo Race's music much more satisfying.

Neko Case

Country, Alt Country, Indie Folk... whatever it is, Neko Case has a stellar voice. Much of her work eschews the usual verse-chorus-verse-chorus structure for more free-flowing melodies that often build quick and then flicker away.

The Cure

Not to sound like a broken record but... I'm not a huge fan of the Cure, I just happen to have most of their stuff. Actually, I really like the early 80s stuff.

Big Noise

Here's some late-'80s rock. This was their one album. I found lots of stuff like this in the bargain bins back in the day. It kind of treads the line between AOR and Alt radio and never found a home on either.

Midnight Oil - Overflow Tank

Glad to have these boys back. They've included 1 disc of b-sides and 1 disc of unreleased demos on this new box set, along with 2 discs of previously unreleased live tracks.

The Boss

I could write an essay about Bruce, but it's probably all been said before. I will offer, though, that I think he's the best, most consistently excellent American songwriter of the last 40 years.

Angelfish

Shirley Manson started out in the band Goodbye Mr. Mackenzie in the '80s, supplying backing vox and keyboards. When that band failed to break into the US market, they refashioned themselves as '90s chick rock band Angelfish, with Manson taking the lead role. They only lasted 1 album, but it's pretty decent.

Blondie

Blondie is the band. Deborah [Debbie] Harry is the singer. She's had a strange career considering they have a few gigantic hits. They've had an on again/off again relationship, with Harry going off to spotty solo ventures and acting in B-movies.

Berlin

Berlin started as a dark kind of synth band who ended up having one of the biggest songs of the '80s. There's some good stuff spread across their 3 major label releases.

Eve's Plum

They only lasted 2 albums, but Eve's Plum delivered some pretty good '90s chick rock.

R.E.M.

What more needs to be said about REM? They made 2 of my favorite albums of the '80s - Reckoning and Document - and emerged from their first decade second only to U2 in critical and commercial stature. The '90s boosted them to mainstream pop star status. Their output in the new century, though, was pretty lackluster and they called it quits in 2011.

Thompson Twins

People never believe me when I tell them that Thompson Twins' first two albums are full of some pretty good, edgy post-punk tunes. That's probably because they went from that to mainstream crossover success with a handful of New Wave anthems, and all the way to has-been, out of step adult contemporary within a mere 9 years.

And that's not even mentioning their Live Aid performance which was... bizarre? Look it up online if you've never seen it. But beware... why anyone thought it would be a good idea to invite Madonna to sing for their cover of the Beatles' Revolution... whew.

The Plugz / Cruzados / Tito & Tarantula

Tito Larriva has been a staple of the L.A. music scene since the late '70s. First, he led The Plugz, often cited as the first Hispanic punk band. Then he moved on to roots rock with Cruzados. And for over 2 decades, he's played bluesy rock with Tito & Tarantula.

Bryan Ferry

Bryan Ferry started his solo career while Roxy Music was still active. When Roxy finally petered out in the early-80s, Ferry just continued doing what he does. Is he an edgy crooner or a suave rocker? I'm not sure, but he has been able to carve out his own identifiable sound. Viva!

Roxy Music

Roxy Music came onto the scene with weird costumes, pathos, and screeching synth sounds (thanks to Brian Eno). They evolved into a refined, danceable, stylish pop act. Probably no other band had as much influence on 1980's New Wave and pop music.

Brian Setzer

Brian Setzer actually made an attempt at contemporary rock (albeit still rootsy) with Knife Feels Like Justice in 1986, and Live Nude Guitars in 1988. Neither one was very successful in the US and it wasn't long before he returned to rockabilly, eventually hitting gold with his Brian Setzer Orchestra.

Peter Gabriel

Funny enough, I find it hard to sit through an entire Peter Gabriel album beginning to end, but when looking at individual songs, there's a heck of a lot I like.

OMD

Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark are another New Wave band that if you've only heard their mainstream hits (or the iconic scene in Pretty In Pink) you may be surprised upon hearing their first couple albums. That might have helped The Best Of OMD become a classic. That and it plays like a great album, more than just a collection of their hit songs.

