Talk Talk

British band Talk Talk formed in the early ’80s, during New Wave’s glory days, but they eventually shifted into a more experimental style that paved the way for the post-rock movement. ∙ One of their earliest hits, “Talk Talk,” from 1982’s The Party’s Over, was a revised version of a song that frontman Mark Hollis wrote for his first band, a garage rock outfit called The Reaction. ∙ International success arrived with the 1984 album It’s My Life, thanks to the one-two punch of its title track and “Such a Shame,” which went to the Top 10 in six different countries. ∙ Their 1986 hit “Life’s What You Make It” was partially inspired by Kate Bush’s “Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God)” and “Green Onions” by Booker T. & The M.G.’s. ∙ The experimental, critically acclaimed 1988 album Spirit of Eden is credited as one of the earliest examples of post-rock, influencing such bands as Doves, Elbow, Sigur Rós, and Radiohead. ∙ After it was reissued, their now-classic 1991 release, Laughing Stock, received a rare perfect score from Pitchfork and was included on its list of the Top 100 Albums of the 1990s. ∙ In 2003, No Doubt scored a big hit with a cover of their 1984 smash, “It’s My Life,” with the new version earning a Grammy nomination and reaching the Top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100.