Synth pop continues to captivate music lovers around the world with its distinctive blend of synthesized sounds, memorable melodies, and innovative production techniques. From legendary pioneers of the 1980s to contemporary artists pushing the boundaries of electronic music, this comprehensive collection showcases the most influential and beloved synth pop tracks that have shaped the genre’s evolution. Whether you’re a longtime fan of electronic music or just discovering the magic of synthesized songs, these essential tracks represent the absolute best that synth pop has to offer.
Blue Monday by New Order
Blue Monday stands as New Order’s most iconic achievement and arguably the greatest synth-pop song ever created, originally inspired by the band’s experiences in New York’s club scene. The track was conceived as a way to get machines to play their encores, with Bernard Sumner famously saying “Why not just press a button and go”. Created with an Oberheim DMX drum machine providing the iconic intro, Peter Hook lifting his bassline from an Ennio Morricone film soundtrack, and Peter Saville designing what became the world’s greatest sleeve, Blue Monday became the biggest selling 12″ of all time.
Take On Me by A-ha
The iconic 1980s synth-pop song by Norwegian band A-ha is a perfect blend of catchy melodies and innovative music video artistry, released in 1984 as part of their debut album Hunting High and Low. This contagious tune skyrocketed to the top charts worldwide with its unforgettable high-pitched chorus and groundbreaking rotoscope animation in the accompanying music video. The lush synth arrangements and Morten Harket’s soaring vocals showcased the band’s talent and solidified their status in synth pop history, with the album’s exploration of love and longing resonating with listeners and ensuring its enduring popularity.
Tainted Love by Soft Cell
Soft Cell’s dancefloor anthem “Tainted Love” melds synth-pop sensibilities with the heartache of a tumultuous romance, transforming Ed Cobb’s 1964 composition into a compelling cover that garnered widespread acclaim and ensured the duo’s place in the pantheon of iconic 80s artists. Marc Almond heard the original song at a club he worked at, and subsequently Soft Cell began to play it in their sets before doing a recording of it in 1981. The song shot to number one in the UK, riding the wave of popularity synth-pop was enjoying, with the real instruments of Jones’ version replaced with synths and a drum machine rhythm track.
Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This) by Eurythmics
With its enigmatic lyrics, hypnotic synth riffs, and seductive chorus, “Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)” embraced the spirit of the 80s as a transcendent anthem of ambition and empowerment. Eurythmics’ masterful combination of electronic pop and soul exposed the world to Annie Lennox’s trademark androgynous style, and this unforgettable hit confidently stands the test of time as a formative influence in generations of electropop artists. According to Annie Lennox, the song is about the unhappy time she felt after the breakup of first band The Tourists, saying “It’s basically me saying: ‘Look at the state of us. How can it get worse? I was feeling very vulnerable'”.
West End Girls by Pet Shop Boys
The synth-pop masterpiece by the British duo Pet Shop Boys was released in 1984 and later re-recorded for their debut album Please in 1986, featuring catchy hooks and thought-provoking lyrics about class struggles and urban life that catapulted Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe to international stardom. “West End Girls starts with some feet walking down the street and then strings come in,” said Neil Tennant, “in our heads, like the beginning of a film,” with Pet Shop Boys arriving with an ethos of setting real life against beautiful, danceable music. The song’s lyrics deal with class and the pressures of inner city life in London which were inspired partly by T.S. Eliot’s poem ‘The Waste Land’.
Don’t You Want Me by The Human League
The Human League’s hit song “Don’t You Want Me” demonstrates that not all synth-pop needs to be uplifting or positive, as there’s actually a lot of conceptual darkness to be found within this world. The tune has become somewhat infamous in recent years, thanks to appraisal of its lyrics, which some have found to reside somewhere within the stalker/gaslighter space, yet the lyrics admittedly fall by the wayside with this undeniably catchy tune. This classic slice of early 80s synth sounds insistently sinister and minimalist, albeit in the best possible way, showcasing the difficulty of inserting a little humanity into the synthesizer’s intrinsically cold and detached drone.
Enjoy the Silence by Depeche Mode
The career of Depeche Mode is one that’s undergone numerous stylistic changes, with this English group exploring early synth minimalism, orchestrated bombast and heavy, hard-hitting sonic sounds over the years. Enjoy the Silence represents one of their most accessible and emotionally resonant tracks, perfectly balancing the band’s darker tendencies with irresistible pop sensibilities. The song’s lush production and Dave Gahan’s commanding vocals create a sonic landscape that invites listeners into a world of electronic bliss while maintaining the band’s signature edge and sophistication.
