On August 19th, Neil and Chris meet by chance in an electronics shop on the Kings Road. Realizing they have a common interest in dance music, they begin to write together. Initially they call themselves West End; later they come up with the name Pet Shop Boys, a name derived from some friends who work in a pet shop in Ealing. “We thought it sounded like an English rap group”.
Chris and Neil work in the studio on ‘Integral’ and record Neil’s vocals for ‘I Made My Excuses and Left.’
The Pandemonium live CD/DVD is released today in the U.K. and certain other countries (although the release date comes later for various other locales).
They continue demoing their new song ‘Vocal’ and begin work on another new one titled ‘Ball Starts Rolling.’
The Boys’ official website notes that Neil has been recording vocals for their next studio album (which will soon be titled Elysium).
The Pet Shop Boys receive NME’s ‘Godlike Genius Award’ at London’s O2 Brixton Academy, after which they close the awards show with a special half-hour performance.