As he prepares to release a new album as part of Doublespeak – a synth-pop super-covers-band that also includes Benge and Blancmange’s Neil Arthur – electronic music legend Vince Clarke has been talking to MusicRadar about some of the classic analogue instruments that have defined his career.
“I just like that sound,” he says. “The beauty for me of using a lot of the analogue stuff is the fact that it's very hands-on, it's very kind of tactile. You're not just using a mouse, and I really get a lot of pleasure out of that whole process. The best bit of making music is the process, absolutely. It's not listening to the record afterwards, it's actually the craft of building something from nothing.”
When it comes down to it, though, what would be Vince’s favourite synth of all time.
“The [Sequential] Pro 1,” he replies quickly. “I bought one in 1984 – I'm looking at it now, still the same one. I mean, it's been, you know, in lots of different cities around the world, and I plugged it in in my little setup the other day, bracing myself, and the bloody thing was in tune! I couldn't believe it. Amazing! I mean, it's nothing like as complex as modern synthesizers, but it's got knobs, you know? And I can actually carry it, as opposed to the [Roland] JP-4.”
Asked whether he’s kept all of his favourite synths, Clarke says that he still has “the stuff I use,” but has got rid of some things.
“I've got a bit of that collector's mindset, but then I realised it would be much better in the hands of someone who used it, as opposed to someone that just showed off and said, 'well, I've got an ARP 2600,'” he reckons.
And finally, Eurorack, does he have a million modules? No, it turns out.
“Martin [Gore, Depeche Mode] did say something actually, when we were talking about it [Eurorack] like, 'you know it's addictive', but at the end of the day I didn't find that,” he explains. “I mean, he's got like 17 million modules or something crazy, you know. I've got maybe 30 or 40 and that's enough!”
Look out for MusicRadar’s full Doublespeak interview soon. Their eponymous debut album is out on 29 May.
