Yaz

The band's debut album from 1982 contains the hits, "Don't Go" and "Situation." It's the best summation of Vince Clarke's addictive synth pop songwriting and Alison Moyet's strong, strutting vocal talents. "Bad Connection" is a brilliant pop song and the entire album remains a great example of soul brought to a usually cold medium.

Upstairs at Eric's is one of those maddening albums with a lot of good ideas but only a few
great cuts. Essentially a studio-based entity, combining the synthesizers and electronic
wizardry of former Depeche Mode member Vince Clarke with the voice and piano of
Genevieve Alison Moyet, Yaz first popped up in America under the name Yazoo with an
infectious piece of techno-funk called "Situation." Driven by a buoyantly percol... More >

If Depeche Mode, the most bloodless synth-DOR unit this side of the German Federal Republic, can spin off such a soulful second generation, all is not lost. A tape-layered playlet does disfigure side one, but better godawful than bland, and before you complain about Vince Clarke's hackneyed take on modern romance you ought to remember that he only rejoined the human race a few months ago. I like to imagine that the agent of his salvation was new-age tough mama Alf Moyet, who can make any romantic cliché moderately credible. And I know for sure that the agent of her salvation is Clarke, whose spare, bright, intriguing, juicy electrocomp makes the credible compelling. (Grade - B+)