What's this song I got in my head as I wrote my last Ask MeFi comment?

May 23, 2021 7:23 AM

I often hear this song in the club—the context is a lot of '80s, new-wave, and goth club music—but I don't know the words. Here's the melody, an octave down from where the vocals actually are. I feel like I've heard this song faded into New Order's "Bizarre Love Triangle" by the DJ before because the bass line is complementary (similar key, also kinda plunky, different rhythm). I'm happy to record myself giving my best impression of the bass line, but... Anyone know what this song is just from this?
posted by limeonaire to Media & Arts (19 answers total)

Shot in the dark here.

Pet Shop Boys Opportunities?
posted by Max Power at 7:46 AM on May 23, 2021

Response by poster: It is not that, but that's definitely the right time frame and overall sound, and similar rhythm for sure!
posted by limeonaire at 7:51 AM on May 23, 2021

Lovesong by The Cure?
posted by miles per flower at 9:16 AM on May 23, 2021

Response by poster: Nope! It's more uptempo than that.
posted by limeonaire at 9:17 AM on May 23, 2021

Know any lyrics? Can you do the bass line?
posted by MiG at 9:19 AM on May 23, 2021

Well I now have like a hundred different songs rolling around in my head.

It's not Human League right?
posted by Max Power at 9:46 AM on May 23, 2021 [1 favorite]

Yaz - Situation
posted by niicholas at 10:10 AM on May 23, 2021

Response by poster: Unfortunately, I have no idea what the words are, heh. They're a little high-pitched for me to make out.

But I do have a bass and a sampling keyboard! This isn't as crisp as the bass actually is on the song, because I think it's a bass synth on the song itself, and I'm terrible at doing running sixteenth notes on stringed instruments. There are also high brass synths (or maybe actual high brass accents), and what I added here in that regard is a mere appromation of what I think that brass line is like. I would take the rhythm of this bass line with a grain of salt; there are some complex things happening at once with it (a main rhythm of eighth notes and kind of a galloping bass line of sixteenth notes) that I tried not-too-successfully to capture.

But here's my best take at all that.
posted by limeonaire at 10:10 AM on May 23, 2021

Response by poster: Oh right, and no, it's not that Human League song or Yaz's "Situation," though those are also similar in feel! Those are both slower in tempo than the song I'm thinking of, though.
posted by limeonaire at 10:11 AM on May 23, 2021

I think it’s something by depeche mode
posted by cotton dress sock at 10:34 AM on May 23, 2021 [1 favorite]

Reminds me of Flashdance...What a Feeling
posted by maggieb at 10:49 AM on May 23, 2021

Everything but the Girl - Missing?

edit because I fell for a bad youtube content troll
posted by ZaphodB at 10:58 AM on May 23, 2021

These are the things that dreams are made of, Human League

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ehYU6p3aIZQ
posted by cotton dress sock at 11:00 AM on May 23, 2021

I don't recognise it, but have you tried Shazam? https://www.shazam.com/
posted by Dub at 11:02 AM on May 23, 2021

Best answer: You know what, I'd tried the Google thing before, and it didn't work well, but I think the robots are getting better at this, because the top result, with a 35 percent match, is indeed the correct one. I was conflating some parts of the song by adding the synths to that section, though, and I see now why I didn't catch this when I was going through and replaying a bunch of songs I'd Shazamed to see if it was any of them, because the various parts of this song are so different from each other. Anyway, I think you'll be able to tell if you listen to this how complex of a song it actually is, and I was only remembering one part badly!

Peter Schilling's "The Different Story (World of Lust and Crime)"

Thank you to everyone who gave me ideas and tried to identify this! Enjoy the song!
posted by limeonaire at 11:08 AM on May 23, 2021 [9 favorites]

Response by poster: These are the words to the part I remembered, by the way:

"Love turns a friendly card
With a different story
It'll open your heart forever
Love is a wondrous game
You don't have to worry
'Cause it's easy to play."

This was so worth it; this song makes the hair on my arms stand up for some reason.
posted by limeonaire at 11:14 AM on May 23, 2021 [2 favorites]

Best answer: you have a very nice humming voice.
posted by evilmonk at 2:22 PM on May 23, 2021 [2 favorites]

Without listening to anything, I would have sworn it was going to be “The Promise” by When in Rome: another song that is pretty similar to “Bizarre Love Triangle.”

“A Different Story” is great too! Glad you found it.
posted by verbminx at 8:13 PM on May 23, 2021 [1 favorite]

Weirdly, I thought you were humming another Michael Cretu song. If you're after more in the same vein as this Peter Schilling song, I recommend Hubert Kah's album, Sound of My Heart (also produced and co-written by Michael Cretu).
posted by yellowcandy at 9:42 PM on May 23, 2021 [1 favorite]