British synth pop brought the synthesizer into the mainstream. Before that, it was largely confined to specialist performers like Vangelis and Jean Michel-Jarre, or the occasional soundtrack. But a new generation of young musicians harnessed the power of the then-still new instrument to create bold and fresh new sounds. A big contributor to this was the availability of relatively low-priced preset synths. With reduced functionality but also a reduced price tag, these synths—often available on layaway—proved a boon to young musicians hoping to forge a new genre without the prohibitive price tag. One such group was Liverpool’s Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark (hereafter referred to by the much less unwieldy OMD), who married catchy pop melodies to experimental ideas. Their early records featured the Korg M-500 Micro Preset heavily. It can be heard providing leads on songs like “Enola Gay” and “Messages.” Play with an M-500 for a few minutes and you can’t help recalling those songs. ...