# Information Society (band)
**Information Society**, often shortened to **InSoc**, is an American electronic music group formed in [Minneapolis](https://www.edgepedia.org/minneapolis), Minnesota, in the early 1980s, best known for the 1988 dance-pop hit "What's on Your Mind (Pure Energy)" and a self-titled debut album that reached gold-certified status.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/information-society-mn0000077578) The band's core members have been Paul Robb, James Cassidy, and Kurt Harland (born Kurt Larson, also performing as Kurt Valaquen), with Amanda Kramer and Murat Konar among earlier members.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/information-society-mn0000077578) • [2](https://www.concertarchives.org/bands/information-society)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Origin | Formed in Minneapolis, Minnesota, in the early 1980s; AllMusic dates the formation to 1982, while a band history written for the Brazilian fan site says the group came together from Minneapolis students in 1981[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/information-society-mn0000077578) • [3](https://www.insoc.com.br/diversos/mix/gerais.php) |
| Breakout single | "What's on Your Mind (Pure Energy)" (1988), built on a Leonard Nimoy sample, reached number three on the US pop charts[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/information-society-mn0000077578) |
| Debut album | *Information Society* (1988), recorded at Nicollet Studios in Minneapolis and Platinum Island in New York, went gold[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/information-society-mn0000077578) • [4](https://www.allmusic.com/album/information-society-mw0000652260) |
| Other hits | "Walking Away" (Top Ten, 1988), "Think" (from *Hack*, 1990), and "Peace and Love, Inc." (1992)[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/information-society-mn0000077578) • [5](https://www.eventworld.com/information-society-tickets/performer/29848) |
| Hiatus and return | Disbanded in 1996; Robb and Cassidy reconvened the band in 2006[4](https://www.allmusic.com/album/information-society-mw0000652260) • [2](https://www.concertarchives.org/bands/information-society) |
| Later albums | *Don't Be Afraid* (1997), *Synthesizer* (2007), *_Hello World* (2014), *Orders of Magnitude* (2016), and *ODDfellows* (2021)[4](https://www.allmusic.com/album/information-society-mw0000652260) |
| Recent activity | Touring continued into the mid-2020s, with multiple dates in Brazil in 2025 and 2026[6](https://www.bandsintown.com/a/6067-information-society?came_from=253) |
## Origins in the Minneapolis scene
The band grew out of Minneapolis's unusually productive early-1980s music scene, which also produced Prince, [The Replacements](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-replacements-band), Hüsker Dü, and [Soul Asylum](https://www.edgepedia.org/soul-asylum); a Minneapolis music-history survey lists "What's on Your Mind (Pure Energy)" among the hit songs that helped define the city's sound in that decade.[7](https://cdn.minneapolis.org/digital_files/5369/media_kit_-_2016_.pdf) Paul Robb, James Cassidy, and Kurt Harland attended the same Minneapolis high school, though they did not know each other well at the time; around 1981 Robb decided to form a band using nothing but synthesizers.[8](https://www.anos80.com.br/insoc/historia1.html)
The group's first releases were self-financed. A five-song EP appeared in 1982, followed between 1983 and 1984 by the mini-LP *Creatures of Influence*, which Robb later described as a commercial failure because the band had attempted a sound that was too difficult.[3](https://www.insoc.com.br/diversos/mix/gerais.php) In 1985 they released the single "Running," which became a dance-floor success and put the band on the technopop map; after a 1986 tour of the United States, they signed with the independent label [Tommy Boy](https://www.edgepedia.org/tommy-boy) in 1987.[3](https://www.insoc.com.br/diversos/mix/gerais.php) Before that, a small Minneapolis indie, Wide Angle Records, which specialized in club music of all styles including rap, disco, house, R&B, and alternative pop, had released the band's records.[9](https://www.minneapolismn.gov/media/-www-content-assets/documents/Minneapolis-Music-History-1850-2000.pdf) Twin/Tone, the label best known as the original home of The Replacements and Soul Asylum, also counts Information Society among its signings.[10](https://www.twintonedigital.com/archives)
## The 1988 breakthrough
The self-titled debut album, released in 1988, merged percussive dance music, synth-pop in the lineage of British acts like ABC and the [Pet Shop Boys](https://www.edgepedia.org/pet-shop-boys), and elements of industrial dance and hip-hop; it included a cover of ABBA's "Lay All Your Love on Me" alongside the hits.[4](https://www.allmusic.com/album/information-society-mw0000652260) "What's on Your Mind (Pure Energy)" was propelled by a sample of [Leonard Nimoy](https://www.edgepedia.org/leonard-nimoy) as [Star Trek](https://www.edgepedia.org/star-trek)'s Spock saying "pure energy," and by Harland's vocals, and became a club hit before reaching number three on the pop charts; "Walking Away" hit the Top Ten later that year, and the album went gold.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/information-society-mn0000077578) The song's opening also sampled DeForest Kelley as Dr. McCoy saying "It's worked so far, but we're not out yet!"[2](https://www.concertarchives.org/bands/information-society)
