The early 1980s saw an explosion of new bands keen to exploit the new technology of the day: the affordable synthesizer. Soon Top Of The Pops, Smash Hits and Radio 1 were all full of this new wave of bands; with their hair, their make-up, their new-romanticism and most importantly their synthetic sounds. Fast-forward 30 years and they’re back: releasing new albums, hitting the road again and reminding the 40-somethings of their teenage school disco days.  Whether you consider this a retro sell-out or not is moot: many of those old dogs have returned with a vengeance, releasing some great new albums that easily sit up there with the very best from their heyday. Here is a selection of twenty bands who were big in the 80s, featuring one old album and one new from each artist, and all with Spotify links where available!

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