Cagey ~RAD '80s SPOTLIGHT~

"Airwaves" by Thomas Dolby

Finally, a video worthy of a new spotlight!  And for the next 30 days, it's your rad 80s video of the month.

Man, oh man alive! Had not heard this Thomas Dolby (80s synthpop hero) song before tonight. It screams, "New romantic." Though I know little about him, I know of his vast influence.  According to one source, he's an INTP, an architect, and of the "Promethean temperament" according to Kerisey temperament analysis. 

The most striking scene in the video comes at 2:00, do the expansive rooftop views of snow, an ocean liner in fog - portray bleakness?  Catharsis?  What is going on here?

"Though he never had many hits, Thomas Dolby became one of the most recognizable figures of the synth-pop movement of early-'80s new wave. Largely, this was due to his skillful marketing. Dolby promoted himself as a kind of mad scientist, an egghead that had successfully harnassed the power of synthesizers and samplers, using them to make catchy pop and light electro-funk. In 1981, he launched a solo career, which resulted in a number of minor hits and two big hits -- "She Blinded Me with Science" (1982) and "Hyperactive" (1984)." - Stephen Thomas Erlewine


"Taught himself to play guitar, c. 1970; dropped out of school to pursue music, 1974; performed with Jamaican R&B band and played jazz in restaurants; played synthesizers for Bruce Wooley and the Camera Club, late 1970s; toured Europe and U.S. with Lene Lovich; played in Paris subways; played synthesizer for Foreigner, Def Leppard, Joan Armatrading, and Malcolm McClaren, early 1980s; released debut single, "Urges," 1981; signed with EMI Records; released first album, The Golden Age of Wireless, Capitol, 1982; co-produced Joni Mitchell's Dog Eat Dog and produced albums by George Clinton and Prefab Sprout, 1985; participated in Live Aid concert; participated in Roger Waters's production of The Wall, West Berlin, 1990. Composer of film scores." - MusicianGuide.com