Temptation by Heaven 17
Martyn Ware’s pitch that he’d conceived a track based on the Lord’s Prayer “with a never-ending chord structure” was met with howls of laughter, and yet, with a 60-piece orchestra to augment the tech, Temptation took off. LinnDrum-programmed Motown rhythms, fizzing sequencers and those escalating chords allowed Glenn Gregory and session singer Carol Kenyon to nail this ubiquitous ode to sex. Martyn Ware later explained the subject matter of the song as: “I woke up one morning and thought I’ve got to write a song about sex, I’ve never written a song about sex. So the song is about rising sexual tension; it has chords that keep going up like an Escher staircase and in the end there’s this big release”.
Cars by Gary Numan
Gary Numan’s “Cars” stands as one of the most influential synth-pop tracks ever recorded, showcasing his pioneering approach to electronic music production. The song’s distinctive synthesizer riff and robotic vocal delivery created a template that countless artists would follow throughout the 1980s and beyond. Numan’s cold, mechanical aesthetic perfectly captured the anxieties and alienation of modern life while creating music that was both futuristic and deeply human in its emotional impact.
Video Killed the Radio Star by The Buggles
This song was originally recorded by Bruce Woolley and The Camera Club (with Thomas Dolby on keyboards), co-written with Trevor Horn and Geoff Downes, with the pair later re-recording it as The Buggles and having a huge hit with it worldwide. The song relates to concerns about mixed attitudes towards 20th-century inventions and machines for the media arts, and is well-remembered as the first music video shown on MTV in the United States at 12:01am on August 1, 1981. The track’s prophetic lyrics and innovative use of synthesizers made it an instant classic that perfectly captured the transition from radio to television as the dominant force in popular music.
Vienna by Ultravox
Vienna represents Ultravox at their absolute peak, combining Midge Ure’s emotive vocals with lush synthesizer arrangements that create an atmosphere of cinematic grandeur. The song’s dramatic build-up and soaring chorus exemplify the best aspects of new romantic synth-pop, while its sophisticated production techniques influenced countless artists throughout the 1980s. The track’s combination of accessibility and artistic ambition made it both a commercial success and a critical favorite that continues to inspire musicians today.
Only You by Yazoo
Yazoo, consisting of Alison Moyet and Vince Clarke, released “Upstairs at Eric’s,” an album that combined soulful vocals with electronic music, featuring hits like “Don’t Go” and “Only You”. The album’s sound is a perfect marriage of emotion and technology, with Moyet’s powerful voice adding depth to the synth-driven tracks, making this album a standout in the genre. Only You showcases the perfect balance between Vince Clarke’s melodic genius and Alison Moyet’s soulful delivery, creating a timeless love song that transcends its electronic origins to achieve genuine emotional depth.
The Model by Kraftwerk
This seminal synth-pop sound was best exemplified by The Model, which was overlooked at the time of its release but would belatedly find favour in 1981, when it was re-issued as the b-side to the band’s then-current single, Computer Love. Re-re-issued as an A-side, The Model topped the UK singles chart in 1982, with the track being an exercise in minimalism and a near-perfect pop construct, featuring a simple progression, spare percussion, and a pretty much instantly memorable melody played in octaves throughout. The song perfectly demonstrates Kraftwerk’s ability to create infectious pop music while maintaining their avant-garde aesthetic and pioneering electronic sound.
Relax by Frankie Goes to Hollywood
The debut album from Frankie Goes to Hollywood, Welcome to the Pleasuredome, contains tons of great hi-NRG tunes, beyond the group’s smash international hit, Relax, which is memorable, catchy and infectious at their very best. Yet, there’s also a certain, skulking menace to the booming synth and driving percussion, with this being synth-pop that’s not scared to get dangerous; to meet you in a back alley, do some provocative things and leave you wanting more. The song’s controversial lyrics and innovative production by Trevor Horn created a template for dance-oriented synth-pop that influenced countless artists and helped define the sound of the mid-1980s.
Bizarre Love Triangle by New Order
From early triumphs Temptation, Blue Monday and the squelchy goodness of Everything’s Gone Green through to later delights such as The Perfect Kiss and True Faith, theirs is a discography chock full of tunes. Bizarre Love Triangle juxtaposes effervescent, sequenced sparkles and flighty chord changes with lovestruck reflections on a relationship stuck in stalemate, with the sole single from 1986’s Brotherhood barely troubling the UK charts, but that matters not a jot with a song this good. The track perfectly encapsulates New Order’s ability to combine emotional vulnerability with irresistible dance rhythms, creating music that works equally well on headphones and on the dancefloor.
Living on the Ceiling by Blancmange
Known affectionately by Mute’s Daniel Miller as “the maiden aunts of electronic music,” Blancmange showed their mettle with pilot EP Irene & Mavis, a lo-fi epic. Next came a cherished spot on the infamous Some Bizzare sampler, before inking a deal that led to the full-length Happy Families LP with this nailed-on classic as its centrepiece. The twosome called upon Indian musicians Pandit Dinesh and Deepak Khazauchi for an Eastern flavour, and they joined the duo to perform the eventual No. 7 hit on Top Of The Pops.
