Post-modern ironists cloaked behind a veil of buoyantly melodic and lushly romantic synth pop confections, Pet Shop Boys offer wry yet strangely affecting cultural commentary communicated by the Morse code of synth washes and drum machine rhythms. After first emerging in the mid-'80s with "West End Girls" and "Opportunities (Let's Make Lots of Money)," Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe quickly established themselves as hitmaking singles artists who were also able to craft emotionally resonant albums, like 1988's Introspective and 1990's Behaviour. The duo navigated the constantly shifting landscape of modern dance-pop with grace and intelligence, moving easily from disco to house music to thoughtful synth pop without losing their distinctive style in the process. Continuing to evolve artistically, Pet Shop Boys incorporated Latin music on 1996's Bilingual, expanded into theater and ballet, and morphed into elder statesmen of electronic pop, still able to release interesting albums after more than 30 years, as evidenced by highlights like 2016's Super and 2020's Hotspot.
Pet Shop Boys formed in London in August 1981, when vocalist Tennant (a former editor at Marvel Comics who later gained recognition as a journalist for Smash Hits magazine) first met keyboardist Lowe (a onetime architecture student) at an electronics shop. Discovering a shared passion for dance music and synthesizers, they immediately decided to start a band. After dubbing themselves Pet Shop Boys in honor of friends who worked in such an establishment -- while also obliquely nodding to the sort of names prevalent among the New York City hip-hop culture of the early '80s -- the duo's career first took flight in 1983, when Tennant met producer Bobby "O" Orlando while on a writing assignment. Orlando produced their first single, 1984's "West End Girls." The song was a minor hit in the U.S. but went nowhere in Britain, and its follow-up, "One More Chance," was also unsuccessful.
Upon signing to EMI, Pet Shop Boys issued 1985's biting "Opportunities (Let's Make Lots of Money)." When it too failed to attract attention, the duo's future appeared grim, but Tennant and Lowe then released an evocative new Stephen Hague production of "West End Girls," which became an international chart-topper. Its massive success propelled Pet Shop Boys' 1986 debut LP, Please, into the Top Ten, and when "Opportunities" was subsequently reissued, it too became a hit. Disco, a collection of dance remixes, was quickly rushed into stores, and in 1987 the duo resurfaced with the superb Actually, which launched two more Top Ten smashes -- "It's a Sin" and "What Have I Done to Deserve This?," a duet between Tennant and the great Dusty Springfield. Later that year, "Always on My Mind," a lovely cover of the perennial Elvis Presley standard, reached number one in several countries and the Top Ten in the U.S. A documentary film titled It Couldn't Happen Here was released one year later.
In October 1988, Pet Shop Boys issued their third studio LP, the eclectic Introspective. "Domino Dancing" and "Left to My Own Devices" both reached the Top Ten in Great Britain. The following year, Pet Shop Boys collaborated with a variety of performers, most notably Liza Minnelli, for whom they produced the 1989 LP Results. They also produced material for Springfield, and Tennant joined New Order frontman Bernard Sumner and ex-Smiths guitarist Johnny Marr in the group Electronic, scoring a hit with the single "Getting Away with It." Tennant and Lowe reconvened in 1990 for the muted, downcast Behavior, produced by Harold Faltermeyer. Their hit medley of U2's "Where the Streets Have No Name" and Frankie Valli's "Can't Take My Eyes Off You" was released in 1991, and was followed in 1993 by Very, lauded as one of the duo's finest efforts.
After a three-year absence, Pet Shop Boys resurfaced with Bilingual, a fluid expansion into Latin rhythms. Nightlife followed in 1999 and sparked the dance club hit "New York City Boy," whose success allowed the group to tour the U.S. for the first time in eight years. While on tour, the pair also collaborated with playwright Jonathan Harvey on a musical surrounding gay life and societal criticisms, which the three had been planning since 1997. Closer to Heaven made its West End debut in 2001 and had a successful run for most of the year; Pet Shop Boys' score of the original cast recording was also a hit in the U.K. They still had time to make a record for themselves, too: In April 2002, Tennant and Lowe issued Release and Disco 3 was compiled for release the following year.
Pet Shop Boys continued releasing material throughout the decade's latter half. In 2005, they put together a volume of the Back to Mine series and released their music designed to accompany the 1925 silent film Battleship Potemkin, a soundtrack they'd performed a year earlier at a free concert/screening in Trafalgar Square. A year later, they issued Fundamental, a mature, sometimes political album produced by Trevor Horn. The live album Concrete: In Concert at the Mermaid Theatre appeared at the end of the year, and Yes -- a collaborative effort with the production crew Xenomania -- marked the band's tenth studio effort in March 2009. While playing shows in support of that album, Pet Shop Boys also released a hits compilation, Party, to coincide with the Brazilian leg of their tour. In 2010, the tour was documented on the CD/DVD release Pandemonium, and another greatest-hits compilation, Ultimate, arrived.
Their 2011 effort, The Most Incredible Thing, was a two-disc ballet score composed for the Sadler's Wells Theatre in London, while 2012's Format rounded up the duo's B-sides and bonus tracks from the years 1996-2009. Also in 2012, Pet Shop Boys released the sports-themed single "Winner" and performed the track at the 2012 Olympics Summer Games, held that year in their hometown of London. The track landed on that year's album Elysium, which was produced by Kanye West affiliate Andrew Dawson. Stuart Price (Madonna, Seal, Kylie Minogue) was the producer of 2013's Electric, an album that featured no ballads, just dance tracks.
