Spoons

Few Canadian bands made the move from ambitious European-influenced rock to synth-pop as cleanly as Spoons. Formed in Burlington, Ontario, in 1979, the group began by playing progressive material before audiences steered them toward something lighter and more danceable. The keyboard-heavy sound they settled on owed much to OMD, with Gary Numan, Talking Heads, Simple Minds and Ultravox also shaping their evolution. Gordon Deppe and Sandy Horne were the constants through the line-up changes that followed.

Their debut album, Stick Figure Neighbourhood, appeared in 1981 and did well on the Canadian university charts, earning them tours of Ontario and Quebec with Martha and the Muffins. The breakthrough came in 1982 with Arias & Symphonies, which produced three Canadian Top 40 singles, among them "Nova Heart" and "Smiling in Winter". Nile Rodgers produced Talkback in 1983, a Canadian-only release that still yielded "Old Emotions". "Tell No Lies" won a CASBY Award in 1984, and "Romantic Traffic" proved their most enduring hit. Their 1986 album Bridges Over Borders, made after a move to Anthem Records, did not reach the Canadian Top 100.