China Crisis

Formed in the late 1970s in the Liverpool suburb of Kirkby, England, China Crisis was built around the duo Gary Daly (vocals, keyboards) and Eddie Lundon (guitar, vocals), quickly joined by a rotating rhythm section. Rooted in British new wave and synth-pop, China Crisis developed a style where supple bass lines, melodic keyboards and chiming guitars were organized around songs often of an introspective tone, on the border between electronic pop, gentle post‑punk and sophisti‑pop. After several demos, the band emerged in the early 1980s with the single “African and White”, then followed with the albums Difficult Shapes & Passive Rhythms, Some People Think It’s Fun to Entertain (1982) and Working with Fire and Steel – Possible Pop Songs Volume Two (1983), which established China Crisis on the new wave scene. The aesthetic was refined with Flaunt the Imperfection (1985), co‑produced by Walter Becker of Steely Dan, and later with What Price Paradise (1986) and Diary of a Hollow Horse (1989), where influences of sophisticated pop and soft rock became more pronounced. After Warped by Success (1994), China Crisis slowed its recording activity before returning with Autumn in the Neighbourhood (2015), while continuing to play concerts and tours, often as an expanded duo depending on the stage configuration.