After Buzzcocks disbanded in 1981, frontman Pete Shelley teamed up with Martin Rushent, embracing the producer’s newly acquired synths and drum machines to rework his tracks, crafting a new blueprint for electronic pop music in the process. A production blueprint that would soon achieve massive mainstream success with another Rushent production; Dare by the Human League. Across both LPs, Shelley combines his urgent songwriting with chugging synthesisers and electronic percussion creating records that straddle rock radio and London’s nascent club scene. These albums sound as fresh today as they did upon release, but the innovative nature of Homosapien and XL-1 has been overlooked. Overshadowed by the influence of Pete’s former band and by the Human League’s runaway hit, not helped by the BBC banning the ‘Homosapien’ single on homophobic grounds (though it became an electro LGBT anthem in gay dance clubs). Domino reissues both albums as standalone double LPs, housed in gatefold sleeves with new liner notes by Clinton Heylin. "It is like a dialogue between me and myself. I put in the deep dark feelings and what I gain out of the music helps give me a release to keep me sane” - Pete Shelley, to Richard Cook, NME April 1983.
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Recommended equipment and accessories
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Ortofon 2M Red Cartridge
Features an elliptical stylus that accurately tracks the grooves of vinyl records, delivering a rich, detailed sound with an output voltage of 5.5 mV
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Technics SL-1500C Turntable
Features a direct-drive motor, a high-precision tonearm, and a premium MM cartridge, delivering exceptional sound quality
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Denon DP-400
Featuring a high-precision, belt-driven mechanism and an adjustable tonearm that ensures optimal tracking and minimal resonance
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Pro-Ject Debut Carbon EVO
Featuring a one-piece carbon fiber tonearm, precision-tuned motor, and a heavy steel platter with TPE damping, it ensures superior stability and sound quality.
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Audioengine A2 Plus
Precision-engineered 2.75-inch woofers and a 0.75-inch silk dome tweeter, featuring built-in DAC and Bluetooth connectivity for seamless integration.
Featured Upcoming Vinyl
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Angel Of Damnation Ethereal Blasphemy
Dying Victim Productions
July 25, 2025 -
Oasis (What's The Story) MORNING GLORY? (30Th Anniversary Deluxe Edition) [3xLP]
Big Brother Recordings Limited
October 3, 2025 -
DJ Haram Beside Myself (Fern Green)
Hyperdub Records
July 18, 2025 -
GoGo Penguin Necessary Fictions [2xLP]
Masterworks
July 11, 2025 -
Insomniac Om Moksha Ritam
Blues Funeral Recordings
September 5, 2025 -
Good Charlotte Motel Du Cap
Atlantic
August 8, 2025 -
Cam Muncey Cam Muncey & The Delusions Of Grandeur
Impressed
July 18, 2025 -
Matt Jencik and Midwife Never Die
Relapse
July 11, 2025 -
W.A.S.P. THe Headless Children Half-Speed Master
Madfish
August 8, 2025 -
Simple Minds Once Upon A Time
A&M
October 17, 2025 -
Jane Remover Revengeseekerz [2xLP]
Deadair
August 15, 2025 -
Grant-Lee Phillips In the Hour of Dust (Signed; Clear Golden Smoke)
Yep Roc Records
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Cass McCombs Interior Live Oak [2xLP]
Domino Record Co
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Maruja Pain To Power
Sony International Network
September 12, 2025