Heaven 17

Heaven 17 are performing at the Edinburgh Corn Exchange on Friday 16 October 2026. The show is part of a UK tour celebrating the 45th anniversary of their debut album, Penthouse and Pavement.

The band formed in Sheffield in 1980, emerging from the experimental collective British Electric Foundation after Martyn Ware and Ian Craig Marsh left The Human League. By recruiting vocalist Glenn Gregory, they established themselves as icons of the 1980s synth-pop movement. Their debut, Penthouse and Pavement, was released in 1981 and is now regarded as a trailblazer of the early synth movement. It is included in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die. The record combined sleek electronic production with sharp social commentary and hard-hitting funk. It reached number 14 on the UK Albums Chart and achieved Gold status the following year. The group’s approach fused cutting-edge electronics with political lyricism, a sound that influenced a generation of electronic funk listeners.

Today, the group continues as a duo featuring Martyn Ware and Glenn Gregory. They are touring the UK to mark the 45th anniversary of that first record. The band is focusing on the album's legacy, specifically the way it combined those electronic textures with political themes. Martyn Ware has described the tour as a fantastic undertaking, while Glenn Gregory has stated that he considers Penthouse and Pavement to be the best album they ever made. The tour serves as a way for the duo to revisit the material that defined their early career and to share the music that established their reputation in the synth-pop scene. It is a specific look back at the work that emerged from their transition out of the British Electric Foundation and into their own distinct sound.

The concert will be held at the Edinburgh Corn Exchange, which is located at 10 New Market Rd, Edinburgh West, EH14 1RJ. The event begins at 7pm.