About
Out of London in the early 1980s came Wang Chung, the synth-driven new wave outfit that somehow managed to be both critically dismissed and endlessly memorable at the same time. Originally called Huang Chung, the core duo of guitarist and vocalist Jack Hues and bassist Nick Feldman drove the band's sound, blending jangly post-punk guitars with glossy synthesizers and radio-friendly pop hooks. They were very much a product of their era, but they executed that era's sound with genuine craft.
Their breakthrough came with the 1984 album Points on the Curve, which spawned the massive hit Dance Hall Days, a track that still sounds remarkably tight today. But their cultural peak arrived with the 1986 film soundtrack To Live and Die in L.A., a slick, atmospheric collection that showed real range beyond the dancefloor. The title track remains one of the defining sounds of mid-80s cinema. Their follow-up Mosaic the same year went even more pop-polished, giving fans Everybody Have Fun Tonight, a song so omnipresent it practically became a cultural punchline, though the hooks were undeniable.
Wang Chung never quite got the serious rock credibility they arguably deserved, but their catalog holds up better than most give them credit for. For fans of the era, they represent new wave at its most melodically ambitious.
