8/12 #3
The Art of Noise, Close (to the Edit) (1984)
While the percussive groove of "Beat Box" became an urban club favorite and the sensual "Moments in Love" made waves among the soul-romantic set, the single that really distilled the debut album release (the EP Into Battle notwithstanding) of avante-garde synthpop band The Art of Noise, Who's Afraid of the Art of Noise?, was "Close (to the Edit)." Samples from Yes's "Close to the Edge," a VW Golf, and the Andrew Sisters, a relentlessly programmed drum track, and a running piano groove proved irresistibly poppy and desturbingly destructive simultaneously. The recurring vocal "Hey!" has been sampled by numerous other artists, while the video was both lauded (winning MTV awards for Most Experimental and Best Editing) and banned (in New Zealand, for allegedly encouraging violence toward children).