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Letter from the Editor

The first time I saw the DeLorean—the flux capacitor-fueled car that defined Back To the Future—I got hooked: that stainless-steel crust, the oddly placed rear engine, the gull-wing doors that opened up rather than out. Who would have thought that that one pop culture cameo would create one of the greatest icons for my generation? I had no idea, at the time, that the car officially died two years prior in ’‘83. John, the “Auto Prince” DeLorean, meant nothing to me. The Silver silver Screen screen appearance is what got me, not the infamous drug smuggling cocaine charges, the fact that he created the American Muscle Car when he penned the GTO, nor his sexually exploitative “swinger” aesthetic—à la Raquel Welch and other high caliber female company he routinely sniffed out (tough life). All I knew was that I was a teen in need of that car…time machine or not.

A few weeks ago I found out that 2008 marks the second coming of my pubescent dream machine—in more ways than one. The car is actually being built again (stay tuned for more on the resuscitation…Nick Stecher, BPM editor, just took the new model for a spin), but that’s not what I’m here to talk about. Neon Neon (Bryan Hollon of Boom Bip fame and Gruff Rhys of UK group Super Furry Animals), this issue’s cover stars, have crafted a full-on concept album revolving around DeLorean’s decadent life. On the surface, concept albums like this often reek of clichés, but each song on their debut, Stainless Style, stands on its own. It’s definitely stylized, but it’s not forced; you can escape the irony thanks to the accomplished songwriting and contemporary booms and bips.

There’s nothing wrong with looking to the past for inspiration—as long as your ode has one eye around the corner, and you’re creating in that same sense of newness that drives imagination. Exactly what Neon Neon deliver in spades. They’ve managed to isolate the most addictive elements of synth pop’s past while consummating their own sonic signature.

As a kid growing up in the ’‘80s I saw the birth of video games, computers, digital music…the world and technology was exploding all around me. It was a defining decade. I just couldn’t make out the nebulous future over my Commodore 64 joystick. You didn’t have a clear vision, at that time, of present day life. Today’s fantasies have yet to become reality. In a world where we’re constantly looking toward the future, I hope you find your own nostalgia.