From Pheonix to Los Angeles, and from 1985 to 2022, the explorative 5-piece band Basic Elements return to the music scene with thrilling new singles like the passionate anthem, "Scream 4 Love."
Produced by Ed Buller, Basic Elements first made waves on the scene in the 80s during their late teens. They made a name for themselves by playing alongside local legends like Gin Blossoms, Gentlemen Afterdark, and Caterwaul. After disbanding in 1991 to start their own separate careers, the band reformed in Los Angeles to deliver their pure, uncut 80s sound.
Now, Basic Elements is reviving tunes they wrote in the 80s and reminding us that this particular sound and style can never die. They bring everything we love about that vibrant and iconic era in their exciting and upbeat anthem, "Scream 4 Love." This sweet single is a love letter to the idea of love itself.
The radiant single opens like a ray of sun in the morning sky, beaming through our speakers with the brightest synths while maintaining this groovy progressive rock atmosphere. The lead vocalist's warm and Bono-like vocals shower us with passion and energy, reminding us that love is the only force that can bring us together.
Basic Elements continue to sonically dance through our speakers with low-groaning sci-fi synths and chilling electric guitar riffs alongside soul-piercing drums. They carry us to the outro like we're floating through a sonic daydream back to the sweaty, vibrant nightclub scene in 1985.
Give your ears the treat they deserve with Basic Elements' blast-from-the-past 80s sound in "Scream 4 Love," now available on all digital streaming platforms.
Welcome to BuzzMusic, Basic Elements. After listening to your radiant single, "Scream 4 Love," we feel like we've stepped into a time machine." So what inspired your group to write a song about the idea of love itself?
We originally wrote this song in 1985 when we were teenagers. Back then, we were a bit myopic about love, so the song was more about reading the signs that you had the green light to make your move and working up the courage to talk to someone. Coming back to it today, we're a bit older and wiser. We've all had our share of love and heartbreaks, so the 2nd time around, we decided to tweak the lyrics to be an ode to Love with a capital "L" instead of being fixated on one person or moment. A prime example of that is the chorus. All of us just went through a generational pandemic, and there's a lot of turmoil in the world right now, so what used to be "Give that girl some attention" has now evolved into "Give the world some affection."
Was "Scream 4 Love" one of the songs you wrote in the 80s? When reviving these songs, do you put modern spins and twists on them?
Yes. Our producer, Ed Buller, worked on 5 of our old songs with us. Each one of them got its degree of updates and twists, but nothing that altered its DNA. We've released cassingles for each track, and the B-sides are archival versions of each song from a jam in our old rehearsal space back in 1985. Just five kids playing songs inspired by their heroes across the pond. It's pretty cool to hear them both side-by-side. The songs were always there. Ed made them a bit better — and recorded and mixed them beautifully.
What bands, artists, or projects is your band most influenced by? Did you have any of these influences in mind when creating "Scream 4 Love?"
Our band started as a defense mechanism because we were all getting beat up for dressing like Duran Duran. Those guys were always kind of Ground Zero for us (so it's cool to see them get their Hall of Fame recognition this year). Aside from them, Simple Minds, Japan, Tears for Fears, Echo and the Bunnymen, TalkTalk, and early U2 were always big influences, but so were lots of rock acts like Pink Floyd, The Who, Police, and King Crimson. All those influences still apply today, but now they include artists like Foals, Rüfüs du Sol, and more than anyone, LCD Soundsystem - I'd say they hold the biggest place in our hearts right now.
Was there a core message you wanted to get across to listeners in "Scream 4 Love?" What impact did you want the song to have on your audience?
We hope all of our music provides a sense of euphoria. These songs were written in the '80s, so they have a distinct feeling of nostalgia, but they're not tied to anything because they're brand new. You're free to go wherever you want! For "Scream 4 Love," we hope it inspires people and promotes love and tolerance, but if they just want to dance their asses off, that's fine too. All our songs are designed to make you feel good and dance — except "Hide!" That's a straight-up, fist-in-the-air protest song.
What's next for you?
Well, we got the band back together, and then the pandemic hit, so we'd love to get out there and play some live shows again. We have a few new songs written that we're going to record, and we're excited about that too. We haven't written together since the '80s, so the songs fit right in with our sound. But first, we need to release the last of our Ed Buller tracks. Plotting the release of our next song, "Shakin'," in the fall, so hopefully, we can back that up with a show or two and debut these new songs at the same time.