Real name: Mike Pickering & Hillegonda Rietveld

Effective period / Period of releases: 1983 - 2002

Members: Mike Pickering, Simon Topping, Donald Johnson, Derek Johnson, Gonnie Rietveld, Reinier Rietveld, Barry Johnson (8)

Electro dance group from Manchester, UK. Formed in Rotterdam, Netherlands in 1980 by Hacienda DJ Mike Pickering (songwriting) and Dutch siblings Gonnie Rietveld (programming) & Reinier Rietveld (drums). Reinier Rietveld left the group in 1983 for his own group Spasmodique and was replaced by A Certain Ratio's percussionist Simon Topping. The same year 52nd Street's Derek Johnson joined the group, soon after to be replaced by his brother Barry Johnson (8). They were signed at Factory where they released a series of singles (their earliest ones produced by New Order's Bernard Sumner and A Certain Ratio's Donald Johnson) and one album with guests from the Manchester scene (Andy Connell, Johnny Marr, Vini Reilly, Beverly McDonald). Their 1983 single Love Tempo was a dancefloor hit on both sides of the Atlantic and is considered a precursor of the US house scene. After the album release in 1985 they disbanded. Mike Pickering formed T-Coy and later M People, playing a crucial role in the UK acid house scene.