Erasure 163546 225397368 2008-07-13T13:44:27Z TheRedPenOfDoom 5745932 /* External links */ tidy {{Otheruses}} {{Infobox musical artist | <!-- See Wikipedia:WikiProject Musicians --> | Name = Erasure | Img = Erasure-andy-vince-wolfgangs-np.jpg | Img_capt = Erasure ([[Andy Bell]] and [[Vince Clarke]]) in [[San Francisco]], [[California|CA]] in May 1986 | Background = group_or_band | Alias = | Origin = [[England]] | Genre = [[Synthpop]], [[Dance music|Dance]], [[Pop Rock]] | Years_active = 1985–present | Label = [[Mute Records]] | Associated_acts = | URL = http://erasureinfo.com | Current_members = [[Vince Clarke]]<br>[[Andy Bell (singer)|Andy Bell]] | Past_members = }} '''Erasure''' is an [[England|English]] [[synth pop]] [[Duet (music)|duo]] formed by [[songwriter]] and [[keyboardist]] [[Vince Clarke]] and [[singer]] [[Andy Bell (singer)|Andy Bell]] in [[1985]]. It was the third successful pop group co-formed by Clarke ([[Depeche Mode]] and [[Yazoo (band)|Yazoo]] being the first two). Erasure released twenty-four consecutive Top 20 hits in the United Kingdom and sold 25 million albums worldwide <ref>.[http://remixmag.com/mag/remix_erasure/ Erasure<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> The band also enjoys popularity within the [[LGBT]] community, with openly homosexual Andy Bell being regarded a [[gay icon]].<ref>[http://outandaboutnewspaper.com/article.php?id=468 Out & About - Living: Erasure gay icon Andy Bell talks with O&AN<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref> == 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 43rd 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 still remains Erasure's only hit to date). Their fourth single, [[Sometimes (Erasure song)|"Sometimes"]], peaked at number 2 and spent many weeks in the UK Top 40. The album ''[[The Circus (album)|The Circus]]'', turned platinum in the UK with three additional hit singles - "[[It Doesn't Have To Be]]", "[[Victim of Love (song)|Victim of Love]]" and "[[The Circus (song)|The Circus]]". It remained on the charts for over a year. The third album, ''[[The Innocents (album)|The Innocents]]'', was released in 1988. Preceded by the Top 10 single "[[Ship of Fools (Erasure song)|Ship of Fools]]", the album hit number one in the UK on its initial release and returned to popularity a year later, eventually going triple platinum. It also turned platinum in the U.S., generating two Top 20 hits in "[[Chains of Love (Erasure song)|Chains of Love]]" and "[[A Little Respect]]". ''The Innocents'' was the first of five consecutive number one albums for Erasure in the UK - an achievement unmatched by any of their contemporaries.{{Fact|date=May 2008}} ''[[Wild!]]'' in 1989 and ''[[Chorus (Erasure album)|Chorus]]'' in 1991 both contained four Top 20 singles. In late 1988, an EP, ''[[Crackers International]]'', led by the song "Stop!", hit number two in the UK singles chart. This was bettered in 1992 by another EP, ''[[Abba-esque]]'', covering four [[ABBA]] hits, which became Erasure's first 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 (Erasure song)|Always]]" became the band's third Top 20 hit in the United States. The 1995 release of the album ''[[Erasure (album)|Erasure]]'' marked a determined shift away from their 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 (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 lasted only two weeks on the UK Top 40. In [[2000]], the album ''[[Loveboat]]'' was released, peaking at number 45. The [[2003]] release ''[[Other People's Songs]]'' was a collection of [[cover version]]s such as the first single from the album, [[Peter Gabriel]]'s song "[[Solsbury Hill (song)|Solsbury Hill]]" which reached number ten in the UK Singles Chart. Erasure were invited to perform on ''[[Top of the Pops]]'' for the first time since March 1997.{{Fact|date=May 2008}} Erasure's [[2005]] album ''[[Nightbird]]'''s first single, "[[Breathe (Erasure song)|Breathe]]", reached number four in the UK charts (their first Top 5 hit in more than a decade) and achieved the number one position on the [[Hot Dance Club Play|U.S. Dance Chart]], eighteen years after their first chart-topper. The next single, "[[Don't Say You Love Me]]," enabled purchasers to configure their own remixes of the single through the band's website, with each variant of the song limited to a single download.