Haig later attended nearby Firrhill High School along with future Josef K bandmates Malcolm Ross, Ronnie Torrance (his neighbor since age 8) and original bassist Gary McCormack.
They began to hang out soon after, listening to music and playing guitar which led them to form TV Art, soon renamed Josef K. Haig was the lead vocalist of Josef K, an Edinburgh band, which recorded five singles 1979 and 1981 and an album (The Only Fun in Town) signed to the Postcard record label,[1][6] before splitting in August 1981; their final Scottish date was in Glasgow.
The break-up was due to a combination of excessive expectations, too little financial return, Haig's dislike of touring, and disagreements over future direction.
The following year Haig told Johnny Waller in Sounds: "I was pretty depressed for a week because it was the end of an era, but after that I was really happy that we'd split, because I could get on with everything I wanted to do.
With Postcard disintegrating in the wake of the Josef K split, Haig signed with the Belgian independent label Les Disques du Crépuscule for mainstream solo releases, and also adopted the moniker Rhythm of Life Organization (RoL) for a variety of side-projects.
The first of these, Soon, was a collaboration with fellow Edinburgh musician Stephen Harrison (formerly of Metropak), while the second, Uncle Sam, saw Haig guesting on a record by artist Sebastian Horsley.
Eschewing a live drummer in favour of a drum machine, RoL earned plaudits from the press, and in February 1982 took part in Crépuscule's first European package tour, Dialogue North-South, which also included the Durutti Column, the Names, Marine, Richard Jobson, Isabelle Antena and Tuxedomoon.
in May 1982, "Running Away", a cover of the Sly and the Family Stone classic, appeared on Crépuscule and reached number 19 on the UK Independent Chart,[8] its success unhampered by the simultaneous release of another version by the Raincoats.
In July 1982, almost a year after the Josef K split, and with just one proper solo single to his name, Haig was labelled "the face and sound of 1982" by Paul Morley in a lead feature for the NME.
Even by Morley's standards the statement was hyperbolic, although the writer would later go some way towards validating it by directing ZTT signing Propaganda to cover Josef K's song "Sorry for Laughing" on their debut album A Secret Wish in 1985.
Haig's touring group included Malcolm Ross on guitar, together with bassist David McClymont (also fresh from Orange Juice), drummer James Locke and former Associate Alan Rankine.
During 1984, Haig collaborated with a number of likeminded post-punk peers, recording electro track "The Only Truth" with Bernard Sumner of New Order and Donald Johnson of A Certain Ratio respectively, as well as the more experimental "The Executioner" with Cabaret Voltaire.
Co-produced with Alan Rankine, it was a more involving collection than its predecessor, offering warmer songs and arrangements, and live drums in place of programmed rhythm tracks.
He also found time to embark on a fruitful partnership with another Associate, Billy Mackenzie, the result being low key dates in Glasgow and Edinburgh, which mixed their own greatest hits with covers such as "Running Away" and Yoko Ono's "Walking on Thin Ice".
"Chained" proved a highlight on the next Haig album, although Mackenzie's version of "Reach the Top" remained unreleased after the Associates' Glamour Chase project was shelved by WEA.
Lead single "I Believe in You" featured additional mix work by the Chimes, whose drummer James Locke had been a periodic Haig collaborator since 1981.
Although "I Believe in You" achieved a measure of club success, Circa delayed releasing 'Right on Line' until a reworked "Flight X" (featuring rapper Voice of Reason) was issued.
In September 1991 Haig released an instrumental set of imaginary film themes through LTM, the label which had previously issued the Josef K back catalogue on CD.