Telekon

''Telekon'' is the second solo studio album by the English new wave musician Gary Numan. It debuted at the top of the UK Albums Chart in September 1980, making it his third consecutive (and to date, final) No. 1 album. It was also the third and final studio release of what Numan retrospectively termed the "machine" section of his career, following ''Replicas'' and '' The Pleasure Principle'' (both 1979).

Music and lyrics

In contrast to Numan's previous album '' The Pleasure Principle'', ''Telekon'' featured heavy use of guitars and a richer, more complex sound with a broadened use of different synthesizers in combination with viola and violin. The album's sound ranges from heavier tracks such as "I'm an Agent" and "The Joy Circuit" to more sombre, melancholic songs such as "Sleep by Windows" and "Remember I Was Vapour". Lyrically the album mixed dystopian themes on tracks such as "I Dream of Wires" and "The Joy Circuit", with more personal lyrics such as "Remind Me to Smile" and "Please Push No More" that dealt with Numan's feelings about his sudden fame and relationship with his fans. Several songs such as "Remember I Was Vapour" and "Please Push No More" suggests a goodbye, hinting at Numan's retirement from live work a few months later. "The whole album's got that little hint of goodbye in it", Numan confirmed in a 1981 interview, "In 'This Wreckage' the Japanese writing says 'I leave you'."

Title and recording

In an interview with ''Smash Hits'' magazine in November 1979 Numan hinted on initial plans that his next album ''Telekon'' was going to be about telekinesis.

The recording of the album was reported to be nearly finished already in December 1979, but the release was held back to September 1980 due to Numan's one album a year contract with Beggars Banquet. The sessions also yielded the song "A Game Called Echo" which was not included on the finished album.

Releases and promoting

''Telekon'' was released in September 1980. To boost initial sales in the UK, on first release the album came with a free single, in a plain black sleeve, including two live recordings from 'The Touring Principle' tour; "Remember I Was Vapour" and " On Broadway". A year later, in an attempt to further boost sales, the album came with a free poster in the UK using a photo taken from the main Telekon photo-shoot. The cassette release included the singles " We Are Glass" and " I Die: You Die" which were not on the vinyl LP.

A number of Dutch releases were pressed on coloured vinyl. The US, Canadian and Australian releases replaced the track "Sleep by Windows" with "I Die: You Die". The album was released on vinyl and cassette in Japan.

Singles

''Telekon'' was preceded by the two singles " We Are Glass" and " I Die: You Die", which were only included on the cassette release of ''Telekon'' and on later reissues. The album's opening number, " This Wreckage" succeeded the album and upon its release in December 1980, the single peaked at No. 20 in the UK. Numan later admitted that, regardless of its merits as a song, it was a "bloody stupid single". The live version of " Remember I Was Vapour", released as a bonus single with the UK album, was released as a 12" single in Germany with the studio version on the B-side. "Remind Me to Smile" was released as a US single with "I Dream of Wires''"'' on the B-side. "Remember I Was Vapour" was also released as a 7" single with " On Broadway (Live)" as the B-side.

The Teletour

From September to November 1980, Numan toured the UK and North America in support of ''Telekon''. The tour was followed by three "farewell concerts" at Wembley Arena in April 1981 with guest Nash the Slash.

Classic Album Tour and ''Micromusic'' DVD

In December 2006, Numan undertook a ''Telekon'' "Classic Album" tour, comprising four concerts in the UK in which he played all the songs from the ''Telekon'' album, as well as its associated singles and B-sides. On the 2CD ''EKO: The Telekon 06 Audio Programme'' (sold at the 2006 ''Telekon'' gigs and from Numan's website), Numan discussed (with interviewer Steve Malins) the making of ''Telekon'', revealing that it is his favourite of his "early albums." Numan followed the 2006 tour with further "Classic Album" tours, for ''Replicas'' in 2008 and '' The Pleasure Principle'' in 2009.

