So, yeah, I decided to take a brief hiatus from Kiss, switching gears to the obscure Freur.
Karl Hyde, Rick Smith, and Alfie Thomas, formed the group in the early 80's. After adding John Warwicker and Bryn Burrows to the lineup, they were able to secure a recording deal with CBS Records. Though their band name was initially a squiggly symbol, the label insisted they adopt a formal name, and thus Freur was born.
They released their debut album, 1983's Doot-Doot, which would garner one and only hit out of the title track. The song would peak in Italy and New Zealand at number 17, 24 in Germany, 36 in Netherlands, and 59 in the UK. While they would release five additional singles between 1983 and 1985, none of them would chart. As a result, Freur fell into obscurity, becoming a lost one hit wonder of the era.
Let's pause there to take a dive into the album, and see just what it has to offer.
Frankly, if you're looking for some good early synth pop of the early 80's, you're going to want to listen to this one. Doot-Doot, the album, has some hidden gems tucked in it. After hearing it, I'm honestly surprised that they didn't make any form of impact in the USA. It's on par with the likes of A Flock Of Seagulls, Depeche Mode, Berlin, and other such notable acts of the time. Perhaps it just got lost in the shuffle of the abundance that was available.
There's some good stuff tucked in here. For my shuffle purposes, I walked away with the title track, Doot-Doot, Riders In The Night, Theme From The Film Of The Same Name, and Matters Of The Heart. It does tapper off just over the halfway mark, with most of the second half of the album feeling like filler.
However, overall, it intrigued me enough to track down their one and only follow up, 1986's Get Us Out Of Here. That to me is always a plus. Nothing wrong with more 80's music. Well, I guess I can't say that was their one and only follow up. Technically, they created all the music for the 1985 Clive Barker film, Underworld (AKA Transmutations). However, it doesn't appear that soundtrack was ever released.
We'll leave the boys of Freur here for now, and pick up with Get Us Out Of Here tomorrow.
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| THIS WEEK ON THE CHARTS July 5, 1980 |
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| THIS WEEK ON THE CHARTS July 5, 1986 |
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