Stuff You Gotta Watch: Synth Britannia
"Welcome to a time when machines ruled the world," director and narrator Ben Wholley says at the beginning of Synth Britannia, introducing the fascinating story of the rise and rise of the electronic synthesizer in British music.
The tale, of course, begins with (the American) Wendy Carlos and her revolutionary soundtrack for (the British classic film) A Clockwork Orange, which helped bridge the gap between futuristic charm and contemporary relevance. As artists like Kraftwerk and Giorgio Moroder added to a rejection of prog's trademark virtuosity in favor of a warmer immediacy, the synthesizer soon embarked on a journey to mainstream pop. And, by the early '80s, it dominated the British charts.
Conceived under the extensive "Britannia" umbrella of documentaries, this film focuses on that threshold moment in the late '70s when the synthesizer managed to crossover from a somewhat nerdy exclusivity to virtually universal access. The dizzying voyage is juxtaposed with a series of social and political changes in the U.K., while key musicians such as Gary Numan, Philip Oakey, Neil Tennant, Cosey Fanni Tutti, and many others explain how it felt to be at the center of a sonic hurricane.
Review by Ana Leorne. Check out the full archive of the Stuff You Gotta Watch column.