LOVE MACHINE: the vocoder mix

Twelve songs, nearly all about the L word, all featuring the sweet digital sounds of the vocoder (or its analog cousin, the talkbox.) No Auto-Tune allowed.

1. "Superstar", Aeroplane



In this song, the vocoder strips the vocals of nearly all consonant sounds, making the lyrics almost unintelligible yet somehow more powerful. Why let harsh s's and popping p's get in the way of glorious, elemental harmony? Also, funk.

2. "Easy Love", MSTRKRFT



Hear one MSTRKRFT song, hear them all. Luckily this one is worth hearing numerous times, not least for the vocoded vocals pushed beyond the range of any un-augmented human.

3. "Shutterbugg", Big Boi featuring Cutty



Single of the year? The über-funky hook pushes the talkbox to Roger Troutman levels (more on him later) and the delightfully spare production ropes in two 80's classics: System's "You Are In My System" and Soul II Soul's "Back To Life". Plus the video combines all my favorite things: empty warehouses, Muppets, Tron costumes, beer, video vixens holding disembodied heads, etc.

4. "California Love", 2Pac featuring Dr. Dre



Obvious choice, sure, but it would be sinful not to include arguably the most famous talkboxed song ever. Swiping the melody from Joe Cocker's "Woman to Woman" and employing Roger Troutman (!) to do what he does best, Dr. Dre defines the sound of a state, a genre and an entire generation. How many of us learned our California geography from this song?

5. "Remind Me", Röyksopp featuring Erlend Øye



Vocoders aren't just for vocals. The magic box turns a simple drum rhythm into a shimmering melody perfect for the sweetly sung vocals of King of Convenience/Whitest Boy Alive, Erlend Øye. Also perfect for a Geico commercial, apparently.

6. "How Deep Is Your Love", Keith Sweat



Answer: deep.

7. "Scorpio", Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five



You can trace a direct route from the sleek robotic sound of Kraftwerk to the legendary beginnings of early hip-hop. Guess what pioneering vocal effect made the jump?

8. "I'll Be By Your Side (Extended Mix)", Sally Shapiro



I want to curl up inside this song like it's a warm blanket. You can use the vocoder to create any manner of harsh, metallic effects, but only Sally can make it sing like an angel quite like this.

9. "Bizarre Love Triangle (The Crystal Method Extended Mix)", New Order

(this isn't on YouTube but you can download it from a shady file-hosting site here)

The original is a stone-cold classic, but this (apparently somewhat rare) remix takes the best bit of the song and stretches it over giant, booming breakbeats. There's something about the vocoder that makes Bernard Sumner sound that much more winningly earnest.

10. "Don't Stop The Rock", Freestyle



This ancient electro jam is so seminal, it probably knocked up your grandmother. If you're wondering where basically all of modern hip-hop, dance and pop music was born, look no further than this and Cybotron's "Clear."

11. "I Heard It Through The Grapevine", Roger

(this is an inexplicably abbreviated version - the original is nearly 11 minutes long)


The undisputed master of the talkbox goes wild on Marvin Gaye's classic for nearly eleven minutes. Roger Troutman helped invent funk and almost singlehandedly inspired the sound of West Coast hip-hop. This almost impossibly funky record has a sad underlying twist: like Gaye, Troutman was murdered by a member of his immediate family.

12. "Golden Cage (Fred Falke Remix)", The Whitest Boy Alive



(Hey, Erlend Øye again!) Most of these songs are slathered in vocoder juice, but this track's breakdown (around 4:08) shows just how gorgeous judicious use of the magic box can be.

(bonus track)
13. "She's A Superstar", Aeroplane featuring Chromeo