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On this day. 1 June 1984. Electro-pop band Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark played Cardiff’s St David’s Hall.
Formed in Wirral, Merseyside, in 1978. The group consists of co-founders Andy McCluskey (vocals, bass guitar) and Paul Humphreys (keyboards, vocals), along with Martin Cooper (various instruments) and Stuart Kershaw (drums); McCluskey has been the only constant member.
Regarded as pioneers of electronic music, OMD combined an experimental, minimalist ethos with pop sensibilities, becoming central figures in the late-1970s/early-1980s emergence of synth-pop.
The band’s fifth album release Junk Culture was a shift to a more pop-style sound and the band used digital sampling keyboards such as the Fairlight CMI and the E-mu Emulator.
The album was a success, reassuring the group about their new direction.
The "Locomotion" single returned the group to the top five in the UK and was an indicator of the group's newfound sound, notably the adoption of a classic verse–chorus form, which is something the group had often previously avoided.
Record Mirror readers named OMD the eighth-best live act of 1984.
Set list
Junk Culture
Tesla Girls
Messages
Love and Violence
Julia's Song
Motion and Heart
White Trash
Apollo
Never Turn Away
Joan of Arc
Maid of Orleans
Talking Loud and Clear
Hard Day
Souvenir
Telegraph
Bunker Soldiers
Enola Gay
Locomotion
She's Leaving
Electricity
Waiting for the Man
Locomotion
