Vince Clarke of Depeche Mode and Erasure has formed Doublespeak with Blancmange's Neil Arthur and producer Benge to release a self-titled album of analog synth covers. The project reimagines tracks by ABBA, the Carpenters and others, with a first single shared on March 25. The album arrives May 29 on London Records.
Vince Clarke, known for his work with Depeche Mode, Erasure and Yazoo, has collaborated with Neil Arthur of Blancmange and electronic producer Benge on a new covers project called Doublespeak. The trio's self-titled debut album features analog synth renditions of songs spanning post-punk, pop and beyond, including ABBA's 'The Visitors,' the Carpenters' 'Goodbye to Love,' Young Marble Giants' 'Brand New Life,' Fad Gadget's 'Back to Nature' and the Magnetic Fields' 'Smoke and Mirrors.' The full 11-track list also covers the Sound, David Essex, Thomas Leer and Robert Rental, John Hartford, Ed Dowie and Laptop. It is set for release on May 29 via London Records, with pre-orders available now. On March 25, Doublespeak shared their version of Fad Gadget's 'Back to Nature,' the second single ever released by Mute Records in 1979. The project originated in 2017 when Arthur proposed reworking favorite songs from the past four decades with Clarke, later enlisting Benge, who had co-produced six Blancmange albums and worked on Arthur's Fader project. Clarke described the songs as feeling 'like brilliant new songs that you want to get your hands on' in a press statement. 'I’ve had people do cover versions of my songs and honestly there’s no better tribute. So that’s what we wanted to do here,' he added. Arthur noted, 'What’s really stood out for us on this journey is how good these songs are.' Benge said, 'It was the excitement of hearing these great songs re-synthesized into new forms in the studio. It was such an honour to be part of it.' The album serves as a 'shadow autobiography' of their musical education, as the trio described it. Clarke recently released his solo LP Songs of Silence in 2023, following Erasure's The Neon in 2020 and Day-Glo (Based on a True Story) in 2022. Arthur mourned the death of Blancmange co-founder Stephen Luscombe in September at age 70.
