Top 10 Best 80s Synth Songs

Top 10 Eighties Synth Songs

Welcome to WatchMojo, and today were counting down our picks for songs released during the 1980s that incorporated heavy amounts of righteous synthesizer. Well be saving instrumental cuts or score cues for another day.

Its a popular misconception that the nature of most synth-pop needs to be uplifting or positive. Theres actually a lot of conceptual darkness to be found within this world, as evidenced by The Human Leagues hit song, Dont You Want Me. The tune has become somewhat infamous in recent years, thanks to appraisal of its lyrics, which some have found to reside somewhere within the stalker/gaslighter space. The lyrics admittedly fall by the wayside with this undeniably catchy tune, a classic slice of early 80s synth that sounds insistently sinister and minimalistalbeit in the best possible way.

Its an admittedly difficult task, inserting a little humanity into the synthesizers intrinsically cold and detached drone. This is essentially why Soft Cells cover of the Gloria Jones R&B tune Tainted Love remains so great. These synth-pop pioneers never forgot the flesh and blood aspect to Tainted Love, with their version retaining an imminently danceable vibe. Theres a certain warmth to the synth tones here that avoid making Soft Cells Tainted Love an exercise in clinical, beep-boop industrial. Marc Almonds powerful vocal also does a great job, to this end, tying together every loose end with a memorable performance.

It speaks volumes that one of the myriad special releases for April 2025s Record Store Day was an anniversary remix edition of Youthquake by Dead Or Alive. Fans young and old have never forgotten hit singles like the iconic You Spin me Round (Like a Record), with its irrepressibly danceable beat. This Dead Or Alive tune helped trailblaze the hi-NRG scene of the 1980s club circuit, a throbbing number that pulses and crackles with life. Meanwhile, Pete Burns served as a visual focal point for Dead Or Alive, existing at the crossroads of both style and substance.

What is it about synth-pop that makes the genre ripe for parody? Saturday Night Live star Andy Samburg and his group The Lonely Island famously parodied the delivery of Englands Pet Shop Boys with their song, ahem, Jizz in My Pants. That very recognizable Pet Shop Boys cadence is set on full display here with West End Girls, one of the groups many, many wonderful songs. This is a slinky and cool number that sits right alongside other Pet Shop jams like Its a Sin or Opportunities (Lets Make Lots of Money). The tune is simultaneously eighties with a capital E, but also sort of timeless. A club banger that you can dance to, or simply rock on the Walkman.

We highly recommend the debut album from Frankie Goes to Hollywood, Welcome to the Pleasuredome, particularly for those whove never checked it out. Thats because the LP actually contains tons of great hi-NRG tunes, beyond the groups smash international hit, Relax. That said, youre probably already singing that chorus in your head, just from hearing that sentence. Thats how memorable, catchy and infectious Frankie Goes to Hollywood was at their very best. Yet, theres also a certain, skulking menace to the booming synth and driving percussion. This is synth-pop thats not scared to get dangerous; to meet you in a back alley, do some provocative things and leave you wanting more.

The career of Depeche Mode is one thats undergone numerous stylistic changes. This English group has explored early synth minimalism, orchestrated bombast and heavy, hard-hitting sonic sounds over the years. Just Cant Get Enough was one of Depeche Modes earliest hits, however, a single from their debut LP, Speak & Spell. This was an embryonic era for Depeche Mode, a brighter and danceable LP that hadnt yet codified the groups more experimental spirit. Still, Just Cant Get Enough works superbly in this fashion, a surface-level dance floor filler with sweet sounding synths and an earworm chorus that youll never forget.

This English group was a prime example of a fashion-forward 80s rock band that simultaneously retained their musical integrity. Duran Duran may have looked good, but they also sounded good, on hits like The Wild Boys, A View to a Kill and their worldwide smash, Rio. The bass playing of John Taylor pops particularly well here, while Simon LeBons vocals sound the charge. Meanwhile, Nick Rhodes synth combines with some excellent guest saxophone from Andy Hamilton to create some musical magic during the solo section. What can we say? Rio just rocks, from first note to last.

a-ha

Its not every day where a song leaning heavily upon a falsetto vocal strikes a cultural chord, but then again, not every song is as great as Take On Me by a-ha. This Norwegian outfit felt ahead of their time when they utilized then-revolutionary rotoscoping effects for their second video to Take On Me. The clips compelling narrative assisted the already catchy-AF tune to dig a little deeper with those watching at home. Its admittedly difficult at this point to separate the success of a-ha from this groundbreaking video. Then again, when your lead singer also possesses the impeccable good looks and strong singing power of Morten Harket, why would you want to?

Just as Marilyn Mansons iconic cover of this song became one of the defining hits of the nineties, so too did this Eurythmics original help forge synth pop history back in the 1980s. If were being honest, however, both versions of Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This) feel threatening and malevolent, just in different ways. The OG song and video possess a martial, almost totalitarian approach in how it uses stabs of synth to attack the listener. An Orwellian spirit of futility in the face of misplaced idealism that speaks to human nature in a pessimistic fashion. The Eurythmics dont necessarily intend to bring down the room with Sweet Dreams and this song can be enjoyed on multiple levelswhich is why its still so great.

Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions.

Slasher Movie Inspiration Plus Synthesizer Excess

Krautrock Trailblazers Achieve Mainstream Club Success

Melodic Synth-Pop with a Great Chorus

Title Theme Greatness from The Lost Boys Soundtrack

It was the 1970s post-punk of Joy Division that eventually led to the formation of New Order in 1980. And what a difference a decade meant to the latters processed-sounding production that emphasized a new synthesizer revolution. Sure, Joy Division did utilize the instrument in their own music, but singles like Blue Monday proved to retain much more commercial appeal. This came down to the songs danceable groove and robotic song structure. It felt virtually impossible to resist back in 83, a clarion call of gothic grandeur that was polished to a bright shine and ready for mass consumption. Blue Monday felt like a musical crossroads where New Orders past met with its future.

Do you miss the synth-obsessed 80s? Or wish we couldve just jumped to the nineties? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!