Vince Clarke (born Vincent John Martin; 3 July 1960) is an English synthpop musician and songwriter. Clarke has been the main composer and musician of the band Erasure since 1985, and was previously the main songwriter of several groups, including Depeche Mode, Yazoo, and The Assembly.\n', '

Vincent John Martin was born in South Woodford, Essex and then he moved to Basildon, Essex. He initially studied the violin and then the piano, but he was inspired to make electronic music upon hearing Wirral synth band Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark (OMD). Along with OMD, other early influences included The Human League, Daniel Miller, and Fad Gadget.\n', '

In the late-1970s, Clarke and schoolmate Andy Fletcher formed a short-lived band called No Romance in China. In 1980, he teamed up with Robert Marlow and Martin Gore to form French Look. Another band, named Composition of Sound, followed in 1980 with another addition of Martin Gore and Andy Fletcher. Clarke provided vocals until singer Dave Gahan joined the band, which was renamed Depeche Mode. At that time, he adopted the stage-name Vince Clarke, by which he is currently known. The band initially adopted a slick synthesized electropop sound, which produced the album Speak & Spell and the Clarke-penned singles "Dreaming of Me", "New Life", and "Just Can\'t Get Enough" in 1981.\n', '

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