Neil plays in a group in Newcastle called Dust: Their most popular song is a preposterous affair he has written called “Can you hear the dawn break?”. They are heavily influenced by The Incredible String Band. “We were convinced we would become terribly famous. It was a very kind of stoned seventies but we used to think it was absolutely brilliant at the time”.
The Pet Shop Boys perform ‘You Only Tell Me You Love Me When You’re Drunk’ on Top of the Pops.
A video created by artist Wolfgang Tilmans for ‘Home and Dry’ debuts, focusing on mice filmed in the London subway. Originally it didn’t feature Neil and Chris at all, but they were later inserted for brief appearances.
The Boys are currently in Los Angeles working on their next album (as yet untitled) with the up-and-coming producer/engineer Andrew Dawson.
Drawing upon an old instrumental track Chris had composed a couple of years before, the Boys (who are currently in Berlin) begin writing ‘The Pop Kids.’
A mysterious week-long ‘What Is Super?’ promotional campaign begins with YouTube ads, a dedicated website, and posters in several European cities. (It will lead, seven days from now, to the announcement that the Pet Shop Boys’ new album, due April 1, will be titled Super.)
The Pet Shop Boys’ official website announces that they have donated a complete set of signed Catalogue: 1985–2012 vinyl albums and a signed limited edition of Neil’s book One Hundred Lyrics and a Poem for a charity auction benefitting the Elton John AIDS Foundation.