LOS ANGELES, CA (THURSDAY MAY 2,2024) – Eighties techno-pop band Vivabeat has announced a listening party for their two new releases, Party In The War Zone (plus bonus tracks) on CD and The House is Burning, The Best of Vivabeat colored vinyl LP on Friday, May 10, at 9:30 p.m. upstairs, Over the Rainbow, at the legendary Rainbow Bar and Grill on the Sunset Strip.

Sponsored by Magic/k Dream Machine and Pale Spectre, the event celebrates the March reissues from 80s-centric Rubellan Remasters. Founding members Marina Muhlfriedel (Marina del Rey) and Mick Muhlfriedel will be in attendance. This is a free, 21+ event, and the public is invited. Doors open at 9 p.m. Come early for free swag and stay afterward for an evening of live performances from Willem Wolfe, Sparklestars, GPS, Aquanette, and others.

In light of the new releases, Vivabeat has recently garnered renewed attention from the press and in film/TV licensing. In March, FLOOD Magazine published an in-depth feature about the band, while outlets like The Second Disc called the Best of LP “a potent sampler and introduction to the Los Angeles band’s electronic, often experimental spin on pop-rock.” Music Connection, Post-Punk Monk, Spill Magazine, Strutter (NL) and others have acknowledged the Vivabeat reissues, underscoring the band’s place in the chronicle of LA 80’s music and the global synth-pop/New Wave sound.

Their song, “The House is Burning (But There’s No One Home),” was featured last month in the closing credits of an episode of the Amazon Prime/Amazon original series The Second Best Hospital in the Galaxy. The track previously appeared in Brian DePalma’s classic film Body Double.

Vivabeat was formed in L.A. in 1978 as a hybrid of Los Angeles and Boston musicians and was active until the mid-1980s. Marina Muhlfriedel co-founded the seminal L.A. punk/pop band Backstage Pass; drummer Doug Orilio was in Boston’s Reddy Teddy, and Mick Muhlfriedel and Alec Murphy played with various Boston bands. When he joined the band, lead singer Terrance Robay was fresh off playing James Dean on the London stage. Connie DiSilva was a synth player and radio DJ in Boston. Of the later members, guitarist Rob Dean, guitarist Jeff Gilbert, and drummer Chris Schendel figure most prominently in these recordings.

Vivabeat’s debut album, Party in the War Zone, included “Man from China,” a tune that first captured Peter Gabriel and Charisma Records’ attention and landed the band a record deal. “Man from China” became an underground classic and a Top 20 80s dance hit in Europe, the U.S., and Asia.

Later releases included an eponymous EP featuring Earle Mankey’s production and former Japan/Gary Numan/Sinead O’Connor guitarist Rob Dean, and included the song “The House is Burning (But There’s No One Home).” Then, in 2001, Permanent Press Records put out The Good Life 1979 – 1986, an anthology that also featured tracks from See Jane Run, a Vivabeat spin-off band with three female vocalists.

VIVABEAT TRACK LISTS

Party in the War Zone

1. Working for William
2. From The Bop
3. To The Heart
4. Not Dead Anymore
5. Popgirl
6. Man from China
7. Wild World
8. Enemy Fire
9. I Know Your Room
10. Jet Set
11. The House is Burning (But There’s No One Home)
12. Tents
13. Angry Red Planet (Previously Unreleased)
14. The Good Life (Previously Unreleased)
15. What We Talk About (When We Talk About Love) (Previously Unreleased)
16. The Power of Love (Previously Unreleased)
17. Man From China (Alternate Version) (Previously Unreleased)
18. On Patrol
19. Shine (Previously Unreleased)
20. Blue Guitars (Previously Unreleased)

Vivabeat / The House is Burning: The Best of 1979-1986

Side One

1. Man From China
2. Working For William
3. The House is Burning (But There’s No One Home)
4. Tents
5. From The Bop
6. Grey, Grey, Grey