Was there anybody cooler than Gary Numan in 1979? He came out of nowhere (err….his mom’s house) at the age of 20 to redefine the land of pop forever. His synth-based songs would lay the groundwork for much of what we love (and hate) about the 80’s musical landscape.

Gary Numan + Tubeway Army – You Are In My Vision

It has now been thirty years since Gary’s first release and fifty years since his mom released him. To celebrate both events, Gary is embarking on the Replicas Tour 2008. For the first time ever, he’ll perform the entirety of the Replicas album, including b-sides.

The last tour he did for Replicas, in 1979, was a critical success but ended up losing money due to the elaborate stage setup. Here’s “Down in the Park” from that tour…..love the spinning crystal pyramid nonsense..

[youtube:http://youtube.com/watch?v=WnvOGO387ag]

For a bit of contrast, I present to you “Are Friends Electric?” from the Old Grey Whistle Test. No special sets here, just the Tubeway Army and their mini-moogs.

[youtube:http://youtube.com/watch?v=Uu6MDdxBork]

To cap it all off, Beggars Banquet is releasing a special Replicas Redux and Replicas Redux expanded 2008 tour edition. Both versions feature the original Replicas album along with early versions of each track. To my ears, however, these versions sound pretty much the same as the released ones. I’m sure that the true Numanians will be drooling over this, though. Also featured are five bonus tracks that weren’t on the original 1979 release. If you really want to go crazy, pick up the tour edition; It comes with a third CD with more early versions and a couple of Renegade Soundwave remixes.

Gary Numan + Tubeway Army – Me, I Disconnect From You

Here are the tour dates. What is it with nobody coming to the U.S. anymore? Curses.

FRI 2/29 – Carling Academy – Bristol, UK
SAT 3/1 – Corporation – Sheffield, UK
SUN 3/2 – ABC – Glasgow, UK
MON 3/3 – Spring and Airbrake – Belfast, N. Ireland
TUE 3/4 – Tripod – Dublin, Ireland
WED 3/5 – Rock City – Nottingham, UK
FRI 3/7 – Carling Academy – Newcastle, UK
SAT 3/8 – Manchester Academy – Manchester, UK
SUN 3/9 – U.E.A. – Norwich, UK
MON 3/10 – Wulfren Hall – Wolverhampton, UK
TUE 3/11 – The Junction – Cambridge, UK
WED 3/12 – The Dome – Brighton, UK
THU 3/13 – Carling Academy – Oxford, UK
FRI 3/14 – University – Southampton, UK
SAT 3/15 – Indigo 2 – London, UK