3 New Wave Songs That Captured the Spirit of the 1980s (And You’ve Definitely Never Heard Them)

New wave was all the rage in the 1980s. And if you were an 80s kid, you remember the massive pop hits that had a touch of new wave to them. But what about the underground songs, the tunes that influenced the growth of the genre yet didn’t hit the top of any charts? Let’s look at a few 1980s new wave tunes that beautifully captured the spirit of the era, but didn’t get as popular as they should have.

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“Warm Leatherette” by The Normal (1978)

This song might have come out in 1978, but it certainly captured the energy of 1980s new wave synth-pop. In fact, in 1980, Grace Jones recorded a cover of “Warm Leatherette” that became a massive new wave hit. The original, though, is a bit of a cult classic that only sold about 30,000 copies and didn’t appear to chart. Grace Jones’ version, however, was a No. 20 hit on the Dance Music/Club Play chart in the US. The Normal’s version has since been regarded as one of the earliest examples of synth-pop.

“Echo Beach” by Martha And The Muffins (1980)

When one thinks of new wave, one often thinks of music from the late 1970s or early 1980s UK. Maybe, sometimes, one might think of a song from the US. Canada isn’t what comes to mind immediately. However, some musicians in the Great White North were doing new wave gloriously, including Martha And The Muffins. Their song “Echo Beach” from 1980 was a hit in Canada and the UK but barely made a dent in the US. That’s a shame, because this song is not only one of the best Canadian songs ever but also one of the best new wave tracks ever. I recommend listening to Metro Music in its entirety.

“The Cutter” by Echo & The Bunnymen (1983)

What would gothic rock be without the new wave movement? Echo & The Bunnymen enjoyed a lot of attention during their heyday, but I doubt today’s generation of young listeners knows about “The Cutter”. This dark, dramatic, orchestral new wave tune was quite influential to alternative gothic rock bands that would follow in the late 1980s. And yet, this new wave 1980s song didn’t even make a dent in the US. Though, it made it to the Top 10 in the UK. If you want to get into Echo & The Bunnymen, Porcupine is essential listening, in my opinion.

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