"Electricity" | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Single by Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark | ||||
from the album Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark | ||||
B-side | "Almost" | |||
Released | 21 May 1979 | |||
Format | 7" vinyl | |||
Recorded |
|
|||
Genre | ||||
Length | 3:32 | |||
Label | ||||
Songwriter(s) | ||||
Producer(s) |
|
|||
Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark singles chronology | ||||
|
"Electricity" is the 1979 debut single of the English group Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark, featured on their eponymous debut album the following year. Inspired by Kraftwerk's "Radioactivity", the song addresses society's wasteful usage of energy sources. Andy McCluskey and Paul Humphreys share lead vocals on the track. As with single "Messages", from the same album, the band embraced the concept of machines singing the song's chorus.
It was on the strength of "Electricity" that the band were offered a recording contract with Dindisc, who twice re-issued the single. In 2012, "Electricity" peaked at no. 126 in the French charts.
Vince Clarke of Erasure (and formerly chief songwriter of Depeche Mode, Yazoo and The Assembly) has cited "Electricity" as his primary inspiration to pursue a career in electronic music, while BBC Radio's Steve Lamacq has named it as the track that made him want to become a DJ.
After OMD's first concert, opening for Joy Division in a 1978 appearance at Eric's Club in Liverpool, McCluskey was inspired to send a demo of the song to Factory Records founder Tony Wilson. They later heard that while he was not impressed with it, his wife was, so he bought it from them and released it as a single. Its ensuing success led to them receiving a seven-album record deal worth £250,000.