Thomas Dolby was an indelible part of the electronic music landscape on both sides of the Atlantic in the ’80s. The Zelig of synthpop, he was seemingly there or thereabouts at all points of that crucial decade. He enjoyed huge solo success with the singles “She Blinded Me With Science” and “Hyperactive!,” composed and performed on hits for everyone from AOR giants Foreigner to none-more-quirky new-wave girl Lene Lovich, produced three superlative albums for Prefab Sprout, and even co-wrote the much-sampled early rap classic “Magic’s Wand” by Whodini.
In 2011 he released A Map of the Floating City, his first solo album in almost two decades. A “travelog across three imaginary continents,” A Map . . . comprises Amerikana, Oceanea and Urbanoia, available as three separate EPs as well as an album consisting of those same constituent parts. Luckily, Thomas Dolby has been both — pop star and now esoteric and experimental but highly accessible albums artist. “I'm happy,” he says, “to settle into Chapter 2 of my career and make a bunch of albums that are challenging, adventurous and eye-opening.” His short film The Invisible Lighthouse won two awards at the 2013 DIY Film festival in Los Angeles.
