Suicide (band)



From the name you'd probably assume they're a Heavy Metal band. But, in fact, Suicide has been an incredibly influential electronic Punk Rock band. Besides the fact that they were the first to use the phrase "punk music" to advertise one of their concerts way back in 1970, their "synthpunk" style proved to be an enormous influence on Synth Pop, Techno, Industrial and many other electronics-based styles.

Suicide was formed back in 1971 by artist-turned-vocalist Alan Vega and multi-instrumentalist Martin Rev. After gaining some attention for their confrontational antics in concerts, they finally got around to releasing their first album Suicide in 1977. At this point, their sound was largely defined by Vega's rockabilly-styled, creepy vocals and Rev's minimal arrangements, which consisted of primitive drum machines and simple, endlessly repetitive keyboard riffs, played initially on a broken Farfisa organ before he could actually afford a synth. During this time they also released a famous live recording, 23 Minutes Over Brussels, which showed a Suicide concert degenerating into a riot.

By the time of their second Self-Titled Album in 1980, they hooked up with Ric Ocasek as a Record Producer. Consequently, their second album was slightly more accessible and Synth Pop-oriented than their nightmarish debut. Afterwards, Suicide lay dormant for a long time as Vega and Rev released solo albums - the most high-profile thing Vega did in this period was to contribute to The Sisterhood's album Gift. During their long hiatus they began to be recognised as an important influence on electronic and Alternative Rock music. They've come together every once in a while to release new albums, but most of these are a great big Your Mileage May Vary.

Beside heavily influencing electronic music, Suicide have also had a major influence on various rock artists as varied as Joy Division, Radiohead, and most notably Bruce Springsteen, whose critically acclaimed album Nebraska clearly showed their influence.

Discography:
 * Suicide (1977)
 * 23 Minutes Over Brussels (1978) - live album
 * Suicide (1980) - later reissues include the 1975 rehearsal tapes as a second disc
 * Half Alive (1981) - live album with additional demo recordings
 * Ghost Riders (1986) - live album
 * A Way of Life (1988)
 * Why Be Blue? (1992/2005) - issued in two formats; the original Y Be Blue was produced by Ocasek, and Rev completely remixed the album for the 2005 reissue.
 * American Supreme (2002)
 * Live 1977-1978 (2008)

Tropes:

 * Careful with That Axe: "Frankie Teardrop".
 * Epic Rocking: "Frankie Teardrop," "Dream Baby Dream."
 * Murder Ballad: "Frankie Teardrop".
 * Pater Familicide: "Frankie Teardrop" again.
 * Ur Example: For Synth Pop and Industrial.