FM
History
Information Society (aka "InSoc") is an electronic music group from Minneapolis, MN, USA that consisted of Kurt Harland (aka Kurt Valaquen, nee Kurt Larson), Paul Robb, and James Cassidy, the latter two reconvening the band in 2006. Their breakout hit was 1988's "What's On Your Mind (Pure Energy)", a dance pop hit that included a sample of Leonard Nimoy (as Star Trek's Spock) saying "pure energy" while opening with Jackson DeForest Kelley (as Star Trek's Leonard McCoy) saying "It's worked so far, but we're not out yet!"
Over their career, the group has been very influential on American electropop and freestyle artists from both their music and their strident, colorful visuals, being best known for their 1988 self-titled album. The band was formed in Minneapolis in the early 80s, and they performed avant-garde electronic music with flourishes of hip-hop. In 1983, they independently released two albums, 'The InSoc EP' and 'Creatures Of Influence'. Two years later, they released "Running", their first single, which became a hit popular in New York City's Latino nightclubs and "put them on the map". That song, a 7-minute effort that touched on contemporary techno, was written and sung by Murat Konar, who left the band soon after. Their growing success led them from their native Minneapolis to NYC, and the ensuing revenues and contacts, as well as the addition of Amanda Kramer to the lineup, led them to record their proper debut album.
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