Brian Eno is a name so large it can be hard to remember just how much he’s done. Just for coining the term “Ambient Music” and releasing what’s widely regarded as the first album in the genre (Ambient 1: Music for Airports) he deserves a spot in the history books. But Brian Eno’s work for artists including U2, Coldplay, and Peter Gabriel has been just as important as his own.
Keep reading about how Eno’s innovations shaped the sound of the 80s.
Roxy Music: One of the First Synth Bands
In 1970, Roxy Music burst onto the scene. Arguably the first Glam Rock band, Roxy Music was composed of art school kids who used lyric, dress, posture, and sound to paint a new blend of Art Rock.
One of their defining features was a spindly balding figure making noises on the synth, going only by the name “Eno.” You can hear him on the first song of their first album “Re-Make/Re-Model,” an early use of synths on a rock song.
Although he was later inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as part of Roxy Music, Eno didn’t spend many years in the band. Still, he gives those early records a distinct charm.
Devo: Synths Into the Mainstream
Eno went on to produce Ohio-based New Wave band Devo’s first album. Eno, tasked with producing their first album, convinced them to add synths to silly songs like “Mongoloid,” “Jocko Homo”, and “Uncontrollable Urge.”
Previously thought of as a punk rock band, this transformed Devo into one of the earliest examples of a genre that would dominate the 80’s: New Wave.
The Talking Heads: The New Order
Not to be stopped, Brian Eno produced three albums by the Talking Heads at a pivotal moment in their career. Hot on the tail of a successful debut, Eno took over the production of their most experimental period. More Songs About Buildings and Food, Fear of Music, and especially Remain in Light pushed the band into uncharted territory, with the final featuring many songs with repetitive, hypnotic, layered, African-influenced song structures that were unfamiliar to Western audiences.
This less-is more approach cleared the floor for the stripped-down, synth-driven bands like Depeche Mode, New Order, and Pet Shop Boys that would rule the 80s.
No New York
But every action has its equal opposite reaction. Hot on the tails of New Wave was No Wave. Sensing the edge had been taken off by these pop-y, synth-driven songs, New York art kids took punk and metal and shed it of the anthemic melodies of the Sex Pistols and the ear-worm riffs of Black Sabbath. This style of music can be heard in the wall of noise and malice of early records of Swans, Sonic Youth, James Chance and the Contortions, Teenage Jesus and the Jerks, and Glenn Branca.
And who from the mainstream was hip to this harsh sound but Brian Eno himself? A fan of the cutting edge, Eno curated and produced a record of several prominent No Wave bands. No New York was most people’s introduction to the genre. It would be heavily influential in the directions that post-hardcore metal would take in the 80’s.
-Christian Flynn
Photo: David Byrne and Brian Eno (R), 1981 (public domain)
Not discussing Eno’s late-1970s work with David Bowie is an egregious oversight.
Hey Don! Didn’t have the room in this article to go into that as the site likes to keep ’em quick but rest assured, Low is one of my favorites from this era and the Berlin trilogy is extremely important!
I’ve written significantly longer pieces for CS, but fair enough.
This article barely scratches the surface of Eno’s contributions, but nice to see this recognition.
Selective omissions in the story overplay Eno’s importance in the 1970’s and beyond. Several bands, including the Doors, Mothers, Beatles, ELP, United States of America, Monkees, Family and others were fairly proficient in using synths before Eno appeared. Even processing sounds with synths was pioneered by other synthesis.
Devo and Eno were at loggerheads over the production of Devo’s first album. He did manage to incorporate synths on about 4 songs, but the band didn’t like most of his ideas and Bowie ended up remixing the album.
Eno was significant for Talking Heads, and his interest in ambient music started by accident with Discreet Music. He did encourage Bowie through Low and Lodger in particular. One part of Eno’s history that doesn’t receive much attention was his encouragement of No New York, an album of really unique artists I wish he had developed more. His work with U2 was kind of dull, but it was U2.
Eno worked best when teamed with exceptional musicians like his early solo albums and Robert Fripp and Wyatt collaborations. On his own, responsible for all the product himself, I found him sleep inducing and at times, recycling others’ ideas.
He did a lot of great work, but I’d argue No New York was the most important thing he did.