Erasure - Heavenly Action

JUL 01 1985 · 12:00

Erasure - Heavenly Action (1985) Director: John Scarlett-Davies Era: Early British Synth-Pop Era (1985) - The nascent commercial phase of UK electronic duo Erasure, during which Mute Records-signed acts were pioneering a post-New Wave synth-pop aesthetic with lo-fi, conceptually theatrical video production. High archival value as a pre-breakthrough document of Erasure's visual and performative identity, directed by a significant figure of the UK Scratch Video avant-garde. The video's modest commercial impact at the time contrasts with its current status as an early milestone in a defining synth-pop discography, making it valuable for longitudinal studies of artist development, mid-80s UK pop video craft, and the career trajectories of experimental video artists entering commercial music production. Context: Released in November 1985 as Erasure's second single on Mute Records (UK) and Sire Records (US), 'Heavenly Action' arrived during the consolidation of British synth-pop as a post-New Wave mainstream phenomenon. Despite peaking at a career-low #100 on the UK Singles Chart, the single reached #8 on the US Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart, reflecting the disproportionate US club circuit appetite for UK electronic pop. The video's celestial and angelic iconography participates in a broader mid-80s trend of UK pop acts using low-budget cosmic or fantastical set design to signal aspirational, otherworldly romance. The production sits at a transitional moment for music video as a commercial medium: post-Thriller ambition with pre-digital production constraints. Director notes: Directed and produced through production company Aldabra, with Nick Verden credited as producer (per Wikipedia). The video places Clarke and Bell in an outer space/celestial setting, with child performers costumed as angels, a concept consistent with the song's lyrical theme as an 'ode to love'. Scarlett-Davies's background in fast-cut scratch video collage is legible in the video's quick editing pace (avg. shot length 2.32s, 87 scene changes across ~3 min 22 sec). His mid-80s music video credits include work with Scritti Politti ('Wood Beez', 'The Word Girl', 'Absolute') and The Blow Monkeys ('Forbidden Fruit'), placing this Erasure commission within a productive cluster of 1984–1985 UK pop video work.