Clock DVA
Clock DVA
CLOCK DVA – WHITE SOULS IN BLACK SUITS
“We set out to form a new sound combination,” says Adi Newton of Clock DVA. “To merge acoustics and electronics, the German electronic wave with the edge of The Stooges, the avant-garde of French Musique Concrète, and the audio-visual creativity of The Velvet Underground. To create a harder form of electronic music with real energy.”
Formed in Sheffield in 1978, Clock DVA quickly lived up to that vision. Inspired by science fiction, Russian constructivism, and beat literature, the group forged a unique sonic alchemy that influenced post-punk, EBM, industrial, and techno. Known for their wild, unpredictable live shows and pioneering visual work, they soon caught the attention of peers Cabaret Voltaire and Throbbing Gristle, who released their debut White Souls in Black Suits in 1980 via Industrial Records.
Recorded in a single day, the album brims with restless experimentation: screeching guitars, inventive sax, and electronic soundscapes. Tracks like ‘Anti-Chance’, created with Cabaret Voltaire, drew on William Burroughs-inspired tape cut-ups, while the whole record captures the group’s kinetic drive to keep moving forward.
Follow-up albums like Thirst (1981) expanded their range into jazz-inflected post-punk and sharper songcraft, while later works such as Advantage and Buried Dreams pushed deeper into electronics, securing Clock DVA’s place as a continually evolving force. Newton’s drive for innovation has carried through to recent releases like 2023’s Noesis, proving their commitment to pushing sound and technology to the limit.
Now, over four decades later, White Souls in Black Suits returns on The Grey Area of Mute on 7 November 2025.
