Erasure (duo)

Erasure
Vince Clarke (left) and Andy Bell (right) in 1989
Vince Clarke (left) and Andy Bell (right) in 1989
Background information
OriginLondon, England
Genres
DiscographyErasure discography
Years active1985–present
Labels
Members
Websiteerasureinfo.com

Erasure (/əˈreɪʒər/) are an English synth-pop duo formed in London in 1985,[1][2][3] consisting of lead vocalist and songwriter Andy Bell with songwriter, producer and keyboardist Vince Clarke, previously co-founder of the band Depeche Mode and a member of synth-pop duo Yazoo. From their fourth single, "Sometimes" (1986), Erasure established themselves on the UK Singles Chart, becoming one of the most successful acts of the mid-1980s to the mid-1990s. From 1986 to 2007, the pair achieved 24 consecutive top-40 entries in the UK singles chart. By 2009, 34 of their 37 chart-eligible singles and EPs had made the UK top 40, including 17 climbing into the top 10. At the 1989 Brit Awards, Erasure won the Brit Award for Best British Group.[4][5]

Erasure made their debut with the studio album Wonderland in 1986, however it did not perform well chart-wise. With their second release The Circus the following year in 1987 came major success, the album reaching UK number 6 and spawning four top-20 singles. Their third studio album, The Innocents released in 1988, was a number one and was followed the same year by the Christmas EP Crackers International peaking at number 2. The Innocents was the first in a string of albums to place in the top spot, with their next five long-form releases also reaching the pole position of the UK Albums Chart: the albums Wild! (1989) and the Mercury Prize nominated Chorus (1991), the ABBA tribute EP Abba-esque (1992), the compilation Pop! The First 20 Hits (1992), then the studio album I Say I Say I Say (1994). Songs from albums of this successful period include the hits "Oh L'amour", "Sometimes", "Victim of Love", "The Circus", "Ship of Fools", "Chains of Love", "A Little Respect", "Stop!", "Drama!", "Blue Savannah", "Star", "Chorus", "Love to Hate You", "Breath of Life", "Always" and "Run to the Sun".

From 1995, the commercial success of Erasure began to fade with the atmospheric album Erasure (1995), then with the mixed success of Cowboy (1997), until the album Loveboat (2000) which almost passed unnoticed. A little later in the 2000s, the duo nevertheless achieved a commercial rebound in a few European countries thanks to their cover of a Peter Gabriel song, "Solsbury Hill", taken from the covers album Other People's Songs (2003), as well as the single "Breathe" on the album Nightbird (2005). Subsequently, Erasure began a new commercial decline accentuated by the record crisis: the group's new albums still ranked briefly in the charts, but no new singles reached the rankings. However, a solid international fanbase allows Erasure to maintain its activity by relying on tours, online sales, as well as the copyrights attached to their catalog of past successes.

Overall in their career, Erasure have written over 200 songs and have sold over 28 million albums worldwide.[6][7]

  1. ^ "Erasure".
  2. ^ "Electropop Erasure revisits new wave in new album". Bostonherald.com. 23 August 2020. Retrieved 26 August 2021.
  3. ^ "The 15 Best Electropop Albums of 2020, PopMatters, Page 3". Popmatters.co. 18 December 2020. Retrieved 26 August 2021.
  4. ^ "Erasure Brits Profile on the official Brit Awards website". Brits.co.uk. 2013. Archived from the original on 3 June 2014. Retrieved 19 June 2014.
  5. ^ "Erasure gay icon Andy Bell talks with O&AN". Outandaboutnewspaper.com. 1 April 2006. Archived from the original on 5 June 2009. Retrieved 16 April 2012.
  6. ^ "ERASURE New Single "Elevation" Remixed by BT". Remixmag.com. 25 August 2014. Retrieved 10 September 2017.
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference simpson was invoked but never defined (see the help page).