In Real Life by ACTORS
Vancouver’s ACTORS continue to captivate with their evolving sound, with “In Real Life,” their most synthpop song yet, seamlessly blending chugging post-punk guitars with glossy studio effects and an addictive synth whistle that punctuates the beat. This track represents the modern evolution of synth-pop, incorporating elements from various electronic subgenres while maintaining the melodic sensibilities that define the best of the genre. ACTORS demonstrate how contemporary artists can honor the legacy of classic synth-pop while pushing the sound forward into new territories that feel both familiar and refreshingly innovative.
Frozen Solid by Vidéo L’Eclipse
Swedish duo Video L’Eclipse conjure deep, dark mystery with “Frozen Solid,” an elegant piece of melodic electro-pop, with composer Robert Tingelöf layering the track with palpable synths, drums, and bass arpeggios, crafting a soundscape that feels both menacing and uplifting. Vocalist Jonas Peterson wields one of the most favored voices in music right now, delivering a rich, delectable performance that brings the song’s emotional weight to life, with even a spoken word bit that adds to the track’s ominous allure. This contemporary masterpiece shows how modern synth-pop can maintain the genre’s essential DNA while exploring darker, more sophisticated sonic territories.
Dead for Real by Optic
Swedish duo Optic released a trio of stellar songs in early 2024, and any one of them belongs on the best-of lists, with their potential full-length album being a strong contender for album of the year. While loving the burning intensity of “In the Fire” and the foreboding drama of “Bad Times,” “Dead for Real” stands out for its hypnotizing beat and trancy electronics, the kind that ignite darkwave dancefloors. This track exemplifies the current state of synth-pop, where artists seamlessly blend classic synthesizer work with contemporary production techniques to create music that honors the past while boldly stepping into the future.
Feels Like Home by Modern Producers
“Feels Like Home” is built on twinkling synth chords and understated, tender vocals, though the soaring, life-affirming chorus gives it a strong hook: “And tonight / everything’s gonna be alright”. With its heartfelt charm and captivating melodies, “Feels Like Home” is an irresistible piece of contemporary synth-pop that demonstrates how the genre continues to evolve while maintaining its emotional core. This recent release shows how modern artists can create songs that feel both nostalgic and completely current, proving that great synth-pop transcends generational boundaries.
The evolution of synth-pop from its pioneering days in the late 1970s to its current renaissance demonstrates the genre’s remarkable adaptability and enduring appeal. These twenty tracks represent not just individual masterpieces, but also the broader story of electronic music’s journey from underground experimentation to mainstream acceptance and beyond. Whether you’re looking for the perfect headphones to experience these tracks in all their sonic glory, or seeking out the best earbuds for on-the-go listening, these synth-pop classics deserve to be heard with the highest quality audio equipment available.
From the mechanical precision of Kraftwerk’s “The Model” to the emotional vulnerability of modern artists like ACTORS and Vidéo L’Eclipse, synth-pop continues to evolve while maintaining its core identity. The genre’s ability to combine technological innovation with genuine human emotion ensures its continued relevance in an increasingly digital world. These tracks serve as both a celebration of synth-pop’s rich history and a glimpse into its exciting future.
Frequently Asked Questions
What defines synth-pop music?
Synth-pop is characterized by the prominent use of synthesizers, drum machines, and electronic production techniques combined with traditional pop song structures and melodies. The genre typically features catchy hooks, danceable rhythms, and a blend of electronic and organic elements that create its distinctive sound.
Who are the pioneers of synth-pop?
Kraftwerk, Depeche Mode, New Order, Pet Shop Boys, and The Human League are considered among the most influential pioneers of synth-pop. These artists established many of the genre’s defining characteristics and influenced countless musicians who followed in their footsteps.
How has synth-pop evolved in recent years?
Modern synth-pop has incorporated elements from various electronic subgenres including darkwave, chillwave, and futurepop. Contemporary artists like ACTORS, Vidéo L’Eclipse, and Optic are pushing the boundaries while maintaining the genre’s essential melodic and rhythmic foundations.
What equipment is commonly used in synth-pop production?
Classic synth-pop relies heavily on vintage synthesizers like the Roland Juno series, Oberheim models, and Sequential Circuits instruments. Modern productions often combine these vintage sounds with contemporary software synthesizers and advanced production techniques.
Why does synth-pop remain popular today?
Synth-pop’s combination of technological innovation and emotional accessibility makes it timelessly appealing. The genre’s influence can be heard across many contemporary music styles, from indie pop to electronic dance music, ensuring its continued relevance and evolution.