Information Society is the debut studio album by American synth-pop band Information Society, released on June 21, 1988, by Tommy Boy Records and Reprise Records. It was the band's first release under a major label, after two independently released extended plays. The album was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) on December 6, 1988, denoting shipments in excess of 500,000 copies in the United States. Four singles were released from the album, including "What's on Your Mind (Pure Energy)", the group's most commercially successful single to date. It was one of the few albums released in the CD+G format.
Production The album's CD+G content was notable, as very few albums included such features at the time. As the CD+G format never caught on and compatible players are difficult to find, the whole content was also made available on the band's website. "What's on Your Mind (Pure Energy)" and "Walking Away" were used in a sampler disc bundled with the Sega CD to showcase the console's CD+G capability. The sampler disc, which included "What's on Your Mind (Pure Energy)" and "Walking Away," featured CD+G content with the same graphics as the album.
According to the CD+G notes, instruments used in the production of this album include: Akai S-900 sampler, E-MU SP-12 Drum Machine, Prophet 2002 Sampler (X2), Yamaha TX Rack Module (X8), Moog Minimoog Synthesizer, Roland Super Jupiter Synth (X3), Roland JX-3P Synth, Roland S-50 Synth. This album was recorded onto floppy disk via Voyetra Technology's "Sequencer Plus MK III" MIDI sequencer software in the summer of 1987. It was transferred to 48-track analog tape in autumn 1987, at which time vocals were added. The 48-track was then mixed down to a stereo master in winter 1987–1988.
Track listing All tracks produced by Fred Maher, except “Running” produced by Paul Robb. The album divides its tracks into two thematic sections, “Software” and “Hardware,” reflecting the band's conceptual framing of the album.
Personnel Credits adapted from the liner notes of Information Society.
Information Society Paul Robb – keyboards and programming, arrangements Kurt Valaquen – samples, Vocals James Cassidy – bass, keyboards Amanda Kramer – keyboards, synthesizers
Additional musicians Murat Konar – vocals ELIZA – guest vocals
Technical
Fred Maher – production, mixing, recording engineering ; arrangements, programming Paul Robb – production Roey Shamir – mixing, mix engineering Joey Gardner – mixing "Little" Louie Vega – mixing Kevin Laffey – executive production Chopper Black – recording engineering Eric Calvi – mix engineering Jon Smith – mix engineering Oz Fritz – engineering assistance Angela Piva – engineering assistance The Latin Rascals (Tony Moran and Albert Cabrera) – edits Herb Powers Jr. – mastering
Artwork Grey Organisation – art direction Isabel Snyder – photography Steven Miglio – layout Daniel Shapiro – typography
Charts + Chart performance for Information Society Chart (1988) Peakposition Canada Top Albums/CDs (RPM) 41
Certifications
References
External links Kurt Harland comments on Information Society Information Society’s CD+G content