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”.
The Boys record new versions of ‘My Night’ and ‘For All of Us.’
They work on two new tracks: ‘Your Early Stuff’ and ‘The Out Crowd,’ the latter of which will eventually become the song ‘Hell.’
They listen to orchestral arrangement demos for their next album, Elysium. The singers of Sonos also add support vocals to ‘Ego Music’ and ‘Breathing Space.’
Inspired by a speech on the subject of homophobia made at the beginning of the month by Irish drag artist Panti Bliss, Neil and Chris begin work on a new recording, ‘Oppressive (The Best Gay Possible),’ that sets excerpts from that speech to music.
It’s announced today that on March 17 the Terence Higgins Trust will auction off an opportunity to ‘meet ‘n’ greet’ the Pet Shop Boys at one of their upcoming Royal Opera House shows. The money raised will go toward providing services for people living with HIV.
They perform this evening in Edinburgh, Scotland—their fourth U.K. concert in five days.