Spandau Ballet

Spandau Ballet were known for their international smash "True," but also derided as a caricature of New Wave's soft image. Actually, their first few albums were fairly experimental, sounding not too different from early Human League, OMD, etc.

House of Freaks

House of Freaks was the duo of Bryan Harvey and Johnny Hott. They had a minor hit in '88 with "40 Years," but sadly, their second album, though being better than their debut, failed to achieve success. They managed 2 more albums before backing Steve Wynn in the short-lived band Gutterball.

John Mellencamp

John Cougar... John Cougar Mellencamp... John Mellencamp. Another artist who was, in my teen years, terminally un-hip. Only as an adult have I grown to appreciate him as a very consistent tunesmith, instead of unjustly seeing him as a 3rd-rate Springsteen.

John Fogerty

Following the singer-songwriter thread, you cannot forget this guy. As an anecdote about how absurd the music industry is - in 1985, Fogerty was sued for sounding too much like... CCR, the band he founded as its singer, songwriter, guitar player, arranger, producer. So, he was essentially sued for sounding too much like himself. It's no wonder there have been two decade-long gaps in his recording career.

Elvis Costello

Elvis Costello... forever the other Elvis. Anytime someone has produced a catalogue the size of his, there's gonna be something in there you like... and something you don't. But he is, without a doubt, a true songsmith.

A-Ha

You can't go wrong with any of A-ha's albums from the 1980s. The soaring voice of Morten Harket and the pulsing, sometimes moody synth lines are classic pop music of the era. Their comeback in the 2000s has been mostly excellent, too.

Love And Rockets

Express is still one of my all-time favorite albums. And most of the rest ain't too shabby, either.

The Sidewinders / Sand Rubies

The Sidewinders were a band from Arizona - the southwest of the US - and their music reflected their arid, sun-parched homeland. Unfortunately, after 2 major label releases, they were forced to change their name to Sand Rubies, which seemed to break any momentum they had.

Tamikrest

Tamikrest is a group of Tuaregs from Mali playing a kind of desert blues. It is a trance-inducing, highly addictive music that lies at the crossroads of African and Middle Eastern traditions. Highly recommended.

Iggy Pop

Mild-mannered James Newell Osterberg slips on some skin-tight Levi's, rips his shirt off and transforms into The Iguana.

The Stooges

Legendary.

Pixies

At this point, I would think every fan of indie-alterna-rock would have everything by the Pixies... but maybe not.

Concrete Blonde

One of the all-time great L.A. bands.

The Church

One of those albums I never really get tired of listening to. Starfish has some of my favorite dual-guitar interplay ever. It's shimmering and dark and mysterious and completely immersive. And what a treat that they're still making great music almost 30 years later.

Enigma

Michael Cretu made a big splash with Enigma's debut. You kind of either love and devour this stuff or hate it and see it as new agey, pretentious fluff. I think he's done a great job of keeping it going while also making it fresh, unlike, say, Mike Oldfield or Jean Michel Jarre.

The Jesus And Mary Chain

I actually was never too keen on JAMC's debut, Psychocandy. I kind of blame it for all the crappy indie bands who thought they, too, could be edgy if they simply threw feedback all over their records. But Darklands I think still stands up pretty well, as do Automatic, Honey's Dead and the underrated Munki.

DMode - The Albums

I never considered myself a huge Depeche Mode fan until one day I looked at my music collection and realized how much of their music I owned. They were huge here in So Cal, probably right behind U2 and REM in popularity.

Any decent record store always had import copies of their first 5 albums because the US versions were so horribly mastered they were shrill and metallic sounding. So, I've tried to assemble the best sounding versions of each that I've found.

Their Remaster campaign ticked off everyone when it turned out that in the US, the regular old versions were coupled with a DVD which contained the remasters. The UK and European versions attempted to copy protect the discs, but rendered them unplayable on most computers and many audio systems. In short, their catalog is beyond screwed and for no good reason.

One day I'll get around to posting all the singles.