Best of '80s Synth-Pop

The electro-pop of the '80s started with the urban alienation of Gary Numan's “Cars” and the Kraftwerk-inspired synth purism of The Human League and Depeche Mode. Visage's melancholic “Fade to Grey” gave way to the dramatic fire-and-ice duos—Erasure, Pet Shop Boys, Soft Cell—throwing hot-soul vocals against cold electronics. These bands rewired the pop song for the modern age.