Shock were a music/mime/dance/pop group that was notable in the early 1980s for supporting English new wave groups such as

Gary Numan Gary Anthony James Webb (born 8 March 1958), known professionally as Gary Numan, is an English musician. He entered the music industry as frontman of the new wave band Tubeway Army. After releasing two albums with the band, he released his d ...

, Adam and the Ants,

Depeche Mode Depeche Mode are an English electronic music band formed in Basildon, Essex, in 1980. The band currently consists of Dave Gahan (lead vocals and co-songwriting) and Martin Gore (keyboards, guitar, co-lead vocals and main songwriting). Depeche ...

and Famous Names, led by

Steve Fairnie Stephen Angus Fairnie (21 February 1951 – 22 February 1993) was a British musician, artist and actor, the frontman of the post-punk band Writz, and as one half, with his wife Bev Sage, of the 1980s pop outfit Techno Twins (later just The Tech ...

. In 1979, mime artists Tim Dry and

Barbie Wilde Barbie Wilde is a Canadian-born British actress and writer, perhaps best known for appearing as the Female Cenobite in '' Hellbound: Hellraiser II'' (1988) – the second of ten Hellraiser films based on Clive Barker's novella, ''The Hellbound ...

united with actors Robert Pereno and Lowri-Ann Richards and dancer Karen Sparks to produce Shock. In April 1980, they recruited another mime, Sean Crawford. The line-up changed again with the departure of Karen and the introduction of

Carole Caplin Carole Caplin (born 8 January 1962) was the style adviser to Cherie Blair and a fitness adviser to Tony Blair, when he was the British prime minister. She was controversial because of her relationship with the convicted conman Peter Foster. Ear ...

. Based in London, England, Shock performed in clubs such as The Haçienda, The Warehouse (Leeds) and The Blitz Club (home of the Blitz Kids) and The Venue (London). With costumes from

Kahn & Bell Kahn & Bell was a fashion label and boutique established by Jane Kahn and Patti Bell in Hurst Street, Birmingham, England in 1976. At the forefront of the emergence of the look of the New Romantic movement they designed clothes for notable bands ...

(designers for

Duran Duran Duran Duran () are an English Rock music, rock band formed in Birmingham in 1978 by singer and bassist Stephen Duffy, keyboardist Nick Rhodes and guitarist/bassist John Taylor (bass guitarist), John Taylor. With the addition of drummer Roger ...

), miming to music by

Fad Gadget Francis John Tovey (8 September 1956 – 3 April 2002), known also by his stage name Fad Gadget, was a British avant-garde electronic musician and vocalist. He was a proponent of both new wave and early industrial music, fusing pop-structured ...

Landscape A landscape is the visible features of an area of land, its landforms, and how they integrate with natural or man-made features, often considered in terms of their aesthetic appeal.''New Oxford American Dictionary''. A landscape includes the ...

, Kate Bush and Wilson Pickett, they were in the vanguard of the

New Romantic The New Romantic movement was an underground subculture movement that originated in the United Kingdom in the late 1970s. The movement emerged from the nightclub scene in London and Birmingham at venues such as Billy's and The Blitz. The New ...

cult of the early 1980s, alongside Boy George, Duran Duran, Steve Strange and Spandau Ballet. Their first record, "Angel Face" on RCA Records – with production by Rusty Egan (

Visage Visage may refer to: *A synonym of face *Visage Mobile, an American software as a service company *Visage, Georgia, a community in the United States * ''Visage'' (film), also known as ''Face'', a 2009 French film * ''Visage'' (video game), a surv ...

) and Richard James Burgess (

) – was a dance floor hit, as was the second, "Dynamo Beat". In 1981, Shock co-starred with Ultravox at the 'People's Palace Valentine's Ball' at the Rainbow Theatre. Lowri-Ann, Barbie and Carole appeared in the video for

's "Einstein A Go-Go". Sean and Barbie starred in the video for Ultravox's "

Passing Strangers "Passing Strangers" is Ultravox's second single from ''Vienna'', the band's first album with Midge Ure, released on Chrysalis Records on 15 October 1980. A fast-paced guitar track recalling early John Foxx-era Ultravox, Passing Strangers ulti ...

". Shock went on to perform at The Ritz rock club in Manhattan and toured Europe and the Far East. Their biggest live concerts were in April 1981 with Gary Numan at Wembley Arena. Shock eventually broke up and reformed as a foursome with Barbie, Tim, Sean and Carole and released the single "Dynamo Beat" on RCA Records. However, soon Tim and Sean as Tik and Tok broke away to form their own double act. Barbie went back to acting and TV presenting. Carole went on to become a lifestyle advisor to Cherie Blair.

Discography

*"Angel Face" b/w "R.E.R.B." (1980) *"Dynamo Beat" b/w "Dream Games" (1981)

External links

Shock on Discogs
{{Authority control English new wave musical groups Shock