On August 19th, Neil and Chris meet by chance in an electronics shop on the Kings Road. Realizing they have a common interest in dance music, they begin to write together. Initially they call themselves West End; later they come up with the name Pet Shop Boys, a name derived from some friends who work in a pet shop in Ealing. “We thought it sounded like an English rap group”.
The Boys work on two songs: ‘Latino’ (which becomes ‘Single’) and ‘Get On It’ (not yet completed).
An early version of Nightlife is previewed for EMI convention delegates.
Having just completed a brief holiday in Scotland, Neil rejoins Chris in Norway as they prepare for the next leg of the Fundamental Tour.
The Pet Shop Boys appear on the Italian TV show Quelli Che, where they perform ‘Love etc.’
They listen for the first time to Stuart Price’s final mixes of most of the tracks on Electric.
The Pet Shop Boys conclude the 2014 U.S. leg of their Electric Tour with a performance at Terminal 5 in New York City.
This evening Neil reportedly attends a Rufus Wainwright concert at St. John at Hackney, London, during which Rufus performs several of his recently released musical settings of sonnets by Shakespeare.
Neil and Chris note on their website that they’re ‘back in the studio’ working with Olly Alexander of the band Years & Years.