Stephen Luscombe, who has died aged 70 after suffering from an abdominal aortic aneurysm and heart problems, cemented his place in pop history with his work with his musical partner Neil Arthur in Blancmange. Stars of the synth-pop wave of the 1980s, alongside contemporaries such as Depeche Mode, Pet Shop Boys and Soft Cell, Blancmange made their first big impact with their UK Top 10 hit Living on the Ceiling (1982), while its parent album, Happy Families, reached the UK Top 30.
Luscombe’s keyboard skills, Arthur’s idiosyncratic vocals and the duo’s studio wizardry and knack for melodic hooks would prove a potent combination. Luscombe would later recall how the best concert he had ever seen was by electronic pioneers Kraftwerk at London’s Roundhouse in 1976. “I haven’t seen anything since that was anywhere near as good,” he declared. “Them all in suits with short hair and their computers and all these hippies sitting watching.”
