Pet Shop Boys

Clever, melancholy songs you can dance to have been Pet Shop Boys' speciality ever since 'West End Girls' topped the charts on both sides of the Atlantic. Neil Tennant, a former pop journalist, brings the deadpan vocals and wry lyrics, while Chris Lowe builds the shimmering synths and keeps a famously straight face.

Actually added 'It's a Sin' and a duet with Dusty Springfield that revived her career, and their version of 'Always on My Mind' became a Christmas number one. Covering the Village People's 'Go West' turned Very into a party.

Four decades on, they're still at it, following the lush, string-swept Nonetheless with A man from the future, an orchestral portrait of Alan Turing.