The theremin, the world’s first electronic instrument and one you don’t even need to touch to get a sound out of, has always hovered atmospherically on the edge pf pop culture.
It features in several pioneering TV and film scores, and has made iconic cameos in TV shows, including The Simpsons, The Big Bang Theory, American Horror Story and Severance.
And it’s also been the choice of experimental songwriters and bands, looking to give their songs an electronic edge. Here are seven of the best.
Read more: Best theremin cameos in TV and film
Experience the theremin in popular classics and iconic film and TV scores, during our next tour, Theremin & Beyond.
1. The Beach Boys: Good Vibrations (1967)
The first pop song to use the theremin, The Beach Boys’ 1967 hit, Good Vibrations, uses a custom instrument, an ‘electro-theremin’, to add smooth glissandos to the famous chorus. “I’m picking up good vibrations…”
2. Led Zeppelin: Whole Lotta Love (1969)
‘60s rock anthem, Whole Lotta Love, features the theremin as part of the overall driving rock texture of the song. Led Zeppelin made an especial feature of the instrument during their iconic 1973 Madison Square Garden live concerts, featured in the Song Remains the Same Zeppelin documentary film.
3. Jean-Michel Jarre: Oxygène (1976)
The experimental electronic studio album of French musician and composer Jean-Michel Jarre entered the mainstream, bringing with it smooth synths and nostalgically futuristic sounds, including that of the theremin.
4. Portishead: Humming (1997)
This track from iconic UK trip-hop electronic band, Portishead, opens with a wavering theremin spelling intrigue and trepidation. The instrument is actually treated to a long solo passage, rare for the humble theremin, before the fragile vocals of Beth Gibbons come in.
5. Pixies: Velouria (1997)
Rockers Pixies used the theremin to help generate the build into the strong guitar riff that opens their song Velouria on the album Bossanova. Listen out for the by now-familiar glissandos and high-pitched slides of the electronic instrument cutting through the clashing rock guitar textures.
6. Portishead: The Rip (2008)
Back to Portishead, and one of the breakout hits from their third album, The Rip, also features the theremin, this time playing the role of underpinning and grounding the whole song.
7. Aldous Harding: Two Bitten Hearts (2014)
Brilliant New Zealand-born singer-songwriter Aldous Harding isn’t afraid of whipping out the theremin, and uses the instrument to striking and beautiful affect on the song Two Bittten Hearts from her eponymous first album.