In 2006, Numan promised fans a DVD release of the 1981 ''Micromusic'' video. On his official website in October 2008, Numan announced that the long-lost master tapes of the ''Micromusic'' concert had been found, "in excellent condition and, to make things even better, more footage has been found from two other camera positions that were not used on the original version. This new footage will be edited into a new updated version...We expect this to be, with all the extra footage and interviews, a double disc DVD." On 19 March 2010, Numan announced that the ''Micromusic'' DVD would be released on 13 April. ''Micromusic'' was released on that date as a one-disc DVD; in addition to the concert itself, the DVD featured an hour-long interview with Numan as a special feature.

Critical reception and legacy

Like Numan's previous album, ''Telekon'' received a largely hostile reception in the British music press on its release, but has proved to be an influential work cited as a major influence by musicians such as Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails and Stephen Merritt of Magnetic Fields.

Upon its release in 1980, ''Smash Hits'' reviewer Red Starr found ''Telekon'' to be "better than '' The Pleasure Principle'' but not so good as ''Replicas''" and that Numan was "recycling old ideas instead of pioneering new ones."

In a retrospective review for Pitchfork Media in 1999, Michael Sandlin wrote: "On Telekon, Numan is a master texturalist, skilled in creating synth parts that perfectly coalesce and swim melodically around each other; an interplay much like Television innovated in the mid-1970s using guitars. He works wonders with his arsenal of simple synthesizer effects. He also utilizes acoustic piano, and occasionally integrates electric violas, violins, and flecks of distorted rhythm guitar. And he uses this many- sided approach to optimal effect; the piano and synthesizers trade off carrying melody and countermelody, while some Moog parts are used expressly for atmospheric effect or layered to build the rhythmic girth of a song. Numan's ideas no doubt serve as a template of sorts, and many of these compositions have more than withstood the trials of time. Many of today's legions of sample- happy, MIDI- obsessed nerds claim to have learned a thing or two from Numan's intelligent compositional craft."

Cultural references

''NME'' used the track title "I Dream of Wires" as the name for a fictitious synth-pop act about which they published a series of spoof articles in early 1995, culminating in reports of the alleged band's death in a coach crash in Eastern Europe.

"I Dream of Wires" was covered by English singer Robert Palmer on his 1980 studio album '' Clues'', featuring Numan on keyboards and synthesisers.

"I'm an Agent" was covered by English pop punk band Kenickie as a bonus CD track on CD1 of their January 1997 number 24 hit single "In Your Car".

Track listing

All songs written and composed by Gary Numan except for " Trois Gymnopédies (First Movement)", which is a composition by Erik Satie.

LP

The vinyl album also included a 7" single:

A-side - "Remember I Was Vapour (Live)"

B-side - "On Broadway (Live)"

Cassette

1998 CD reissue

* Subsequent digital issues of ''Telekon'' revert to the original intro mix for "Remind Me to Smile".

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Personnel

Musicians
* Gary Numan – vocals, Minimoog, Polymoog, ARP Pro Soloist, Roland Jupiter-4, Sequential Circuits Prophet-5, Yamaha CP-30, Roland CR-78, Synare, guitar, piano, Minibass
* Paul Gardiner – bass, backing vocals
* Cedric Sharpley – drums, percussion, backing vocals
* Chris Payne – viola, piano, Minimoog, Polymoog, backing vocals
* Russell Bell – guitars, violin, claves, backing vocals
* Denis Haines – Prophet-5, piano, ARP Pro Soloist, Yamaha CP-30, whistle, backing vocals
* John Webb, James Freud, Simple Minds – handclaps

Notes

References

* Paul Goodwin (2004). ''Electric Pioneer: An Armchair Guide to Gary Numan''
* Allmusic

External links

*

{{DEFAULTSORT:Telekon
Gary Numan albums
1980 albums
Beggars Banquet Records albums