Hue And Cry: Everybody
Released 29 May 2026
CD | Vinyl | Blu-ray | DL | Streaming
4.0 out of 5.0 stars
One of this year’s best synth-pop albums hails from an unlikely source. Hue And Cry have no track record in electronic music, but their 16th studio album marks a refreshing change of style. It’s certainly made Robert Plummer’s day.
When Hue And Cry came to fame in the late 1980s, sophisti-pop was a power in the land. It wasn’t called that back then, because it’s a rock curator’s retrospective genre, like freakbeat or sunshine pop. Still, Scottish siblings Pat and Greg Kane could turn out jazzy blue-eyed soul with the best of them, including their biggest hit and enduring classic, 1987’s Labour Of Love.
Sadly, the groove was too smoothie-chops for some, so it got elbowed aside in the 1990s by supposedly more “authentic” styles such as grunge and Britpop. And although Hue And Cry stayed in the game, they’ve arguably been flailing commercially ever since. At first, they chose more complexity: witness 1996’s Jazz Not Jazz, on which they enlisted horn section legends Tommy Smith and the Brecker Brothers to go the whole muso nine yards.
But now, in a surprise move, they’ve left six-piece bands behind to become a stripped-down synth-pop duo. Equally surprisingly, the result fits them like a glittering glove. The 10 songs on Everybody are among the most direct and attention-grabbing that they’ve ever released, aimed straight at your feet without neglecting head or heart.
Unlike a lot of electro-pop, there’s nothing diffident or ethereal about these performances. Opening track Stronger storms in like a vintage Hi-NRG tune, with Greg’s galloping sequencers forming the perfect backdrop to Pat’s booming baritone. “Let the softest kind of power make me stronger,” he croons assertively.
Next comes the breakneck techno of Everybody Deserves To Be Loved, assisted by a soaring melody and catchy chorus of the kind that such tracks rarely possess. Even though this is a new domain for the duo, you can’t fault their mastery of the material.
Another change of gear comes with the deep house of Make My Day, a cool breezy tune that blows us back to the promised land of bygone club culture. The refrain insinuates its way into your brain while your hips do the rest. “The stories barely making sense, say now missy, you’re my only defence,” implores Pat: this would have gone down a storm at the Haçienda in its heyday.
And Then You Bloom forges a link with Hue And Cry’s past: it’s a song that could easily have featured on one of their first three big-selling albums. “As you bloom, dispel my gloom,” sings Pat, still looking for salvation in romance. That’s followed by Dissolve And Disappear, a downtempo excursion that strikes a bleaker note: “You can’t defeat the whole wide world when there’s ruin in your soul.”
We’re back to strutting our stuff on I Remember, albeit with a stop-start breakdown on the chorus that might give dancers a little trouble. Propulsive bass synth drives the verses forward while sugar-frosted sequencers provide a little ear candy. There’s a similar soundstage on In Our Ruins, although the mood here is more Düsseldorf than Chicago: “No-one’s home behind these eyes,” sings Pat in a burst of urban anomie.
An offbeat electro-ska pulse is the motor at the heart of the questing Kinda Blue, Kinda Love. “The times are dangerous, but are we brave enough?” asks Pat. Essentially, humanity is up against it, a theme echoed in the rueful Force Majeure: “We’re swept away and we just don’t care.”
It all comes to a head in Broken Gods, a despairing lyric set to an uplifting tune. “All we do is to make our nightmares seem so real,” sighs Pat. Yet as it turns out, the answer lies in ourselves: “We are gods and we must get good at it,” runs the closing coda.
If the album has a fault, it’s that it’s over too soon. Its running time is comfortably under 40 minutes and some of its most impressive songs run at about three-and-a-half minutes. Synth-pop thrived in the days of the 12-inch single, so Stronger and Make My Day are crying out for extended mixes to allow Greg Kane’s soundscapes to breathe.
Anyway, it’s not too late for that. The main thing is that if you enjoy electronic pop, you should definitely give this a listen, whatever your view of Hue And Cry’s previous work. You don’t want to miss out on a gem, do you?
~
You can find Hue And Cry’s official website here. They are also on Facebook, Instagram and X.
All words by Robert Plummer. More writing by Robert can be found at hisauthor’s archive. He is also on X as @robertp926.
A Plea From Louder Than War
Louder Than War is run by a small but dedicated independent team, and we rely on the small amount of money we generate to keep the site running smoothly. Any money we do get is not lining the pockets of oligarchs or mad-cap billionaires dictating what our journalists are allowed to think and write, or hungry shareholders. We know times are tough, and we want to continue bringing you news on the most interesting releases, the latest gigs and anything else that tickles our fancy. We are not driven by profit, just pure enthusiasm for a scene that each and every one of us is passionate about.
To us, music and culture are eveything, without them, our very souls shrivel and die. We do not charge artists for the exposure we give them and to many, what we do is absolutely vital. Subscribing to one of our paid tiers takes just a minute, and each sign-up makes a huge impact, helping to keep the flame of independent music burning! Please click the button below to help.
John Robb – Editor in Chief