Information Society

by John BushAn agreeable dance outfit with ties to industrial music, techno, and funk plus an equally appreciable pop sense, Information Society hit the dance clubs and later the charts with their infectious breakout single, 1988s Whats on Your Mind (Pure Energy). The group, a quartet formed in Minneapolis by James Cassidy, Paul Robb, Kurt Harland (aka Kurt Valaquen), and Amanda Kramer, signed to Tommy Boy Records a few years later and recorded a self-titled debut album. The single Whats on Your Mind (Pure Energy), propelled by a Leonard Nimoy sample and Valaquens smooth, assured vocals, became a club hit and eventually landed at number three in the pop charts. Later that year, Walking Away hit the Top Ten as well, and the album reached gold-certified status. Kramer left soon after, however, to record with the Golden Palominos, 10,000 Maniacs, and also on her own. Information Societys sophomore album, similar to not-so-famous follow-ups by dance-popsters EMF and Jesus Jones, was more than competent but mostly ignored by critics who had pegged them as one-hit wonders. Several singles managed shallow chart exposure, but after the third album (1994s Peace & Love, Inc.), both Robb and Cassidy exited. Harland continued on, releasing the industrial-tinged Dont Be Afraid for Cleopatra Records in 1997.