INFORMATION SOCIETY-Orders of Magnitude

Okay, it’s the original line up of 1980s new wavers releasing a covers album. Get past that. And they include a kitschy Pooh cover (Heffalumps and Woozles). Get past that, too. Because when you get to the real music, you get songs that feel true to the source material but updated for the 2010s—with the increased urgency and more refined electronica of our era. Songs like Industry’s “State of the Nation” and “We Don’t Need This Fascist Groover Thing” (original by Heaven 17) feel as relevant today as they did way back when, largely because Information Society puts their stamp on them. And then of course there’s the “I can’t believe they picked that one” song, which is Exile’s “Kiss You All Over.” I’m sure most people will pick Human League’s “Don’t You Want Me” as their favorite track—and it is good—but I’m all about the Exile cover.