The British Stereo Collective / Federation collaborative EP Marked To Kill is released via Bandcamp, with lyrics (and a video) connecting the song to the BBC space opera Blake’s 7. The release of the single both digitally and on vinyl benefits charity. 
Things that weren’t on my bingo card today: someone releasing a retro-new-wave single that absolutely slaps, but also theming the aforementioned retro-new-wave single that absolutely slaps to Blake’s 7, one of my all-time favorite British sci-fi series. Phil Heeks – he who is British Stereo Collective – is no stranger to coaxing sweet sounds of yesterday out of vintage synthesizers, but a collaboration with Cult Edge (makers of the sublime Blake’s 7 Production Diary book series) is an absolutely sublime idea, even if it results in the least-expected thing that’s entered my music collection in 2025. The words sneakily allude to the overarching plot of Blake’s 7, a show concerning itself with a group of rebels from across the entirety of the ethical spectrum who seize a derelict alien spacecraft and begin striking back at the totalitarian Federation which claims Earth as its seat of government. But the absolutely-spot-on new wave vibe (with perfectly judged vocals from Jane Bailey) also leans perfectly into the delicious camp that was always inherent in the show, whose four-year tenure began in the disco era and ended in the early-new-wave era (at least in the UK). The video intersperses clips from the series with footage of excessively ’80s dancing, and yet for all the silliness in the presentation, the song is an earworm that stays in your head, just a perfect execution of both audio and visual elements. Even the cover art borrows a vintage Blake’s 7 publicity photo, making it look like Servalan and Carnell are working on their next album in between tussles with Blake and his crew.
The EP contains the “Marked To Kill” single in both its original version and a longer “extended dance mix” befitting the era it evokes, as well as a moodier, instrumental version of the tune – as if it’s been adapted into part of an all-synth soundtrack – which is also lovely to hear.
However BSC and Cult Edge came together – it feels like a match made in the days when social media were actually a less-terrible thing – I’m hoping this isn’t just a solitary fling. (And – just a thought – I bet the Beeb could coax Phil into original scoring for upcoming Blake’s 7 blu-ray extras. Just a thought.)
- Marked To Kill (Radio Edit) (5:19)
- The Weapon (3:39)
- Marked To Kill (Extended Dance Mix) (8:02)
Released by: The British Stereo Collective and Cult Edge
Release date: 2025
Total running time: 17:01
2025 music review by Earl Green