Men Without Hats

Canadian new wave and synth-pop outfit Men Without Hats rose to global prominence through their buoyant, eccentric dance grooves anchored by Ivan Doroschuk’s distinctive baritone vocals. Emerging during the 1980s, the Montreal group notched Top 20 singles with “The Safety Dance” from their 1982 debut album Rhythm of Youth and the 1987 track “Pop Goes the World,” both of which became lasting period-defining anthems that cemented the band’s cultural footprint. Following a split in the 1990s, they resurfaced in the 2000s for extensive touring and issued the albums Love in the Age of War in 2012 and Again, Pt. 1 in 2021.

Originally formed in Montreal, Quebec, the project began in the late 1970s as a punk rock ensemble fronted by Doroschuk. By 1980 he had pivoted the act toward a synthesizer-driven new wave direction, enlisting his brothers—bassist Stefan Doroschuk and guitarist Colin Doroschuk—alongside keyboardist Jérémie Arrobas. The band self-released the EP Folk of the ’80s that same year, after which Stiff Records issued it in Britain the following year.

Subsequent personnel shifts led to a core lineup of the three Doroschuk siblings and keyboardist/percussionist Allan McCarthy, the configuration that tracked their first full-length, Rhythm of Youth. Producer Marc Durand helmed the sessions, which yielded the single “The Safety Dance,” a major success that climbed to number three on the U.S. charts in 1983. Propelled by its insistent three-chord synthesizer motif, the track ranked among the era’s most iconic synth-pop statements and propelled the album into the Top 20 in both Canada and the United States. Its momentum prompted the band to pause work on their next record midstream for extensive road work.

The resulting September 1984 release, Folk of the ’80s (Part III), delivered a Canadian Top 40 hit with “Where Do the Boys Go?” yet only reached number 127 on the Billboard 200. After further roster adjustments, Men Without Hats resurfaced in 1987 with Pop Goes the World; its title track ascended to number one in Austria and number two in Canada, where the album itself peaked at number eight. The single also cracked the U.S. Top 20, lifting the LP to number 73 on the Billboard 200.

Two years later the Stefan Doroschuk-produced fourth album, The Adventures of Men & Women Without Hate in the 21st Century, charted at number 41 in Canada and featured the singles “Hey Men” and “In the 21st Century” plus a rendition of ABBA’s “S.O.S.” Embracing the early-1990s grunge aesthetic, the group adopted a guitar-centric rock approach on 1991’s Sideways, an album issued solely in Canada and Japan before the band dissolved in 1993.

Thereafter Ivan Doroschuk launched a solo career with the 1997 album The Spell. He later rejoined his brother Stefan to record the sixth Men Without Hats effort, No Hats Beyond This Point. Following roughly a decade-long break, Ivan assembled a fresh incarnation of the group for festival appearances and other live work. In 2012 he partnered with Skinny Puppy’s Dave Ogilvie to craft Love in the Age of War, reclaiming the band’s signature 1980s synth-pop palette. He has since guided successive versions of Men Without Hats on numerous nostalgia packages alongside acts such as Human League, Berlin, and Andy Bell of Erasure. The EP Again, Pt. 1 arrived in September 2021.