best john foxx-era ultravox song

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Poll Closing Date: Saturday, 11 July 2026 00:00 (in 1 week)

i've never been into the synth-y midge ure era ultravox but those first three albums with john foxx have been rocking my soxx lately. don't think there's a bad song in the bunch, but which one is the best?

Saturday Night in the City of the Dead (Ultravox! 1977)
Life at Rainbow's End (For All the Tax Exiles on Main Street) (Ultravox! 1977)
Slip Away (Ultravox! 1977)
I Want To Be A Machine (Ultravox! 1977)
Wide Boys (Ultravox! 1977)
Dangerous Rhythm (Ultravox! 1977)
The Lonely Hunter (Ultravox! 1977)
The Wild, The Beautiful & The Damned (Ultravox! 1977)
My Sex (Ultravox! 1977)
Young Savage (single, 1977)
ROckWrok(Ha! Ha! Ha! 1977)
The Frozen Ones (Ha! Ha! Ha! 1977)
Fear In The Western World (Ha! Ha! Ha! 1977)
Distant Smile (Ha! Ha! Ha! 1977)
The Man Who Dies Every Day (Ha! Ha! Ha! 1977)
Artificial Life (Ha! Ha! Ha! 1977)
While I'm Still Alive (Ha! Ha! Ha! 1977)
Hiroshima Mon Amour (Ha! Ha! Ha! 1977)
Quirks (bonus, Ha! Ha! Ha! 1977)
Modern Life (bonus Ha! Ha! Ha! 1977)
Slow Motion (Systems of Romance 1978)
I Can't Stay Long (Systems of Romance 1978)
Someone Else's Clothes ((Systems of Romance 1978)
Blue Light (Systems of Romance 1978)
Some of Them (Systems of Romance 1978)
Quiet Men (Systems of Romance 1978)
Dislocation (Systems of Romance 1978)
Maximum Acceleration (Systems of Romance 1978)
When You Walk Through Me (Systems of Romance 1978)
Just For A Moment (Systems of Romance 1978)
Cross Fade (bonus, Systems of Romance 1978)


the manda-whore-ian and hoe-gu (voodoo chili), Thursday, 18 June 2026 15:45 (one week ago)

"young savage" is pretty undeniable, but "quiet men," "slip away," "rockwrock,," "slow motion," "blue light," "wild beautiful and the damned" are all a-one in my book

the manda-whore-ian and hoe-gu (voodoo chili), Thursday, 18 June 2026 15:46 (one week ago)

"A twisted, alienating vision of a world shortly to come, tensely helmed by pop futurist and "naively perfected entity" John Foxx, this evokes for me nothing so much as the late 1970s it was birthed in - charged with the energies of prog, punk and glam, fearful of the nascent information age, chock full of sci-fi buzzes and gothic drama. It still believes in the power of the twist ending, the musical sock to the chops. It couldn't have been made at any other time. It is one of my favourite songs."

- some bozo describing Artifical Life on some competitive music-rating app at some point in the recent past, whose appearance in such may or may not have inspired this thread ;)

imago, Thursday, 18 June 2026 15:50 (one week ago)

anyway yeah these three albums are everything to me, there's basically no wrong answer even if that's mine

imago, Thursday, 18 June 2026 15:51 (one week ago)

"I Can't Stay Long."

boners for bombs (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Thursday, 18 June 2026 15:56 (one week ago)

the energies of prog, punk and glam

Did anyone else jump as quickly from glam to (art-)punk to New Romantic?

I don't think Foxx has the skills as a songwriter to consistently bring his conceits to life, but I've heard all these songs and will listen to my favourites.

Halfway there but for you, Thursday, 18 June 2026 15:58 (one week ago)

ha i was actually in a bit of a foxx vox kick before someone submitted that, but yeah, it definitely did help cement my feelings about these albums

the manda-whore-ian and hoe-gu (voodoo chili), Thursday, 18 June 2026 16:00 (one week ago)

my sex seems so way ahead of it’s time. ‘77!

The Immortal Bird of Avon (Boring, Maryland), Thursday, 18 June 2026 16:10 (one week ago)

and book ending the other end of his career with them “just for a moment” makes me cry

The Immortal Bird of Avon (Boring, Maryland), Thursday, 18 June 2026 16:11 (one week ago)

this thread is very coincidental since I just listened to systems of romance two days ago

The Immortal Bird of Avon (Boring, Maryland), Thursday, 18 June 2026 16:11 (one week ago)

just for a moment is very beautiful, yeah

the manda-whore-ian and hoe-gu (voodoo chili), Thursday, 18 June 2026 21:58 (one week ago)


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