Levels of interest in the work of Sparks are at heights unsurpassed in their 50+ year career, with the ultimate cult band now centre stage in the full beam of the spotlight.

Most people, with even a passing acquaintance with Sparks, will know the basics by now. How Californian brothers Ron and Russell Mael, both students at UCLA, began making music together in the late Sixties, originally under the name Halfnelson. How their Top Of The Pops debut with ‘This Town Ain't Big Enough For Both Of Us’ stunned a generation and scored them an all-time hit. How their career moved through many phases, including (but not limited to) art rock, glam, big band swing, electro-disco, new wave and synthpop, taking in eclectic collaborations with Todd Rundgren, Les Rita Mitsouko, Tony Visconti, Franz Ferdinand and Giorgio Moroder.

How keyboardist and songwriter Ron's intricate staccato arrangements combine with the acrobatic vocals in which Russell delivers his brother's always-on-point lyrics. How Ron's stillness and stern, intimidating visage contrasts onstage with Russell's hyperactivity. How their popularity has spiked unpredictably in different territories at different times: Britain, France, Germany, Scandinavia, Japan, and their homeland the United States.

And how the influence of “the greatest band you've never heard of”, or “your favourite band's favourite band”, has been recognised by successive generations of artists from Joy Division to The Smiths to Duran Duran to Depeche Mode to Blur to Bjork to Beck and beyond. Their influence on music cannot be overstated - as super-producer Jack Antonoff recently declared: “all pop music is re-arranged Sparks”.

Now into their sixth decade of making music, Sparks have never been more relevant.

Once more Top-10 regulars, with studio albums Hippopotamus (2017) A Steady Drip, Drip, Drip (2020), The Girl Is Crying in Her Latte (2023) reaching No.7 in the UK and all receiving global acclaim, the lauded career-spanning documentary film The Sparks Brothers, directed by Edgar Wright (Shaun Of The Dead, Hot Fuzz, Baby Driver) and released in 2021, brought an awareness of Sparks to parts they previously hadn't reached.

Sparks’ 2021 film musical Annette, directed by Leos Carax and starring Adam Driver and Marion Cotillard, swept the board in France at that year's César and Lumières Awards with eight wins and seven nominations across the two ceremonies, including the César for Best Original Music.

With the 2023 release of their 26th album, The Girl Is Crying In Her Latte, Ron and Russell Mael continued on their unique and uncompromising path. To coincide with the album release Sparks took to the road for a world tour that included 2 sold out headline shows at London’s Royal Albert Hall, a show-stopping and headlines-stealing performance at Glastonbury, a sold out Sydney Opera House, and the largest headline show of the band’s career at the world-famous Hollywood Bowl in their hometown of Los Angeles.

In 2024 they released their 27th studio album, the original 2013 recordings of Annette performed by Ron and Russell, with the soprano Rebecca Sjöwall taking the parts of Ann and Annette. Continuing their love for film as an artform, Ron and Russell have written a new musical epic, titled X-Crucior, that is in development with Focus Features and will be directed by John Woo.

Saint Etienne

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