Modern English

Simply put, “I Melt With You” by the legendary British rock band Modern English is one of the most iconic songs of the New Wave era. It garnered heavy rotation on the then-thriving Modern Rock radio format, MTV and dance clubs across the globe, and was prominently featured in the classic 1983 film Valley Girl, starring a young Nicolas Cage.

On 1982’s After the Snow, the band’s sound evolved from the dark, moody and challenging post-punk found on its debut, Mesh & Lace, to a more commercial and radio friendly mix of synthesizers, guitars, catchy drum beats and singer Robbie Grey’s unmistakable vocals. As the title suggests, the icy sound featured on Mesh & Lace melted away on After the Snow to reveal more concise and potent songs, highlighted by “I Melt With You” which brought the band up from the underground to the mainstream. It’s a song so popular that the band was honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2020 BMI Awards for seven million plays on radio. After the Snow was produced by the acclaimed Hugh Jones whose production credits include albums by Echo and the Bunnymen, Simple Minds, The Damned and many more, and the LP was released on the legendary 4AD Records in the UK and licensed to Sire Records in the U.S.

Formed in Colchester, England, the band self-released its first single on its own Limp Records label prior to signing to 4AD, home to such like-minded acts as Bauhaus, Cocteau Twins and Dead Can Dance. Laying the foundation for future musical movements such as goth and industrial, Modern English would gain the attention of renowned BBC DJ John Peel, who featured the band twice on his program.

Modern English would record various records over the years, with its latest being 2017’s Take Me To The Trees, an album that reconnected the band to their youth, in the fervent and fecund world of late 1970s/early 1980s post-punk Britain. Given Modern English’s roots were post-punk icons Wire and Joy Division – dark and austere while still melodic and passionate – Take Me To The Trees is a return to the sound and vision of their very early work that even James Murphy of LCD Soundsystem has described as “a sneaky secret that everyone writes off, because they just think it’s going to be a ‘I Melt With You’ but it sounds way scarier than any Joy Division record [Mesh & Lace].”

Most recently, Modern English issued After the Snow: Live From Indigo at the O2, a 40th anniversary live collection featuring the songs from the album on CD, CD/DVD and digital, with a vinyl version that was made available exclusively on Record Store Day 2022. Extensive touring throughout the U.S. on various legs would lead to the band making its late-night television debut on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon as well as a performance on The TODAY Show in October 2022.

Recorded at Clubhouse in Rhinebeck, NY in the fall of 2022, directly after months of touring, Modern English’s highly anticipated forthcoming album that will see a 2023 release was produced and mixed by Mario McNulty, who is best known for his work with David Bowie, Lou Reed and Laurie Anderson. Performed and recorded together in live sessions, the new album’s aim is to capture the energy of the band’s live show and harks back to the sounds, raw energy and post-punk passion of the band’s Mesh & Lace days. With a touch of subtle themes lifted from After the Snow and Ricochet Days that include the environment, aging, failed relationships, love and more, the upcoming album finds the legendary band delving into nostalgia but, as always, exploring new creative territory.

— Modern English’s “I Melt With You” has been one of the most played songs on U.S. radio with well over 7+ million U.S. plays on Top 40, AC, Hot AC, Modern rock and Classic Rock radio.
— In 2017, the band accepted the BMI Million-Air Award (seven million).
— “I Melt With You” is one of the most iconic songs in the movie Valley Girl (1983) starring a young Nicolas Cage.
— The music video for “I Melt With You” (46 million plays on Youtube) was one of the first videos played in Heavy Rotation on MTV as the network took off.
— “I Melt With You” has been streamed more than 100 million times on Spotify and Apple Music since 2015.
— “I Melt With You” has been used in ad campaigns for Hershey’s, Burger King, Ritz Crackers and most recently Sargento Cheese.
— “I Melt With You” has been featured on TV on shows such as The Goldbergs, A Million Little Things and the last scene of Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist last year.
— “I Melt With You” has been recorded and covered by artists such as Idina Menzel, David Hasselhoff, Weird Al Yankovic, Jason Mraz, Bowling For Soup and Nouvelle Vague.
— Modern English has toured with everyone from Eurythmics, Howard Jones, Roxy Music, Belinda Carlile and more.