Meeting your idols is one thing: having one of them feature on your record is taking it to the next level. And so it is that Jenn Vix, a longtime fan of A Flock of Seagulls, has managed to get their drummer, Ali Score, to feature on ‘You Are A Star’. Not that Vix is a stranger to collaborating with big-name artists: her resumé features Reeves Gabrels (The Cure, David Bowie, Tin Machine), John Ashton (Psychedelic Furs), Andy Anderson (The Cure, Iggy Pop,
Hawkwind), Danny Chavis (The Veldt), Marco Pirroni (Adam Ant, Rema Rema, The
Models, Sinead O’Connor), Dirk Ivens (Absolute Body Control, The Klinik and Dive),
and Rodney Anonymous (The Dead Milkmen)
There was a time in the early eighties that A Flock of Seagulls were absolutely bloody massive, and while their image was of its time, they recorded some classic songs which have endured, as turnouts to shows on their 2019 tour evidenced – and it wasn’t all forty-somethings in the crowd, either.
While brother Mike reconvened A Flock of Seagulls in the late 80s and several times subsequently, Ali has been altogether more reticent, which makes his appearance here an even greater achievement.
And it’s a great tune, too: pitched as a ‘celestial retro wave anthem’, it’s a breezy slice of synthpop that evokes the sound of the future as it emerged in the first three years of the 80s – a space-age love song, if you will. ‘You Are A Star’ has an airiness about it, but it grows in density as it progresses. Balancing light and shade, it’s ultimately an uplifting song, not only in its lyrical angle, but Jenn’s vocals which soar and drift upon the layers of synth to captivating effect.
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