Many times in their 20 year, 20 million album selling pop star music career, Erasure have delivered the unexpected. Now fans are in for what is possibly the techno/electro synth duo's greatest surprise turn of all.

This month longtime openly gay pop frontman Andy Bell and Vince Clarke release their new “unplugged”, country-western styled, acoustic guitar based CD - Union Street. Comprised of covers of their own classic songs, the CD highlights their lesser-known album cuts and “born-again B-sides.

The breakaway hit single from Union Street is the soulful and sad, same-sex love ballad “Boy”, originally recorded for the Cowboy album in 1997. The album also includes a wondrous, quasi-new age version of one of their most beauteous melodies – “Stay with Me” first heard on their introspective and experimental 1995 album Erasure.

A real stand out on Union Street are Andy Bell's stunning, smooth-as-ever, pitch-perfect vocals - more up front and dominating here than on any previous Erasure CD. The album has an overall indie/alternative/folky aura that, although hard to reconcile with all things “Erasure”, is strangely alluring.

“It makes such a difference singing with acoustic instruments”, Andy says. “There's more space, it seems. When you're using electronics they soak up part of the voice. Whereas with strings, the voice seems to vibrate off them”.

I interviewed Andy Bell the day after his appearance at the NYC GLAAD MEDIA AWARDS on March 27th.

AfterElton: First off, congratulations on your live performance last night at the GLAAD show here in NYC. You included a rendition of your new single “Boy” from the new Union Street Erasure CD – how did it go?
Andy Bell: It was fine and went down really well!

AE: May I ask - did you get a chance to meet anyone new to you that you always wanted to meet?
AB: Well, Sandra Bernhard was there but we missed her. We did say hello to Michael Douglas. I always wanted to meet him because we've got a place in Spain, in Majorca, near him. “Oh, hi, I couldn't leave without saying hello to you because we're your neighbors in Spain”. He was really laid back and kind of hippie-ish, really sweet.