Contrary to what the Human League, Soft Cell and their kind would have you believe, the new English pop sound is not all synthetic. The curiously named Thompson Twins – in fact, a seven-piece rhythm posse – are closer in idea, if not execution, to XTC. Like that group of art-poppers, the Twins graft abstract song hooks and quirky guitar figures to a strident funk & roll base that is...

What do you do if you're a group for whom the dance-rock imperative has started to feel like a cliché? If you're bright and British, it's likely you'll either break up the band or take up some new and drastic tangent, just to keep things interesting. Two groups who've chosen the latter course are Thompson Twins and Madness. The three Twins made their name with tunes like "Lies" and "In the...

On their American debut, In the Name of Love, the Thompson Twins were a welcome alternative to the arch synth-pop then rolling across the Atlantic. Working with a bubbly, salsa-inflected bounce instead of the usual electronic angst, the Thompsons (none of whom is named Thompson) were as fun as they were tuneful. Their new album, Side Kicks, is fun too, and is just as likely to leave you humming....

You can't always judge a band by its haircuts. Take the Thompson Twins: on the surface they're the perfect example of vintage 1985 pop, three designer-style cartoon characters lip-syncing breathlessly trendy technoditties. And sure enough, their fourth U.S. release is crammed full of relentless melodies, singalong choruses, swooning synths, percussive exotica and the sort of hooks that should be...