John Foxx - Stars On Fire (Virgin)

Unlikely as it may sound, the man whose "Underpass" single inspired a generation to pick up a Casio synthesiser has ditched his robotic style for something altogether more human. That's not to say he sounds any better though. The keyboards are still in evidence, but his songwriting hasn't improved during his lay-off. Tell this Foxx to trot off. (Dave Ling, No 1, June 29, 1985)

You can't help feeling John has missed the boat. His time should have been at the turn of the decade when "Underpass" just about summed up that whole synthesiser sound around then. In truth, his work has improved a hundred-fold. This is an enjoyable, Beatles-ish song, but "Europe After The Rain" was better, and that failed to make him a star and I don't hold out much hope for this either. (Eleanor Levy, Record Mirror, June 29, 1985)