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From Technology to “Techno”

Musician David Byrne in his studio

Digital recording and synthesizers allowed music studios to shrink. David Byrne, lead singer of the Talking Heads, set this one up at home.

From Technology to “Techno”

Listen to a 1980s hit song and there’s a good chance you’re listening to something generated electronically.

Many ‘80s Techno bands such as The Human League, Ultravox, and Gary Numan adopted the electronic sound. Synthesizers and samples became integral to groups such as Depeche Mode, The Buggles, Erasure, and other groups.

Kraftwerk in concert

German band Kraftwerk is often cited as the first group to popularize electronic rock music. Founded in 1970, it revolutionized rock music with its use of electronic percussion, synthesizers, drum machines, and computers.

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Duran Duran's "Rio"

Duran Duran was among the most popular of the synthpop bands. The musical genre of synthpop is characterized by its embrace of boldly artificial instrument sounds and exploration of the rhythmic capabilities of early synthesizers.

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