Intro
As you probably realized by now, I love music. I’ve sung many new wave and other songs in the karaoke circuit. I even incorporated an impromptu dance routine or three (no videos, but it happened). My little daughter picked up on music pretty early: before she could write her name, she was already chanting the chorus to a Tears for Fears song (you know which one). Then she would recite the choruses of other songs after only several listens. Now granted, she likes other music styles too. While her older cousin introduced her to Taylor Swift, my daughter shakes it off once I put on some of her favorite new wave tracks (whew!).
Explore the Synth & Swagger Members' Editions
Adam Ant vs the Media, Canadian New Wave, Female Empowerment in New Wave
And a new enhanced article every month
Criteria
But I can’t just pick a general new wave playlist, set and forget. One wrong song and I get the stinky eyeball, believe it. Three things reliably predict whether she’ll latch onto a song:
- Danceability - Fast, danceable songs are her favorites. Insistent synths are terrific (after all, little kids love repetition!).
- Deep male voice - My daughter is partial to male baritones, which actually lines up with research showing that young kids prefer lower, calming, ‘anchor’ voices.
- Sing-along choruses - They are simpler for children to process, and eventually recite themselves.
Men Without Hats
Her go-to band is not a heavy hitter like Police or the Cure, but rather Montreal's own Men Without Hats. Any why not? You’ve got…
- Clean synths and tight drum programming - great for kids to time their dancing to Minimal harmonic changes - vocalist Ivan Doroschuk is steady as he goes without veering into monotone. Interesting but no jarring surprises. Mantra-like choruses - Men Without Hats are actually a deeper lyrical band than some think, tackling being true to yourself and even existentialism. She’ll eventually stay for that - but is coming now for the rhyme-filled and simple wordplay of the choruses. Boom boom baritone - Ivan Doroschuk instantly commands with his deep voice. He’s loud but consistent and reassuring. This is important.
Her favorite tracks? Latter ones, like Telepathy (off the criminally underrated return-to-form No Hats Beyond This Point). The chorus, a droning chant of “Internet Killed the Video Star” has her dancing and singing in no time!
She also loves the brand new single In Glorious Days. Doroschuk (at 68) and the gang are not slowing down, She’ll put this one on repeat, gesturing wildly and chomping aggressively to, well, the “Chomp! Chomp! Chomp! Chomp!” attack of the chorus. One time she actually started swing dancing with her brother. Different style, but it looked better than pogo-ing (sorry Ivan!). Wait, how did they learn it?…
Their classic (first two) albums are also a hit - she’ll boogey readily to the faster ones like Antarctica and I Got the Message. Safety Dance is solid by her but not as much -it’s a slower number and the richer synths are not as desirable to her.
Falco
My daughter also loves Falco. Here’s why:
- His declarative baritone also has command. It’s more dramatic than Doroschuk but doesn’t drift into vocal stabs. A lot of his lyrics are in his native German, a language that Americans find stronger-sounding.
- As he switched to English choruses starting with Rock Me Amadeus, he kept them simple to not alienate his core Austrian/German fanbase. That’s actually a strength for getting my daughter and other young kids understanding and liking it.
- When he got the Bolland brothers involved with his music (again, starting with Rock Me Amadeus), the synths and drums became tighter and there was a lot more rhythm.
- Which tracks does my daughter love? She leans heavily on the entire A-side of Wiener Blut, especially the title track. Falco’s vocals are more in-your-face than ever, making it very catchy. Even Garbo, with its start-stop dynamics is great for her (the row-boat rhythm of the verses help). The album Nachtflug (Titanic the most) ups the dance ante, somehow making violins danceable (in a classical music sense, not country music).
- Also, the hooky chorus of Crime Time from Emotional (“Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh Crime Time!”) makes that song a staple for her. And when Falco’s hits a certain BPM, sometimes she’d start breakdancing! Well, Falco loved early rap music. To this day I (and her) don’t know how she picked this up (yes, again). It’s surreal hearing Falco - a guy I discovered in college - become my daughter’s go-to dance fuel.
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Split Enz (Early)
My daughter also will dance and bop to Split Enz. It all started when I was playing some of their songs while writing my Australia/New Zealand new wave article. “My goodness”, I said, “she’s actually smiling and dancing to this!” I was pleasantly surprised, in part because vocalist Neil Finn is a tenor through-and-through. She prefers more of Split Enz’ earlier, quirkier numbers (think from True Colors and earlier). And while Neil Finn breaks the baritone rule, it turns out early Split Enz sounds like the inside of a kid’s brain: fast, colorful, and just this side of chaos (just like the album covers to Mental Notes and Second Thoughts. Here are good, overriding reasons she like early Split Enz:
- clipped guitar rhythms
- percussive keyboard stabs
- quirky, syncopated patterns that feel game-like
- fast pacing
- Visual - their bright aesthetic purposely nudged up on clownish
Standouts include Shark Attack, which is basically a playground chant wrapped in new wavy goodness. It has a frenetic but consistent pace. And with just the song title as the chorus, its easy for her to follow. Another good track is Bold as Brass. My daughter really likes the clavinet intro that’s repeated in the choruses, as it sounds much more well, bold, than a usual Stevie Wonder track. The tone of Bold as Brass is playful, mischievous, and slightly chaotic - but never scary. And a quick note on Crosswords form the same album: the verses are partially set to the little kid taunt “na-na-na-na-naaaa-na!” I’d love to have her try more tracks from Dizrythmia, which has a lot more kid-friendly bop than its name indicates.
She’ll press skip on slow-burns like One Step Ahead. Great song, but fair enough. Seeing her love Split Enz makes me think kids secretly crave controlled chaos as much as adults do.
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What Doesn’t Work
I know what works, but it’s also important to know what doesn’t work. That, and a quick skip-button reflex, will save the day.
Billy Idol
Ah, a baritone who leans heavily into vocal hooks. A good fit, right? Wrong. While his unexpected vocal attacks make Idol distinct from other new wavers, my daughter (like most kids) gets jittery with Idol because of them. Phrases like “Why did that man get angry all of a sudden” are uttered. A big offender is his shouting “Flesh!” after calm parts of Flesh for Fantasy, and there’s other examples (Fatal Charm). It’s too bad. But maybe she’d dig his Christmas album…
Duran Duran
My favorite band, I’m wounded… but seriously, while LeBon’s tenor is excellent, it doesn’t own the room for kids quite the way Gahan or Doroschuk might. And actually, Duran Duran’s choruses are actually more complicated than people give them credit for - less chant, more swoop. I’ll punt on them, and try again in a few years…
Adam Ant
Adam Ant’s vocals (tenor and unexpected turns) work against him here. Sure, he’s got some catchy, dancy numbers, but they take a lot of unexpected turns (even in hit singles like Antmusic). And even his dancier tracks (like Don’t Be Square, Be There) zig when she expects them to zag.
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Outro
Watching my little daughter react to these songs—sometimes with dancing, sometimes with confusion—reminds me that great pop connects on instinct. And if she alternates between Taylor Swift and Falco, that’s fine. There’s room in her playlist for both. I’ll just keep feeding the New Wave side a little louder.
Included enhanced articles so far:
Adam Ant vs the Media, Canadian New Wave, Female Empowerment in New Wave
And a new enhanced article every month
