Electro Light Parade: Erasure’s Andy Bell Comes to Park City

On September 2, 1985, Erasure, a synth-pop duo consisting of vocalist Andy Bell and former Depeche Mode and Yazoo keyboardist Vince Clarke, released their debut single “Who Needs Love Like That.” It was the start of an often-polarizing journey that saw the band dismissed by journalists and embraced by DJs and clubgoers. 

I’ll admit that initially my love for Erasure was somewhat guarded. It had almost nothing to do with the songs — I loved them since the first time I saw the video for “Chains of Love.” And no, my trepidation was the result of a struggle inside me. The world wasn’t particularly kind to the gay community — and I, the teenage son of a gay man who died from AIDS in the early ‘80s, was reluctant to publicly embrace a band fronted by an openly gay singer. What would my classmates think?

In time, I followed Bell’s example and learned to not care what people thought or assumed about me. Were it not for Bell and Clarke, I don’t know if I would have made it to age 20. Probably, but Erasure did do some of the heavy lifting.

So, here we are in the bleakness of 2025, almost 40 years from the beginning of Bell’s career and the singer is touring in support of Ten Crowns, an album that was released earlier this year (and is set to get a deluxe re-release in December).

This isn’t Bell’s first foray into the wild, outside the comfort of Erasure. In 2005, Bell worked with Manhattan Clique to produce Electric Blue. Non-Stop, a collaboration with Pascal Gabriel, followed in 2010. 2014 saw the first of a series of theatrical performances where Bell worked with playwright Barney Ashton-Bullock and musician Christopher Frost to explore the fictional world of a polysexual, semi-immortal character known as Torsten. The project saw the release of three albums and three remix compilations. 

For Ten Crowns Bell reached out to producer/DJ/musician Dave Audé who he had previously worked with on the singles “Aftermath (Here We Go)” and “True Original” a decade ago. 

Andy explains, “Our first two collaborations were very successful on the US Billboard dance charts, so we thought it only natural to meet and write again when time allowed. Dave remains unjaded by the ‘business’ which I find very refreshing, and he’s maintained his integrity throughout. I can always tell when someone likes my voice. We are equal partners on everything we write which is something I got quite comfortable with.”

Bell is quick to put nervous Erasure fans at ease noting that his long-time collaborator played a small, supportive role in the project. “Vince has done an incredible mix for us and he told me he was very proud of me and this project. He says he doesn’t know where I get the stamina from… and neither do I!”

While planning the Ten Crowns tour, Bell and Audé needed to assemble a backing band that would match the album’s energy. The musicians would come from an unexpected place. 

Bell says, “All the musicians were initially selected by Dave Audé and are all Nashville-based, which is very handy and puts me in the thick of the country music writing scene which is quite remarkable being a white gay electro boy. So, the dynamic is one of excitement, opposites attract and it’s a real fun eccentric bunch full of energy and undeniable talent.”

Bell always intended on including Erasure songs in the setlist, but he and Audé didn’t simply want to play karaoke and mime to Clarke’s original arrangements. “For the Erasure tracks, [Audé] has reprogrammed all the stems, which Vince kindly sent over, and has put his own stamp on them. He gets slightly nervous, but the whole show is dependent on him, myself and our incredible crew. The whole sound is fresh and dynamic.”

At the end of September, after the extensive US tour had already started, Bell took a week off to return to the UK where he and Clarke did a series of intimate shows to formally celebrate Erasure’s 40th anniversary. 

Now a month removed from those Erasure performances and fully entrenched in his tour, Bell reflects on the shows, “To be honest, it was quite a surreal experience doing four pared-down Erasure shows in the middle of the Ten Crowns major tour. It was lovely to have the Erasure family back again, but I don’t think we are quite ready for a full-on tour yet.”

Commenting on the four-decade relationship with Clarke, Bell says, “I never think about these things in real time. I just go with the flow and time has passed by so quickly. It honestly feels as if we met five minutes ago.”

With the 40th anniversary of their debut album coming in 2026, I wonder if a new album with Clarke is in the cards. “I sure hope there will be new Erasure material next year,” he says. “Vince and I are working on a few ideas and hopefully we will resume in the studio early next year.”

Turning our focus back to the upcoming dates in Park City, Bell says “The reception has been outstanding, and hopefully more people have got to hear the new material. I look forward to playing and seeing you in Utah.” Get tickets to see Andy Bell play The Marquis Park City on Nov. 21 and 22.

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