New Subscriber Playlist: “Songs From the Electric Joy Toy Company”

This month’s subscriber playlist, titled “Songs From the Electric Joy Toy Company,” explores the singular discography of electronic music maestro Ronnie Martin, the pop genius behind Joy Electric, DanceHouse Children, Said Fantasy, and numerous other projects. I’ve been a Ronnie Martin fan ever since I heard my first DanceHouse Children song almost thirty years ago. 2021 saw him return with his first new music in almost five years, so it seemed only appropriate to reflect on his vast and storied discography filled with synthesizer gems.

Accompanying the playlist is the latest episode of my“Playlist Breakdown” podcast, in which I spotlight one of the playlist’s songs and why it’s so special and meaningful. In this latest breakdown, I discuss “May All Saints,” a fantastical bit of synth-pop wizardry from Joy Electric’s sophomore album, 1996’s We Are the Music Makers (read my review).

Both of these are little bonuses for subscribers who support Opus financially. If you’d like to get access to them (and more), subscribe to Opus for $5/month or $50/year. (Also, if you just want to check it out, you can subscribe for free and get weekend reading recommendations.)