In May 2014, the duo announced more original music, this time with a concert piece scheduled for a July date at Royal Albert Hall commemorating British code breaker Alan Turing and including the BBC Concert Orchestra. Price returned as producer of 2016's Super, the second album in a row where Pet Shop Boys were "electronic purists," meaning no guitars, no orchestral support, and no organic instruments. The following year saw the band issue the Undertow EP, which featured two remixes of Super's "Undertow," a remix of "Burn," and a new version of "Left to My Own Devices," produced by Stuart Price. They were also awarded the Godlike Genius Award by NME.
The duo issued the Agenda EP in early 2019, and the live album CD/DVD/Blu-ray release Inner Sanctum appeared in April; it was recorded during Pet Shop Boys' four-day residency in July 2018 at the Royal Opera House in London. Later in the year, they started issuing songs from their next long-player, including "Dreamland," a collaboration with Years & Years, and "Burning the Heather," which featured Suede's Bernard Butler on guitar. The album, titled Hotspot, arrived in January 2020 and was their third LP to be produced by Price. Discovery (Live in Rio), a concert originally issued on video in 1995, was issued on DVD and CD for the first time in 2021. The duo also released a nearly ten-minute classical-inspired single titled "Cricket Wife."
In May 2022 Pet Shop and British pop duo Soft Cell released the album *Happiness Not Included - Soft Cell first studio album in nearly two decades. The colab included the song “Purple Zone”, blending the best of both Soft Cell and Pet Shop Boys, layering a dazzling synth riff and dance floor-ready beat with anthemic vocals. Appropriately for the pandemics, the track laments feeling stuck in the monotony of everyday mundanities: “Let’s get out of this life/ I’m afraid and alone,” goes the chorus. Paralyzed in the purple zone.”
Their much-anticipated “Unity Tour” of North America alongside New Order, rescheduled twice following pandemics delays, kicked off in Fall 2022 and included several venues in Canada and the United States, featuring Paul Oakenfold as special guest DJ.
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A New Life
Pet Shop Boys Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
There's so much more to life than I'll ever know
I look around and I realize
It's time to make a move though you won't sympathize
Stars collect overhead
They look down on the channel and our lives grown dead
Cars pass on through the night
[Chorus]
New life, new love
Where's the heart I was dreaming of?
I need a new hope, new dream
Another heart in a different scene
Make a firm decision; it's time to go
That's for you to find out and for me to know
No more hard times or petty crimes
Forget that life I have left behind
The night goes by
Leaving you behind me, as I fly
Then rise, the day and night sky
How do you get to heaven if you never try?
[Chorus]
A new life, it's so hard to find
A new love, it's so hard to find
The night goes by
Leaving you behind me, as I fly
There lies the day in that sky
How do you get to heaven if you never try?
[Chorus: x2]
The lyrics of the song "A New Life" by Pet Shop Boys and Dusty Springfield narrate an awakening moment where the singer realizes that there is much more to life than what they had been experiencing. The lyrics express a sense of feeling trapped in a life that has grown dull and unfulfilling. As the night falls, the singer looks at the stars and wonders how one can reach heaven without trying. The lyrics emphasize the need to make a firm decision to move on from one's past and forget the hard times and petty crimes, which seem to hold them back.
The chorus of the song - "New life, new love, where's the heart I was dreaming of? I need a new hope, new dream, another heart in a different scene" - signifies the singer's yearning for a fresh start, new love, and hope. The singer is hesitant to leave their past behind, but the urge to step into a new life is pushing them ahead, regardless of sympathy or support from others. The lyrics are emotional, as they express the feeling of being caught in a stale and unhappy situation but wanting to break free and start anew.
Line by Line Meaning
At night it hits me cold
At night, when everything is still and quiet, I start to feel lonely and lost.
There's so much more to life than I'll ever know
I know that there are many experiences in life that I will never have or understand fully.
I look around and I realize
When I take a moment to observe my surroundings, I come to a realization.
It's time to make a move though you won't sympathize
Even though others may not understand or support my decision, I know that I need to take action.
Stars collect overhead
The stars in the sky gather together to form a beautiful display.
They look down on the channel and our lives grown dead
Although the stars shine brightly above, our lives and relationships can feel stagnant and unfulfilling.
Cars pass on through the night
Cars speed by on the road, each driver with their own destination and purpose.
How do you get to heaven if you never try?
If you don't take chances or try new things, how will you ever experience the best that life has to offer?
New life, new love
I crave a fresh start and a new relationship.
Where's the heart I was dreaming of?
I can't seem to find the person or passion that I've been longing for.
I need a new hope, new dream
I'm searching for something to believe in and work towards.
Another heart in a different scene
Maybe my ideal match is waiting for me in a different place or setting.
Make a firm decision; it's time to go
It's time for me to make a definitive choice and act on it without hesitation.
That's for you to find out and for me to know
I may not be able to explain or justify my decision to others, but I know it's the right one for me.
No more hard times or petty crimes
I'm ready to leave behind negative experiences and behaviors from my past and start fresh.
Forget that life I have left behind
I want to move on from my former existence and start anew.
Leaving you behind me, as I fly
As I depart, I'm leaving behind the person I used to be and all my old problems.
Then rise, the day and night sky
As the sun rises and the stars fade, a new day and new opportunities begin.
A new life, it's so hard to find
Starting over can be challenging, and finding a fulfilling path is difficult.
A new love, it's so hard to find
Trying to find a romantic partner who truly complements and supports you is a daunting task.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: LOWE, SPRINGS, TENNANT
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind