Information Society

Information Society

With a charming dance-oriented image, connections to industrial music, techno, funk, and an immediately recognizable pop sensibility, Information Society hit the clubs and later the charts with their infectious breakthrough single “What’s on Your Mind (Pure Energy)” in 1988. The group, a Minneapolis-based quartet consisting of James Cassidy, Paul Robb, Kurt Harland (aka Kurt Valaquen), and Amanda Kramer, signed with Tommy Boy Records a few years later and recorded their self-titled album.

The single “What’s on Your Mind (Pure Energy),” driven by a Leonard Nimoy sample and Valaquen’s soft, soothing voice, became a club hit and reached No. 3 on the pop charts. Later that year, the new single “Walking Away” was released; it also reached the Top Ten, and the album achieved Gold status. (?)

Kramer soon left the group to pursue solo work with the Golden Palominos.

Information Society’s second album, “Hack,” was more than competent, but was largely ignored by critics who had dismissed Information Society as a “one-hit wonder.”

Several singles made the charts, but after the third album, 1994’s “Peace & Love Inc.,” Robb and Cassidy also left the group. Harland continued on, releasing the industrial-tinged “Don’t Be Afraid” on Cleopatra Records in 1997.

Reunion in 2006: James Cassidy and Paul Robb reunited, with Christopher Anton becoming the new lead singer, although Kurt Harland’s voice could still be heard on some occasions. The new album, “SYNTHESIZER,” was released in 2007.