Pseudo Echo are an Australian new wave band formed in 1982 by Brian Canham (vocals, guitar, and keyboards), Pierre Gigliotti (bass keyboards and bass guitar), and Tony Lugton (keyboards). Later members included Anthony Argiro (drums), Vince Leigh (drums), and James Leigh (keyboards). In the 1980s, Pseudo Echo had multiple Australian top 20 hits with "Listening", "A Beat for You", "Don't Go", "Love an Adventure", and "Living in a Dream". Their 1986 cover of "Funkytown" (a 1980 disco hit by Lipps Inc.) was an international success, peaking at No. 1 in Australia and New Zealand and becoming a top ten hit in Sweden, Canada, the United States, and in the United Kingdom.

Their 1984 debut album, Autumnal Park, peaked at No. 11 on the Australian Kent Music Report. Love an Adventure followed in 1985 and reached No. 14. Their third album, Race (1988), peaked at No. 18. In 1990, the group disbanded. They reformed in 1998 and released the albums Ultraviolet (2014), Acoustica, and After Party (both 2020). Australian rock music historian Ian McFarlane described the band as "combin[ing] flash clothes, blow-wave hairstyles, youthful exuberance and accessible synth-pop to arrive at a winning combination".

Biography

1982–1984: Formation and Autumnal Park

Pseudo Echo was formed in Melbourne in 1982 by two high school friends Brian Canham on vocals, guitars, and keyboards, and Pierre Gigliotti (as Pierre Pierre) on bass guitar and keyboards. Their debut single, "Suddenly, Silently" (March 2002),

In 2005, Pseudo Echo toured extensively with Idols of the 80s and released Autumnal Park – Live. In 2006, Canham performed at the Countdown Spectacular. In 2007, to celebrate the 25th anniversary of Pseudo Echo, Canham and Gigliotti were joined by previous members James and Vince Leigh for a sold-out show at the Crown Casino, Melbourne. This performance was followed by a short Australian tour before Canham and Gigliotti were rejoined by latter day members, Danielson and Grayson.

2012–2021: Ultraviolet, Acoustica, After Party, & 1990: The Lost Album Demos

In 2012, co-founder Gigliotti resigned from the band and was replaced by Simon Rayner (bass keys, backing vocals).

In July 2012, Pseudo Echo released "Suddenly Silently". This was followed by "Fighting the Tide" in 2013. In 2014, the band undertook a successful crowd-funding campaign which enabled them to release their fourth studio album, Ultraviolet. The band toured Ultraviolet extensively across Australia and to New Zealand. In January 2015, the group recorded a live performance in Hollywood's Viper Room in front of a sold-out crowd. This was released as Live at the Viper Room in June 2015. In December 2017, the group released a cover of "Nutbush City Limits".

In May 2020, the group released their fifth studio album, the acoustic album Acoustica, which was followed by the release of their sixth studio album After Party in September of the same year. In June 2021, the group released the album 1990: The Lost Album Demos, a compilation of songs that Brian Canham demoed in 1989 for what would have been Pseudo Echo's fourth studio album.

2022–present: Ultimate & New line-up

In late 2022, Pseudo Echo tour entitled "The Ultimate Tour" to promote the compilation album released on that year. In July 2024, the line-up consists of Brian Canham, Matty Ray, James Mudd, Abigail Lula, & new backing vocalist Valentina Taylor. In October 2024, Andrea Krakovská joined on guitars replacing James Mudd.

Members

Current members

  • Brian Canham – lead vocals, guitar, keyboards (1982–1990, 1998–present)
  • Valentina Taylor – backing vocals (2024–present)
  • Andrea Krakovská - guitar (2024–present)
  • Danny Ammar - keyboards (2024–present)
  • Elliott Orban - drums (2025–present)
  • Michael Kasif - keytar (2025–present)

Former members

  • Pierre Gigliotti – bass guitar, keyboards, synth bass (1982–1990, 1998-2012)
  • Tony Lugton – keyboards, guitar (1982–1984)
  • Anthony Argiro – drums (1982–1985)
  • James Leigh – keyboards, keytar, piano (1984–1990, 2007–2011)
  • Vince Leigh – drums (1985–1990, 2007–2011)
  • Tony Featherstone - keyboards (1998–2012, 2022–2023)
  • Simon Rayner - keyboards (2012–2016)
  • Ben Grayson - keyboards, keytar (1999–2007, 2012–2018)
  • Darren Danielson - drums (1998–2007, 2012–2018)
  • Matty Ray – keytar (2016–2024)
  • Cameron Smith - drums (2017–2023)
  • James Mudd - bass keytar/guitar (2018-2024)
  • Abigail Lula - drums (2023–2024)

Discography

;Studio albums

  • Autumnal Park (1984)
  • Love an Adventure (1985)
  • Race (1988)
  • Ultraviolet (2014)
  • Acoustica (2020)
  • After Party (2020)

Awards and nominations

Countdown Music Awards

Countdown is an Australian pop music TV series which was broadcast nationwide on ABC-TV from 1974–1987 to present music awards from 1979–1987, known as the Countdown Music Awards.

{| class="wikitable"

|-

! width="30"|Year

! width="220"|Award

! width="175"|Winner Song

! width="70"|Result

|-

|1987

|Grand Prix International

|Take On the World (Pseudo Echo song)

|

|}

References

Note: Archived [on-line] copy has limited functionality.

Note: Used for Australian Singles and Albums charting from 1974 until Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) created their own charts in mid-1988. In 1992, Kent back calculated chart positions for 1970–1974.