{{Fact|date=May 2008}} ''[[Union Street (album)|Union Street]]'' was a [[2006]] side-project which featured a collection of previously released album tracks that the band reinterpreted in an [[acoustic]]/[[country & western]] style. The album was named after the [[recording studio]] in [[Brooklyn]] where it was recorded.{{Fact|date=May 2008}} [[Image:Andy, Vince, and the ladies.jpg|thumb|250px|left|Erasure on tour in 2007]] The duo then released a more 'dance oriented' album than some of their more recent work. Titled ''[[Light at the End of the World]]'', the album was produced by [[Gareth Jones (music producer)|Gareth Jones]] and was released on [[21 May]] [[2007]] in the UK, and in North America the following day. The album was preceded by its first single "[[I Could Fall in Love with You]]" in April and a second single, "[[Sunday Girl (song)|Sunday Girl]]", was released in June.<ref>[http://www.side-line.com/news_comments.php?id=23656_0_2_0_C New Erasure single "Sunday Girl" out now]</ref>. Vince Clarke has stated in radio interviews that the band wants to complete the concept album of [[nursery rhymes]] that they have been working on for some time.<ref>[http://www.erasure.ru/eng/interview08.html Interview with Erasure]</ref> Vince Clarke said in an interview co-insiding with the reunion of Yazoo with Alison Moyet, that Andy Bell is writing new material for a solo album with Stephen Hague (who Erasure worked with in 1988 on 'The Innocents' album) which will be released later this year and Erasure won't be writing any new material until the middle of 2009. <ref> [http://www.erasureinfo.com/features/interviews.html Interview on erasureinfo.com] </ref> ==True Colors tour== During the summer of 2007 Erasure was a part of the multi-artist [[True Colors Tour 2007|True Colors Tour]]<ref>[http://www.truecolorstour.com True Colors Tour | Home<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>, which traveled through 15 cities in the United States and Canada. The tour, sponsored by the [[Logo (TV channel)|Logo]] channel, began on [[June 8]], 2007. Hosted by comedian [[Margaret Cho]] and headlined by [[Cyndi Lauper]], the tour also included [[Deborah Harry]], [[The Gossip]], [[Rufus Wainwright]], [[The Dresden Dolls]], [[MisShapes|The MisShapes]], [[Rosie O'Donnell]], [[Indigo Girls]], [[The Cliks]] and other special guests. Profits from the tour helped to benefit the [[Human Rights Campaign]] as well as [[PFLAG]] and The [[Matthew Shepard Foundation]]. Erasure performed alongside many of the other guests for the [[encore (concert)|encore]] song, "[[True Colors (song)|True Colors]]". == Discography == {{main|Erasure discography|List of Erasure B-sides and non-album songs}} ==See also== *[[List of number-one dance hits (United States)]] *[[List of artists who reached number one on the US Dance chart]] <!-- ==References== <references/> --> ==External links== {{Commonscat}} *[http://www.erasureinfo.com Official Erasure website] ==References== {{reflist}} {{Erasure}} [[Category:English musical groups]] [[Category:English dance music groups]] [[Category:British house music groups]] [[Category:British electronic music groups]] [[Category:Electronic music duos]] [[Category:Disco groups]] [[Category:Synthpop]] [[Category:1980s music groups]] [[Category:1990s music groups]] [[Category:2000s music groups]] [[be:Erasure]] [[be-x-old:Erasure]] [[br:Erasure]] [[bg:Ирейжър]] [[cs:Erasure]] [[da:Erasure]] [[de:Erasure]] [[et:Erasure]] [[el:Erasure]] [[es:Erasure]] [[eo:Erasure]] [[fr:Erasure]] [[hr:Erasure]] [[id:Erasure]] [[is:Erasure]] [[it:Erasure]] [[he:אירייז'ר]] [[lv:Erasure]] [[lt:Erasure]] [[hu:Erasure]] [[nl:Erasure]] [[ja:イレイジャー]] [[no:Erasure]] [[uz:Erasure]] [[pl:Erasure]] [[pt:Erasure]] [[ro:Erasure]] [[ru:Erasure]] [[sq:Erasure]] [[sk:Erasure]] [[sr:Erasure]] [[fi:Erasure]] [[sv:Erasure]] [[tr:Erasure]] [[uk:Erasure]]