Pure Obsessions & Red Nights release dark cover of a-ha hit ‘Take On Me’
Pure Obsessions & Red Nights
French darkwave / gothic / industrial rock project Pure Obsessions & Red Nights releases a new single, a dark electronic cover of a-ha’s 1984/1985 hit “Take On Me“, on Friday 21 November 2025. The single follows the completion of the conceptual “The Night Trilogy”, released in November 2025 and built around the recurring character Mr. Strangler, and extends the band’s move into synth-driven dark pop.
The original “Take On Me” became a global synth-pop reference point in 1985, topping the Billboard Hot 100 in the US and reaching the UK top two, with its video winning multiple MTV Video Music Awards in 1986.
Pure Obsessions & Red Nights strip away the bright, radio-pop character of the a-ha version and replace it with a heavier electronic and gothic sound. In a reaction the band says: “Take On Me is one of those iconic 80s songs I kept hearing on the radio when I was a kid. It shaped my taste for music, my sense of melody, and my fascination for unforgettable choruses. In June 2025, on the road to Hamburg, we talked about the first songs we ever heard on the radio as children… Take On Me came up, and we said: why not cover it?”
Producer and band founder Philippe Deschemin explains the production approach: “During production, it naturally turned into a rough, almost punk version — far from any sterile modern metal approach: razor-sharp guitars, smooth bass, ultra-percussive drums. And for the gearheads: I produced it through an API console – the perfect choice for a sharp, aggressive tone. I hope this version resonates with all fans of Pure Obsessions & Red Nights.”
The official video for the cover is available on YouTube, with the track also appearing on streaming platforms including Spotify.
The new single arrives shortly after the release of “The Night Trilogy”, a synth-driven three-album arc that includes “Let Your Obsessions Run Wild” (2022), “Heirs of the Red Nights” (2023) and “Nightbreed” (2024). The trilogy has been presented both as separate albums and as a complete set, and is available on Bandcamp and major streaming services.
Pure Obsessions & Red Nights 2026 EU tour dates
Pure Obsessions & Red Nights will support the new “Take On Me” cover and “The Night Trilogy” with a series of European dates in early 2026:
- 27 January 2026 – Fotomat, Clermont-Ferrand, France
- 30 January 2026 – Mécanique Ondulatoire, Paris, France
- 27 February 2026 – Aaltra, Chemnitz, Germany
- 27 March 2026 – Urban Spree, Berlin, Germany
- 28 March 2026 – Ponyhof, Frankfurt, Germany
Additional shows are planned and will be announced.
About Pure Obsessions & Red Nights (aka Porn)
Pure Obsessions & Red Nights is a French darkwave / industrial rock project led by multi-instrumentalist, singer, writer and producer Philippe Deschemin. The group traces its origins back to 1999 in Grenoble, France, initially working under the shorter name Porn, before the project adopted the extended title Pure Obsessions & Red Nights to reflect its broader dark synth and narrative focus.
From the outset, Deschemin described the artistic aim as creating “something like a beautiful, tasty fruit with a razor blade inside”, combining accessible melodies with darker lyrical and conceptual content. The band’s work revolves around recurring characters and interconnected story arcs, most notably Mr. Strangler and Sadie, who appear across albums, EPs, videos and literary material.
During the 2010s, the project developed the “Mr. Strangler Trilogy”, which culminated in the album “No Monsters in God’s Eyes – Act III”. The trilogy explored Mr. Strangler’s transformation from serial killer to symbolic figure, and led into “The Stranglings Trilogy”, for which the band collaborated with producer and former Nine Inch Nails and Marilyn Manson drummer Chris Vrenna, with mastering handled by Brian Lucey.
In March 2020, the band collected key material from this phase on the “Mr Strangler TRILOGY” release. From 2021 onward, the project moved further into darkwave and synthpop territory, issuing singles such as “The Call Of You Life” and “Don’t Let the Night Die in Vain”, followed by the album “Let Your Obsessions Run Wild” in 2022 on Les disques Rubicon.
Between 2022 and 2024, Pure Obsessions & Red Nights released “The Night Trilogy”: “Let Your Obsessions Run Wild”, “Heirs of the Red Nights” and “Nightbreed”. These albums combined vintage synths and analog gear with darkwave atmospheres, industrial-tinged rhythms and a strong 80s synthpop influence, and have since been remastered and issued as a three-CD digipack set.
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