80s synth-pop pioneers Men Without Hats release new music, set to play Anaheim

Every generation naturally feels as if the music of their youth was the best era of them all. As more time elapses, however, it becomes hard to deny the oversized influence and enduring appeal of the 1980s.

From hard rock acts like Def Leppard, Mötley Crüe and Journey, to new wave pioneers The Cure, Duran Duran and U2, cassette-hoarding kids of the 80s never need to revisit the music from their childhood – because it never went away.

Many musicians from that era are still enjoying heavy rotation on the radio and still packing venues across the U.S. and around the globe. Case in point: Depeche Mode’s recent four-night residency in Los Angeles (two nights at the Kia Forum and two nights at Crypto.com Arena).

Carved into the Mount Rushmore of 1980s hits is “The Safety Dance” from Canadian synth-pop band Men Without Hats. The complex analog anthem and its quirky video took the world by storm, landing at No. 1 on the Billboard Dance Chart and even inspiring a “Weird Al” Yankovic parody – a true badge of honor.

Five years later, Men Without Hats would score another international hit with “Pop Goes the World,” the title track of their 1987 album which, much like “The Safety Dance,” simply made people feel … good.

After taking extended breaks between albums (and at times appearing done entirely), Hats’ frontman Ivan Doroschuk and brother, Colin, are back with new music and headlining shows in Canada and the U.S. They play Anaheim’s House of Blues on Friday, Dec. 22.

We recently spoke with Ivan about the legacy of 80s music, the band’s more recent material, and their enduring connection with fans.

It’s been over 40 years since the album, Rhythm of Youth, was released and The Safety Dance swept the globe. Today, 80s synth-pop is still very much alive and acts like Men Without are still touring and still heavily played on the radio. How do you explain this incredible legacy?

I think the 80s were a happy time. It had a lot of sing-along songs, and it was dance music. That’s one of the reasons disco is still around, too. It’s dance music. Also, when you listen to pop music today there’s a lot of 80s influence in the sound with the big drums, and the synthesizers, and the robot voices, and everything like that. But mostly, I think it’s the tunes. The 80s were very tuneful. And I think people remember that.

When Men Without Hats first came along, there weren’t a lot of breakout acts from Canada. You had Bachman Turner Overdrive, Rush, and folk singers like Leonard Cohen, Joni Mitchell and Gordon Lightfoot, and not much else. How difficult was it for Men Without Hats to break through?

It was a bit difficult because we’re from Montreal, which is the French-speaking part of Canada on top of it. We had to get signed to a label in England, and we were distributed as an import even in Canada at the beginning. It was the 12-inch remix [of The Safety Dance] that made the whole thing take off. We hit No. 1 on the Billboard dance chart and that really sent us out there.

Fans had to wait a long time for new music from Men Without Hats, and then you released Love in the Age of War in 2012, which felt like a reunion with an old friend. Now, you’ve released two new albums, Again, Part 1 with covers, and a second album, Again, Pt. 2 with all original material. How did this new music come about?

We’ve been touring a lot, and when you’re surrounded by the music it’s inspiring. With Love in the Age of War, we wanted to put together an album that was reminiscent of Rhythm of Youth. We went back and got all the old synths and we limited ourselves to 24 tracks on the computer, just like in the old days working with tape. For the new albums, we wanted to go back to Pop Goes the World which is a bit of a bigger sound … more orchestral. The difference between Rhythm of Youth and Pop Goes the World was there was a big change in technology and MIDI came along. So, there were a lot more possibilities in recording electronic music. That’s what we wanted to do with these new albums. We have a new single coming out in the next year or two which I think will take a lot of people by surprise. I can’t talk about it yet. It’s still in the works. But we’re looking forward to next spring and our new singles.

These new albums were produced during the pandemic, right?

Yeah. We had it all planned before the pandemic struck, so we went old school. We rented a house isolated on top of a mountain [on Vancouver Island] and we lived there. We set up a studio in the house and recorded from sunrise to sunset until the album was finished. We spent almost a year there and it was a beautiful experience. But it was the old way of making records where you just go in there and work ‘till it’s done.

Tell us about your relationship with fans new and old.

We’re blessed. We have a great bunch of fans, and they’re the reason that we can still go out there now. One of the things that’s really cool, that I really enjoy, is seeing original fans out there, and a lot of the times they bring their kids with them, and sometimes even their grandkids. So it’s multi-generational. We’ve sort of crossed the age barriers. We’ve crossed generations. We have great, great fans.

What is it like on the road these days with your fellow 80s acts vs. back then?

Well, back in the day I used to equate being in a band to being on a sports team. You travel around and there’s competition. You’re competing. There are only so many bars or clubs to play, and only so many people to interview you. There’s only so many magazines. There’s a lot of competition going on when you when you first start as a new band. Now, the competition is gone. It’s just a big 80s club of performers out there. We all know each other. We’ve all toured together many times. On our first tour coming back after 25-plus years, I went on the road with The Human League and the B-52s playing select dates. It was just amazing. Those bands are two of the reasons why I’m doing what I’m doing. I not only get to play with my heroes, but I also get to have a great time.

Men Without Hats plays the House of Blues Anaheim with Strangelove – The Depeche Mode Experience on Friday, Dec. 22. Click here for ticket information.

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