Erasure are an English synthpop duo formed by songwriter and keyboardist Vince Clarke and singer Andy Bell in 1985. It was the third successful pop group co-formed by Clarke (Depeche Mode and Yazoo being the first two). Labeled "the definitive synthpop superstars", Erasure achieved twenty-four consecutive Top 20 hits in the United Kingdom between 1986 and 1997 and have sold 25 million albums worldwide. The band also enjoys popularity within the GLBT community, with openly gay Andy Bell regarded a gay icon.
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Erasure are an English synthpop duo formed by songwriter and keyboardist Vince Clarke and singer Andy Bell in 1985. It was the third successful pop group co-formed by Clarke (Depeche Mode and Yazoo being the first two). Labeled "the definitive synthpop superstars", Erasure achieved twenty-four consecutive Top 20 hits in the United Kingdom between 1986 and 1997 and have sold 25 million albums worldwide. The band also enjoys popularity within the GLBT community, with openly gay Andy Bell regarded a gay icon.
History
In the mid-1980s, Vince Clarke placed an advertisement in Melody Maker, looking for a vocalist for a new musical project. He selected Andy Bell, who was the 36th to audition.
Erasure's first three singles were commercial failures in the UK, although the third, "Oh L'amour", charted well in Australia and some European countries (especially in France, where it remains Erasure's only hit). The duo's breakthrough came with their fourth single, "Sometimes", which peaked at number 2 and spent many weeks in the UK Top 40. The parent album The Circus, hit number 6 and turned platinum in the UK with three additional hit singles - "It Doesn't Have To Be", "Victim of Love" and "The Circus". The album remained on the charts for over a year.
Erasure's third album, The Innocents, was released in 1988. Preceded by the Top 10 single "Ship of Fools", the album hit number one in the UK on its initial release and returned to the summit a year later, eventually going triple platinum. It also turned platinum in the U.S., generating two Top 20 hits in "Chains of Love" and "A Little Respect".
The Innocents was the first of five consecutive number one albums for Erasure in the UK. Wild! (1989) and Chorus (1991) both contained four Top 20 singles and were big sellers.
In late 1988, the Crackers International EP, led by the song "Stop!", hit number 2 in the UK singles chart. This was bettered in 1992 by another EP, Abba-esque, covering four ABBA hits, which became Erasure's first (and to date only) number one in the UK Singles Chart. Later that year, a singles compilation, Pop! - the First 20 Hits, also hit number one and went triple platinum.
In 1994, Erasure released I Say I Say I Say, their fifth consecutive number one in the UK Albums Chart. Its first single, "Always", became the band's third Top 20 hit in the United States.
The 1995 release of the album Erasure marked a determined shift away from Erasure's signature three-minute synth-pop to a more introspective sound. Or: date=May 2008
In spite of a return to three-minute pop songs, the 1997 album Cowboy did not restore the success of their 1986-1994 era. Cowboy enjoyed a short-lived success, peaking at number ten in the UK but lasting only two weeks in the UK Top 40.
In 2000, the album Loveboat was released, peaking at a lowly number 45.
