{"id":10042098,"date":"2025-07-30T08:26:16","date_gmt":"2025-07-30T12:26:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/vanyaland.com\/?p=10042098"},"modified":"2025-07-30T10:47:47","modified_gmt":"2025-07-30T14:47:47","slug":"617-qa-richard-blade-on-depeche-mode-brazilian-jazz-and-why-the-80s-still-resonate","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/vanyaland.com\/2025\/07\/30\/617-qa-richard-blade-on-depeche-mode-brazilian-jazz-and-why-the-80s-still-resonate\/","title":{"rendered":"617 Q&A: Richard Blade on Depeche Mode, Brazilian jazz, and why the ’80s still resonate"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\u201cNostalgia\u201d is always a big buzzword, looking in the rearview when things were supposedly simpler \u2013 like right now with the \u201890s. It could manifest as a movie<\/a> evocative of the decade or one that\u2019s straight-up banking on the legacy of a franchise<\/a>. Maybe it\u2019s a Britpop band<\/a> singlehandedly thrusting the genre back into the spotlight. Sometimes, albeit rarely, it\u2019s an act who\u2019ve decided to release an entire album of covers<\/a> from the year they themselves peaked in popularity.    <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then there\u2019s the \u201880s, which have somehow stopped being nostalgic, instead turning into an era that is always in fashion. Dress up a party as a themed event that doubles as an excuse to get decked out in all things neon or stonewashed jeans, but the irony of busting a move to Young MC suddenly doesn\u2019t seem like such a laugh when everyone is legit into it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Take, for instance, Lost 80\u2019s Live<\/a><\/strong>, which has been going on for well over 20 years and bills itself as North America\u2019s longest-running retro music tour. Headlined by A Flock of Seagulls, the 2025 edition cabbage patches into The Wang this Friday (August 1), with support from a laundry list of new wave one and two-hit wonders like The Vapors (\u201cTurning Japanese\u201d), Big Country (\u201cIn a Big Country\u201d), General Public (\u201cTenderness\u201d), and many more. And if you\u2019re going to throw an \u201880s party, there\u2019s no better host than UK export Richard Blade<\/a><\/strong>, who came up introducing the masses to all those artists in the first place as a DJ at the iconic Los Angeles radio station KROQ beginning in 1982 and continues as a torchbearer on SiriusXM\u2019s 1st<\/sup> Wave station six days a week.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The legendary Blade, who saw an expanded edition of his most excellent, bestselling 2017 memoir World in My Eyes<\/a><\/em> land on shelves last November, will be MCing and DJing Lost 80\u2019s Live on Friday. Ahead of the night, he sat down with Vanyaland<\/em> for a 617 Q&A (Six Questions; One Recommendation; Seven Somethings<\/a>) to discuss the continuing appeal of the decade, \u201880s artists that should\u2019ve been bigger, and which songs he’d play for someone who\u2019s never heard Depeche Mode<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

:: SIX QUESTIONS<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Michael Christopher: What is it about \u201880s music that keeps finding new fans generation after generation?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Richard Blade: I think it’s because \u201880s music was fun. At the time when I started playing it, I didn’t know if it would have the longevity, the legs. In fact, I asked Howard Jones if he thought at the time he was making just disposable pop music, and he went, \u201cWow, no one’s ever asked me that,\u201d because that’s what I thought it was. And then when the \u201890s rolled around and I started hearing the music change, I realized how good the \u201880s music was. And I think when you compare it with today’s music, there’s a few great artists out there; like Ed Sheeran is fantastic. Harry Styles is proving to be great. Taylor Swift, of course, singer\/songwriter, even though she’s incredibly commercially successful; if you look at her songs, they’re great.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But so much of today’s music, and I hate to sound like my parents, is not that great. It’s all Auto-Tuned and sampled, and it’s almost fallen into the Hollywood clich\u00e9 of just remaking and doing a sequel. And that’s what today’s music feels like. It doesn’t feel innovative and new, whereas \u201880s music was<\/em> new, and when I would be doing private parties, quite often I’d see a group of 14-year-olds walk up to me and make requests. And I’m like, \u201cOkay, here it comes, DJ Khaled, and Nelly and… And they would say, \u201cYeah, could we play DJ Khaled, but could you also play A-ha ‘Take on Me’ and Duran Duran ‘Rio’? And I’m like, “Wow!” And when I would play these songs, the kids knew every word. And so, it was like there was something special about the \u201880s music. It transcends generations. It speaks to people who just enjoy a good song.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You\u2019re responsible for exposing so many people to these acts in the first place. And I’m wondering if, when you do tours like this and you’re presenting the bands live, do you see it as being sort of an extension of what you did originally? First, you presented them sonically via the radio to people, and now there’s the visual element.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yes, I do actually feel that way \u2013 now you ask. I’ve never really thought about it that way, but you are absolutely right. In a way, it is, and for a lot of the audience, they will know the songs, but they’ve never had the chance to see the artists before. For example, Peter Godwin hasn’t toured in America for 35 years. Belouis Some has only just come over this year for the first time since, I think, Frankie Goes to Hollywood when he opened for Frankie back in late 1984. And Icicle Works the same thing. So, I think for the people it is that visual element and they’re waiting for the song, but to have the actual performer themselves rather than a tribute band or an \u201880s cover band do it is going to be something very special.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Do the \u201880s remain sort of a static decade for you? Like, do you get just as excited about, say, a new Flock of Seagulls release as you did back in the day? Or is it more along the lines of, \u201cI have to play this new single by them, but I know that people are going to be asking for this or that instead.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Well, it all depends how good the song is. Limahl, from Kajagoogoo, just did a cover of America’s \u201cA Horse with No Name\u201d and it is fantastic. I do a feature once a week called \u201cNew Sensation\u201d where I play a brand-new song from a 1st<\/sup> wave artist, and I back it up with their classics. So obviously I started with \u201cToo Shy\u201d and then I went into \u201cHorse with No Name,\u201d but I said, \u201cThis is one of the best new sensations I’ve played in 15 years.\u201d He’s taken a song that everyone knows, and he’s put a twist on it without losing the actual song itself. And it got me really, really excited. But I do get excited if it’s good. Berlin have released a couple of albums I’ve really enjoyed. In 2015, New Order put out Music Complete<\/em>, which was their last original album. And that was brilliant. The Pet Shop Boys consistently put out great albums. So, when it\u2019s good, I\u2019m pumped for it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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