When choosing subject matter for Randy's Rodeo, I've decided a few times to write about artists that aren't particularly favorites of mine but that, through force of history, compel my attention. Art Of Noise is just such an artist, not so much due to their success (which was modest) but their influence. Art Of Noise helped bridge the gap between new wave in the 80's and electronica in the 90's; they took the best elements of the electronic experimentalists of the 70's (e.g. Kraftwerk) and mixed it with the hip hop and modern rock, then translated it into their own high-tech language (which included a lot of sampling, found sounds, and, yes, noises). To modern ears, their music sounds irresistible but insubstantial - bordering on (sometimes wallowing in) novelty. But, in historical context, Art Of Noise produced jarringly innovative work, and the worlds of alternative rock, electronic dance - even rhythm & blues - took it to heart.

Led by experienced producers Trevor Horn (Buggles, Yes) and Anne Dudley (Frankie Goes To Hollywood, ABC), Art Of Noise began as pure avant garde, creating music that was challenging, subversive, and great fun to dance to. Songs like "Beat Box" and "Close (To The Edit)" were state-of-the-art electropop, and their debut album, (Who's Afraid Of?) The Art Of Noise! (1984) is a classic of the genre. This is the stuff that made them forerunners of Moby, Fatboy Slim, Prodigy (who sampled them on "Firestarter"), and literally an entire generation of cut-and-splice dancefloor gurus.

(Who's Afraid Of?) The Art Of Noise! (or an expanded, 1987 version called Daft) collects a variety of singles and EP tracks into a neat, revolutionary package that culminates a discrete portion of the group's career. This phase ended with Trevor Horn's departure, and things devolved very quickly after that.

Art Of Noise's next album, In Visible Silence (1986) was, in some ways, more ambitious and cohesive. But, while the group continued their wild, cross-genre experimentation, they began to lose their creative spark and rely more upon gimmickry than innovation. In Visible Silence included an injudiciously trendy track ("Paranoimia") featuring MTV's virtual celebrity Max Headroom - fun song, stupid concept - and by the time AON waxed their irritating remake of "Dragnet" for the brutally horrible film of the same name (included on In No Sense? Nonsense!), things had reached crisis mode.

Not all was amiss, however. These later singles also included wildly successful collaborations with 60's icons Duane Eddy (a remake of his version of Henry Mancini's "Peter Gunn") and Tom Jones (a killer version of Prince's "Kiss"). And, taken in their entirety, Art Of Noise's second and third albums are fine. But, the group had lost their edge and - depending on who you believe - were either pandering to pop culture or creating high camp.

Nearly all of their singles - mainly in 12-inch remixes or full-length album versions - are available on the original 1988 edition of The Best Of Art Of Noise which, unfortunately, may be tough to track down; look for the blue cover issued on the China/Polygram label. Nevertheless, try to avoid the 1992 edition - released by Discovery/WEA with a pink cover - with its markedly inferior track selection. To confuse matters further, the set was reissued again in 1997 by Sire/London with yet a different track listing, but that edition (click here) is still in print as of this writing.

Following the ambient twaddle of Below The Waste (1989), the group disbanded in 1990. A seemingly endless string of collections and remix albums would soon follow, including The Ambient Collection (1990), The Drum and Bass Collection (1996), the rave-oriented Fon Mixes (1997), and, in the UK, an SACD called Reconstructed... For Your Listening Pleasure (2004). Leader Anne Dudley went on wax several acclaimed albums, most notably the exotic Songs From The Victorious City (1991) with Killing Joke's Jaz Coleman.

In the late 90's, spurred perhaps by their newfound status as techno pioneers, Art Of Noise reformed, releasing The Seduction of Claude Debussy in 1999. In 2006, ZTT Records released And What Have You Done With My Body, God?, a fan-oriented box set containing three CD's and a DVD compiling 56 songs and videos (41 previously unreleased). [top of page]