Electronic System

Electronic System was one of several monikers of <a href="spotify:artist:7G2HFo9Ygk7hJq8SWCh6D2">Dan Lacksman</a>, a Belgian musician best known as one of the co-founders of the groundbreaking synth pop group <a href="spotify:artist:6PzO2zYVuLxLwhZJfnP1Wj">Telex</a>. Throughout the first half of the 1970s, Electronic System released several LPs mainly consisting of instrumental covers of pop hits, played on Moog synthesizers as well acoustic guitars and drums. With 1977's Disco Machine, however, the project explored the space disco sound that was emerging at the time.

Born <a href="spotify:artist:7G2HFo9Ygk7hJq8SWCh6D2">Daniel Pierre Lanckmans</a> in Werl, Germany in 1950, the musician began playing piano when he was 12 years old, and later formed his first band with some of his schoolmates. Following high school, he decided to become a professional recording engineer, and found a job as a tape operator at a studio in Brussels. He bought his first synthesizer, an EMS VCS 3, in 1970, and began incorporating it into his own music. He released whimsical psychedelic folk-pop under the name <a href="spotify:artist:7G2HFo9Ygk7hJq8SWCh6D2">Dan Lacksman</a>, as heard on his self-titled 1973 effort, while the previous year's Flamenco Moog (credited to <a href="spotify:artist:7G2HFo9Ygk7hJq8SWCh6D2">Dan Lacksman Association</a>) included instrumental renditions of "La Bamba" and <a href="spotify:artist:2rM1qNABE6tqficAyyZ0l9">Gershon Kingsley</a>'s "Popcorn," which had just become a worldwide hit as performed by <a href="spotify:artist:2vaRrv3i7PDOXPEue24qe5">Hot Butter</a>.

Throughout the '70s, <a href="spotify:artist:7G2HFo9Ygk7hJq8SWCh6D2">Lacksman</a> continued releasing albums of instrumental electronic pop, mainly credited to Electronic System, but also repackaged under additional aliases such as Discotheque Sound and Electronic Butterflies, and often sharing material. Following 1972 debut Coconut, released in several configurations, Vol. II appeared in 1973 and Tchip Tchip (Vol. 3) was released in 1974. The latter included the 14-minute "Skylab," a slow, spaced-out excursion that gradually became a left-field favorite. After this album and the self-explanatory Hits 74!, Electronic System returned three years later with Disco Machine, a fully electronic disco record in the vein of <a href="spotify:artist:6jU2Tt13MmXYk0ZBv1KmfO">Giorgio Moroder</a> or Space. This also earned a following among dance music aficionados, and <a href="spotify:artist:1GhPHrq36VKCY3ucVaZCfo">the Chemical Brothers</a> eventually sampled one of its tracks on their 2002 single "Star Guitar."

The final Electronic System single, "Sweet Whistle," was released in 1978, the same year <a href="spotify:artist:7G2HFo9Ygk7hJq8SWCh6D2">Lacksman</a> co-founded <a href="spotify:artist:6PzO2zYVuLxLwhZJfnP1Wj">Telex</a>. The band released their debut, Looking for Saint Tropez, in 1979, and scored a club hit with the single "Moskow Diskow." The group continued releasing music throughout the 1980s, and became a significant influence on new wave as well as Detroit techno, and later the electroclash scene around the turn of the 21st century. <a href="spotify:artist:7G2HFo9Ygk7hJq8SWCh6D2">Lacksman</a> remained active as a studio musician, songwriter, and engineer, working with a wide range of artists, including <a href="spotify:artist:2Uz58cSxlJgefDaSikxYQ7">Thomas Dolby</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:7pwjGKaqnfkvS7eQbHaqyH">Sparks</a>, <a href="spotify:artist:090VebphoycdEyH165iMqc">Shirley Bassey</a>, and <a href="spotify:artist:5aDKJuLDczfmHfRSOmHCJk">Étienne Daho</a>. He also ventured into worldbeat and new age, producing <a href="spotify:artist:4pAYkltTzVhqBZuDekCHa3">Deep Forest</a>'s multi-million-selling 1992 debut, and releasing similar music on his own as Pangea. Electronic System's Disco Machine was reissued in 2004, and three of <a href="spotify:artist:7G2HFo9Ygk7hJq8SWCh6D2">Lacksman</a>'s earlier albums, including Vol. II and Tchip Tchip, were re-released in 2020. ~ Paul Simpson, Rovi