Vicious Pink

Vicious Pink earned an enduring cult status among synth-pop enthusiasts even though the U.K. duo issued just one album—a mere compilation of earlier singles—and performed only a single concert, at New York’s Ritz in 1984. Instrumental force Brian Moss and vocalist Josephine Warden began issuing 12-inch singles in 1982, occasionally under the slightly expanded name Vicious Pink Phenomena. Their airy Euro-dance textures and dreamy new-wave atmospheres drew scant notice until the bouncy, halting 1984 track “Cccan't You See” appeared. Initial sales were modest, yet adventurous new-wave DJs worldwide gradually embraced the record, frequently pairing it with the B-side “8:15 to Nowhere,” which enjoyed comparable club play. Parlophone pressed no fewer than ten distinct editions of the single, and both cuts became staples for remix-only services such as Razormaid. The 1985 follow-up “Fetish” likewise ruled dance floors and gained additional visibility through its use in the HBO series Real Sex. Moss and Warden formally disbanded the act in 1986, yet Parlophone continued to issue fresh remixes, often flipping former B-sides into A-sides. A self-titled LP surfaced that same year in Canada, though limited quantities rendered copies scarce. Unofficial collections of the band’s singles, mostly on CD, soon proliferated, while Razormaid issued the original Parlophone masters it had received under the title Vicious Pink: Uncut and later announced plans for a second volume in 2004. Meanwhile Moss joined the alternative-rock outfit Drug Free America, which remained active until 1999. In 2000 he launched the new project Mirazma alongside the group’s former singer, Hayley Windsor.