117: Sparks - National Crime Awareness Week (1993)

Before Gratuitous Sax & Senseless Violins arrived in 1994, Sparks gave fans a first glimpse of their new direction with the standalone single “National Crime Awareness Week.” Released in late 1993 and later associated with the album’s era, the song marked the duo’s return after years spent on abandoned film projects, soundtrack work, and life away from the spotlight.

In this episode, we explore how a track originally connected to the film Unlawful Entry became the bridge between the lost years of the late 1980s and Sparks’ remarkable 1990s comeback. We discuss the role of Scottish dance act Finitribe in reshaping the song, the rise of remix culture, and the first signs of the electronic, club-oriented sound that would define the next phase of the Mael brothers’ career.

Musically, “National Crime Awareness Week” is unlike anything Sparks had released before: part dance track, part dark comedy, and entirely built around one of Ron Mael’s wonderfully absurd concepts. Along the way, we also touch on the song’s many remixes, its connection to Psycho, the accompanying music video, and how it paved the way for the success of Gratuitous Sax & Senseless Violins.

A curious, quirky, and distinctly Sparks-like detour into early-90s electronic music — and the first step toward one of the band’s most celebrated comebacks.