With a new EP and album set to change the way Australian electro-industrial music is viewed forever, Angel Theory’s Charles Fenech take us on a top 10 tour of his favourite albums of all time...

David Bowie : Low
I remember having my jaw drop when I heard this album for the first time; I was stunned. Side "A" is collection of the most unlikely songs you’ll find. The actual song structures are not your usual fair, in fact they are quite strange, but it all holds together incredibly well. The keyboard work by Brian Eno, and Bowie is just wonderful. Side "B", (yes, music once had two sides), is a collection of atmospheric instruments, which contrast the first side just brilliantly. They are both eerie, and beautiful. Bowie does some incredible vocal work on these tracks, which take them to great heights.

Favourite Tracks: Always Crashing In The Same Car, all of side 2

David Bowie : Heroes
Very much like "Low" this album has two very contrasting sides. Side "A" contains a couple of Bowie classics, like "Heroes", (one of my favorite songs of all time) and "Joe the Lion". It’s very much a "rock" album, with all the first side tracks having guitar treatments. The second side once again is a collection of atmospheric works. It’s all very moody and he really picked up on the vibe of the city of Berlin, where this album was recorded. Its dark, it’s moody, and so enjoyable.

Favourite Tracks: Heroes, V-2 Schneider

Talk Talk : The Colour of Spring
This album is great combination of acoustic and some very nice sounding analogue keyboards…. the songs themselves are just wonderful, desperate, and quite uplifting. The vocal work is at times inaudible, but it really works in the albums' favor…. It further adds to the desperation of the lyrics, and mood. This band really just got better and better with each album they released.

Favourite Tracks: I Don’t Believe In You, Time It’s Time.

Suzanne Vega : Suzanne Vega
This is an album I play when I’m sick of music…. It’s always fresh, and inspiring. Suzanne writes a great song, and her lyrics always have something interesting to say. The sound is purely acoustic, very dynamic, and very well arranged.

Favourite Tracks: Cracking, Some Journey, Small Blue Thing.

Kraftwerk: Trans Europe Express
The best electronic album of all time! Kraftwerk have a flow with their music that no one has come close too. TEE is a concept album based on the European Train Line… the music like travelling itself is continuous and linear, with the odd deviation, as with the very pop track "Show Room Dummies". The title track is the main feature here that runs for most the album - amongst the electronics you get the clanging of metal, which has to be one of the first ever on record. This is a pioneer album, and still has relevance to today's electronic music scene. And apparently it’s one of the first "hip hop" album ever!

Favourite Tracks: Europe Endless, Trans Europe Express

Depeche Mode: Violator
Hands down the best combination of songwriting and electronics on one disc. Martin Gore’s writing is as strong as ever, and the keyboard work is very Kraftwerk influenced, and so to is the mixing. I really love the "clean" sound they captured here, it electronic pop at its finest.

Favourite Tracks: World In My Eyes, Blue Dress

Gary Numan: Telekon
You want dark, you want moody, this is for you. A great combination of electronics, acoustics and electric guitar. The synth sounds of pure analogue sexy, and Numan’s robotic style vocals add so much atmosphere to the already edgy arrangements. Without doubt his darkest work to date. This album really did pioneer a new sound that a lot of bands of today have been influenced by.

Favourite Tracks: Telekon, I Dream Of Wires, I’m An Agent.

The Human League: Reproduction
I can’t imagine an album like this will ever be made again. This is one out of the box, a true once off. The Human League in 1977 were determined to bring electronic music into the pop arena, whilst I don’t know how successfully they were, I do know that they made a classic album. Phil Oakey’s voice to me is the finest voice in pop today, in fact since this album even. (Between you and me, I've had a long-standing dream to someday write a track with him.) His lyrics here are strange to say the least, but it all adds to the uniqueness of this album. Music wise its perfection. The cover version of the Righteous Brothers, "You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feeling", has got to be heard to be believed.

Favourite Tracks: Almost Medieval, The Path Of Least Resistance, The Word Before Last.

Haujobb: Solutions For A Small Planet
I always get lost inside this album. Truly a great juggling act of atmospheric beats and vocals. The tracks become memorable not for the riffs, or vocal hooks, but for their atmospheres, in this way for me, it’s a very visual album. It’s dark, and brooding, and has an incredible amount of underlying tension; it would make a great soundtrack to a flick like Blade Runner. I love the way the tracks melt into each other and it’s been put together extremely well. Once again this is one of those albums that draws a line in the sand, and says "so there!"

Favourite Tracks: Depths, The Cage Complex, Nature’s Interface.

Brian Eno: Discreet Music
This was a tough one to choose, so many of his albums are great. This is ambient in every sense of the word, before it became the name to describe slow electronic instrumentals. The title track runs on just 30mins, and whilst tonally it hardly changes, you have three melodies here that weave their way around each other nicely. This track is followed by 4 Eno concept pieces using Pachelbel’s Cannon as their bases. All in all very moody, and soothing. This album too has great sentimental value for me.

Favourite Tracks: Discreet Music.