Lost 80's Live, Men Without Hats, Big Country, The Vapors, The Icicle Works, China Crisis, Dramarama, Katrina, et B-Movie

Founded by brothers Ivan and Stefan Doroschuk in 1977, Ivan soon took responsibility for the songwriting and vocal aspects, and Stefan became the guitarist. Over Men Without Hats' history the band has seen over 25 members pass through its door since 1977, with Stefan, Ivan, brother and synth player Colin Doroschuk and Jeremie Arrobas remaining a unit for the longest period. In 1980, Men Without Hats released their debut EP “Folk of the 80’s”, however the personnel changed drastically for the 1982 full-length release of “Rhythm of Youth”. Led by the track “I Like” it was the subsequent single “The Safety Dance” which catapulted the band to international recognition. The single spent three weeks at No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100, and also proved popular in the UK, New Zealand, and South Africa. The studio album earned a string of positive reviews, spawning the subsequent singles “I Got the Message” and “Living in China”.

Following the arrival of Ivan and Stefan's brother Colin Doroschuk, Men Without Hats issued their sophomore album “Folk of the 80’s” in 1984. The record proved popular in Canada but failed to achieve the success of its predecessor. The EP “Freeways” arrived in 1985 featuring remixes of earlier songs, and was supported by a small tour, which was documented on the DVD “Live Hats”. With a fresh lineup behind Ivan and Stefan including Lenny Pinkas, the band released “Pop Goes the World” in 1987, the title single of which reached No. 2 on the Canadian Single Chart and was later used in the 1987 film “Date with an Angel”.

The full-length “The Adventures of Women & Men Without Hate in the 21st Century”, featuring the ABBA cover “SOS”, was released in 1989 with little stir made. “Sideways” followed in 1991 and marked the group’s move away from new wave synth sounds towards the guitar dominated ‘90s. Following the release Men Without Hats disbanded in which time Ivan crafted the solo album “The Spell” issued in 1997. The band reformed in 2003 to release “No Hats Beyond This Point”, followed by a pair of compilation albums “My Hats Collection” in 2006 and “The Silver Collection” in 2008. Men Without Hats’ released their seventh studio album “Love in the Age of War” in 2012, 30 years after their debut record.

Big Country’s first commercial success came in the form of “Harvest Home” which was released in 1982 and made the UK Singles chart, sitting at 91. They later released “Field of Fire (400 Miles)” in February 1983, which made it to number 10, and even 52 on the Billboard Hot 100 Chart. Despite not matching the number 10 spot of the previous single, “In a Big Country” which was released in May 1983, became one of the trademark songs of the band for years to come. The album that these songs featured on, “The Crossing”, released on July 15th 1983, shot up the chart to number 3 in the UK Albums Chart. It also made the Top 20 of 5 other countries. The album was later certified Platinum.

“Steeltown” was the band’s next release, on October 1st 1984. It made it to number 1 in the UK and was later certified Gold. It featured the singles “East of Eden” and “Where the Rose is Sown”. In 1984, the band featured on the Band Aid charity single “Do They Know It’s Christmas?” The leading single from the band’s next album “Look Away” made it to number 7 in the UK Singles chart, and the album “The Seer” released in July 1986 made it to number 2 in the UK, and charted internationally. Kate Bush even added backing vocals to the title track.

In the 1990s the band unfortunately lost a lot of their commercial success with the release of the album “No Place Like Home” reaching 28, being released in September 1991. They still managed to maintain support slots on tours with the Rolling Stones and The Who. Around this time, there was a lot of concern for singer, Stuart Adamson’s mental and emotional health who struggled with alcoholism for many years, which ultimately led to his death in December 2001.

In 2007, to commemorate 25 years of Big Country the remaining founding members, toured the UK, on the back of releasing an album called “Twenty Five Live”. They made a comeback on April 8th 2013 with an album called “The Journey” which reached number 68 in the UK Albums Chart.

After signing a record deal with Virgin Records, China Crisis released their debut album “Difficult Shapes & Passive Rhythms, Some People Think It’s Fun to Entertain” in December 1982. The album shot up the UK Albums charts to number 21 and was later certified Silver. Their career thereafter would go on to grow exponentially, with their sophomore efforts “Working with Fire and Steel – Possible Pop Songs” going to number 20 in the UK Charts and being certified Gold. “Wishful Thinking” was the biggest song from the album, managing to secure a place at number 9 in the UK charts.

It was “Flaunt the Imperfection” that was released in 1985 that catapulted the band to new levels of success making it to number 9 in the UK Albums charts. The album featured singles such as “Black Man Ray” which went to number 14 in the UK Chart and “King in a Catholic Style” which went to number 19 in the UK.

China Crisis followed their previous success by working with producers Clive Langer and Alan Winstanley, on their album “What Price Paradise” which was later released in 1986. The album featured the song “Arizona Sky” which was the first single release from the band. It was the song “Best Kept Secret” that went to number 36 in the UK Singles Chart. Their following album “Diary of a Hollow Horse” released in 1989 was the fifth studio album by the band, unfortunately, it didn’t match the commercial success of previous records, but it still managed to achieve number 58 in the UK Albums Chart.

The band made a comeback in the 2000s with many national tours of the UK, including one in 2013.

Originally formed by frontman John Easdale, rhythm guitarist Peter Wood and lead guitarist Mark Englert, the Dramarama lineup has hosted a revolving cast of live and session musicians over its years. Dramarama made their debut in 1982 with the song “You Drive Me”, followed by the five-track EP “Comedy” in 1984, which earned a surprise cult status in France. After signing with the French label New Rose Records, the band issued their debut full-length “Cinéma Vérité” in 1985. The record received widespread critical acclaim, subsequently earned a U.S. release on Question Mark Records, and spawned the radio-friendly single “Anything Anything”.

Following the album Dramarama moved to California to record and release their sophomore LP “Box Office Bomb”. The 1987 album was greeted by a string of rave reviews however acclaim for the album didn’t equate to sales and the record was considered a commercial disappointment. Having produced enough material for three albums, the full-length “Stuck in Wonderamaland” appeared in 1989, followed by the European CD “Looking Through…”. With their label Chameleon on the verge of bankruptcy, Dramarama signed with Elektra Records who issued the group’s major-label debut in 1991. Once again earning rave reviews, the record was led by the single “Haven’t Got a Clue” and received significant airplay on national radio.

Marking their final album on Elektra Records, Dramarama issued the full-length “Hi-fi Sci-fi” in 1993, an album that would come to epitomise the group’s cult status. Following the band’s worldwide supporting tours, Dramarama disbanded and John Easdale started performing as The John Easdale Group. Dramarama returned however in 2005 to release the full-length album “Everybody Dies”. Issued by 33rd Street Records, the album earned strong reviews and spawned the single “Physical Poetry (A-B-C-D-1-2-3)”.