A contemporary Los Angeles Times review of a December 1988 show described a four-piece band leaning on repetitive drum programs, synthesized melody lines, real bass, and electronic drums, with a self-mocking attitude that kept the technology from overwhelming the performance; the reviewer noted the band's willingness to move between hip-hop, funk, and straight-ahead dance music.[11](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1988-12-19-ca-266-story.html) Amanda Kramer left the band soon after the debut period to record with the Golden Palominos and [10,000 Maniacs](https://www.edgepedia.org/10-000-maniacs).[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/information-society-mn0000077578)
## Later albums and the 1990s decline
The 1990 follow-up *Hack* sold poorly for lack of a major hit single, and the band's third album, *Peace & Love, Inc.* (1992), embraced the harsher techno-rave sound developing in the early 1990s while keeping the melodic instincts of the debut; it failed to make an impact on the US charts.[12](https://www.allmusic.com/album/peace-love-inc-mw0000616286) After that album, both Robb and Cassidy exited.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/information-society-mn0000077578) Harland continued under the name for *Don't Be Afraid* (1997), an electro-industrial album that some record labels reportedly considered too dark.[4](https://www.allmusic.com/album/information-society-mw0000652260) • [13](https://www.insoc.org/texts/Feedback.html)
## Reformation and later activity
Robb and Cassidy reconvened the band in 2006.[2](https://www.concertarchives.org/bands/information-society) The reunion produced *Synthesizer* (2007) and, in 2014, *_Hello World*, released on Robb's Hakatak label and supported with a world tour.[4](https://www.allmusic.com/album/information-society-mw0000652260) • [1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/information-society-mn0000077578) Later releases listed on the band's Bandcamp page include *Orders of Magnitude* (2016), *Room 1904*, *Bennington*, *World Enough*, *Nothing Prevails*, and *ODDfellows* (2021).[14](https://informationsociety.bandcamp.com/)
The band's catalog has had a second life on the dance chart: re-releases of both "Running" and "What's on Your Mind" have reached No. 1 on the Billboard Dance/Club chart in recent years.[6](https://www.bandsintown.com/a/6067-information-society?came_from=253) Outside the United States, the group is especially popular in [Scandinavia](https://www.edgepedia.org/scandinavia), Spain, Japan, and South America, and its mid-2020s touring has centered heavily on Brazil, with shows in São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Curitiba, Porto Alegre, and [Belo Horizonte](https://www.edgepedia.org/belo-horizonte) between December 2025 and July 2026.[6](https://www.bandsintown.com/a/6067-information-society?came_from=253) • [2](https://www.concertarchives.org/bands/information-society)
## Style
AllMusic characterizes the band as an electronic dance outfit with ties to industrial music, techno, and funk, classified under club/dance, dance-rock, dance-pop, and freestyle.[1](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/information-society-mn0000077578) The band's own history describes "Running," which emerged from the Minneapolis underground in the mid-1980s, as one of the influential electro/freestyle tracks of its era.[14](https://informationsociety.bandcamp.com/)
## References
1. [Information Society – Biography, AllMusic (John Bush)](https://www.allmusic.com/artist/information-society-mn0000077578)
2. [Information Society Concert & Tour History, Concert Archives](https://www.concertarchives.org/bands/information-society)
3. [Um pouco sobre o InSoc, Information Society Brasil](https://www.insoc.com.br/diversos/mix/gerais.php)
4. [Information Society – Information Society, AllMusic album review](https://www.allmusic.com/album/information-society-mw0000652260)
5. [Information Society Tickets & 2026–2027 Tour Dates, Eventworld](https://www.eventworld.com/information-society-tickets/performer/29848)
6. [Information Society Concerts & Live Tour Dates, Bandsintown](https://www.bandsintown.com/a/6067-information-society?came_from=253)
7. [The 80s – The R&B and Punk Era, Meet Minneapolis media kit](https://cdn.minneapolis.org/digital_files/5369/media_kit_-_2016_.pdf)
8. [Information Society – History, Projeto Autobahn (anos80.com.br)](https://www.anos80.com.br/insoc/historia1.html)
9. [Minneapolis Music History, 1850–2000: A Context, City of Minneapolis](https://www.minneapolismn.gov/media/-www-content-assets/documents/Minneapolis-Music-History-1850-2000.pdf)
10. [Archives, Twin/Tone Records](https://www.twintonedigital.com/archives)
11. [Pop Weekend: Information Society Keeps Beats-Per-Minute High, Los Angeles Times (December 19, 1988)](https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1988-12-19-ca-266-story.html)
12. [Peace & Love, Inc. – AllMusic review (William Cooper)](https://www.allmusic.com/album/peace-love-inc-mw0000616286)
13. [InSoc DBA Feedback, insoc.org](https://www.insoc.org/texts/Feedback.html)
14. [Information Society on Bandcamp](https://informationsociety.bandcamp.com/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Music › Musicians and ensembles › Ensembles and groups › Rock, pop, and metal bands › Rock, indie, and pop groups › Indie and alternative bands › Post-punk and new wave bands › New wave and synth-pop bands*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 17, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license