Plastician's 10 Favorite Electro Bangers from the 80s

Next up in our Hidden Depths series is London's Plastician. Turns out, this Rinse FM stalwart and old school dubstep originator loves 80s electro and synth pop - which he indulges in for THUMP.

Plastician: I grew up listening to commercial radio. I was particularly fond of Lionel Richie's 'Dancing On The Ceiling' and Bruce Springsteen's 'Dancing In The Dark' and, bearing that in mind, it makes sense that I would become interested in synth-heavy pop music in my early years. It wasn't until my friends started listening to jungle that I was exposed to anything remotely underground.

I think I would have been 15 or 16 when I heard an advert on the radio for the Ministry of Sound  - Future Sound Of The UK 2 compilation, which incorporated a few of the jungle and early drum 'n' bass records I enjoyed. When I bought it, I was particularly taken by some of electro tracks on it. Even in 1998, I found myself more in tune with that 80's synth vibe than the Aphrodite track that led me to buy the compilation in the first place.

Fast forwarding roughly 8 years, having started DJing and releasing tracks of my own, I began playing shows with Rephlex artists. This opened my ears to all manner of musical styles outside of grime, dubstep and UK garage, which was pretty much all I knew until I was 22. Whilst playing b2b with Ed DMX occasionally, he spun a remix he'd made of Afrika Bambaata's 'Planet Rock'. When I asked him about the record, he told me it was electro from the 80s - much like the stuff I'd enjoyed on this mix CD in my teens. He put me onto a few other artists like Arthur Baker and Cybotron, and that was when I really started digging - mostly in second hand record shops, like Beano's in Croydon.

I dug up quite a few over the years, and still add more to my collection every now and then when I hear something I've missed along the way, so I've decided to pick out some of my favourites for Hidden Depths.

Information Society - 'Running (Instrumental)' (Tommy Boy, 1986)

This was featured on the aforementioned Future Sound of the UK 2 CD I bought. I was obsessed with it back then, and still love listening to it now. The version on the CD was the full vocal, which is reminiscent of much of the 80's synth pop that I am so fond of, but in the context of a much more rap-oriented selection of tracks, I felt the instrumental was a better fit. I love the "jam" feel of it. Around the 3 minute mark, you can really hear the abrupt cuts and edits that only really happen when you record music live, as opposed to automating things like we do these days.

Don't Stop The Rock - 'Freestyle' (Music Specialists, 1985)

The other electro track from that same CD was this one. I can probably count on one hand the amount of times I've heard this track played in a club, and three of those happened in Miami. When it appeared in a famous Dairy Milk advert, I was eternally gutted (in the most hipster way of thinking) that it somehow no longer secretly belonged to me. None the less, it's still one of my favourites. I have special memories of listening to it on my Sony Discman at full volume on the 109 bus, in hope that somebody would hear what I was listening to and think, "That guy is listening to some fucking cool music". I was one of those kids that everyone on the train wants to strangle.

Man Parrish feat. Freeze Force - 'Boogie Down' (Sugarscoop Records, 1984)

This one absolutely kills me. The synth lines have such a swagger to them, and the arrangements never get boring. I'm a sucker for an arpeggio too, which is probably where my love for electro-funk comes from in the first place. Records like this still feel fresh, particularly at a time where the drum machine has seen a resurgence in music production.

Hashim - 'Al Naafiysh (The Soul)' (Cutting Records, 1983)

One of the best things I found on the internet in the early days was a recording of Tim Westwood on pirate radio in the 80s, on which he played this record and spouted some trademark Westwood jargon over it. I wanted to know what it was called for years, and stumbled across it on a DJ mix probably around 2009. I managed to get a vinyl copy of it, which ended up on solid rotation when it arrived at my house. This one is all about the bass line, and that classic pad line that sneaks in every now and then.

The Unknown DJ - '808 Beats (Eight Hundred And Eight Beats) (Club Mix)' (Macola Record Co., 1984)

The drums on this one are sick. It's very reminiscent of much of the pop music from the mid 80s, and has a nice progression on it too. It's quite simple compared to a lot of the vocal stuff from this era; many were a were a little too loose or had too many effects on them for me, but this one gets it just right. It's a fun track to mix as well - so many variations on the instrumental sections, and plenty of space on the intro and outro.

Cybotron - 'Clear' (Fantasy, 1983)

This was one of the first tracks I found when I started doing my research on the sound. It's a classic from Juan Atkins under the Cybotron alias. Famously sampled by Missy Elliott for 'Lose Control', this is one of the most recognisable tracks of its time - and one is probably my favourite arpeggio of all time.

Twilight 22 - 'Electric Kingdom (Instrumental - Dub Version)' (Vanguard, 1983)

This one starts out like many of the electro records that have come before and after it, but this gets into my list for what happens from 3:30 onwards. That crazy old time piano riff? That has an almost Arabian vibe to it? It's so good. On the flip is a vocal version which has the feel of a public service announcement to bettering your life - in a rap, obviously. Fun fact: Gordon Bahary who produced the record was advised by his label to release this under an alias - to hide the fact that he was white.

Afrika Bambaataa & The Soulsonic Force - 'Looking For The Perfect Beat (Instrumental)' (21 Records, 1983)

This is a masterpiece. As good as the vocal is at capturing the time, it makes it difficult to hear the brilliance of the synth work. Every riff is a banger. It's also another track that's been heavily sampled by hip hop records since its release in 1983.

World Class Wreckin' Cru - 'Surgery' (Kru-Cut Records, 1984)

This one makes the list purely to share the Dr Dre vocal. It's definitely the oldest Dre record I own. It's hard to believe this is Dre pre-Gangsta era; being so familiar with his NWA records, and his solo works after that. In UK terms, this is like going back and listening to Da Click - 'Good Rhymes' after hearing Dizzee Rascal Boy In Da Corner.

Dynamix II - 'Just Give The DJ A Break' (Cooltempo, 1987)

Play this one loud, and from the edge. That first kick is SO tough! There are so many fun elements to this track, and I'm particularly fond of The Whispers sample dropping in mid way through the record. Dynamix II could have featured a few times in this list, but this one is definitely my favourite from them.

Catch Plastician and many, many more at the Rinse FM Easter Party, April 17 @ Fabric. Full lineup and tickets here.

You can follow Plastician on Twitter here: @djplastician