Instead of heading back into the studio to begin work on the fourth album by the band he co-led,
Pete Shelley decided he would leave the
Buzzcocks. He had been demoing songs with
Human League producer
Martin Rushent, and the pair decided to keep the electronic underpinnings of the tracks and finish them in a style that blended guitar rock and synth pop.
Shelley's 1981 debut album,
Homosapien, was the result. The title track is the perfect example of the pair's vision for his new sound, combining robotic rhythms and otherworldly vocals, plus a bridge that is heart-stoppingly good even after hearing it a hundred times. The rest of the record may not have reached the lofty heights that song did, but there are plenty of moments where
Shelley proves his inspiration worthy. It's impossible to deny the huge hook of "Yesterday's Not Here"'s mighty chorus, the stomping robo-beat of "I Don't Know What It Is," the bopping outer-space rockabilly of "Just One of Those Affairs," or the icy cold and epic ballad "It's Hard Enough Knowing." His vocals throughout are inspired, and by stripping back the wall of guitars, one can really hear the nuances present in his delivery. There are guitars, plenty of them -- even acoustic guitars on "Homosapien" -- despite the record's reputation as a synth pop trifle. It's true that they lack the power of the dual attack the
Buzzcocks employed, but they do provide some nice moments of grit, like sand in the gears. While these songs might have benefitted from the more human approach of his old band, the direction
Shelley took instead resulted in some fine pop music, occasionally spiked with flashes of genius like the deathless title track. ~ Tim Sendra
