Rational Youth was formed in 1981 in Montreal, Quebec, by synthesizer players Tracy Howe and Bill Vorn, both of whom idolized the German synthpop pioneers Kraftwerk.

[1] He earned a doctorate in communication studies at the Université du Québec à Montréal, and is a full professor in the Department of Studio Arts at Concordia University.

Following the release of the EP and immediately before a national promotional tour, Komoda, Duran and Calvo left the band, purportedly because of about the level of full-time commitment.

The album was recorded with the participation of over a dozen session musicians, including Dee Long of Klaatu (guitars, keyboards), Ken Sinnaeve of Tom Cochrane and Red Rider (bass), and Ben Mink of FM (violin, mandolin).

[citation needed] However, continued interest in the band, particularly in Europe, resulted in Cold War Night Life being reissued on compact disc in 1997.

[2] In 1999, Rational Youth, with a new lineup of original frontman Howe and new keyboard players Jean-Claude Cutz and Dave Rout, released its first album after fourteen years, To the Goddess Electricity.

[2] In 2011, another CD EP was released, City Of Night /Cite Phosphore, consisting of re-recordings of an early single, as well as remixed versions of the original recording.

A rarities compilation called Magic Box was also released, which consisted of early 1980s Rational Youth demos and remixes, and solo recordings from Howe, Vorn and Komoda.

In May 2016 Rational Youth (now a two-piece with Tracy and Gaenor Howe) released the EP "Future Past Tense" through Artoffact Records.

A play on the title of Heredity, Heresy also featured covers of Rational Youth tracks by eighteen artists from Canada, Norway, Britain, Sweden and Germany.

In early 2020, Rational Youth undertook their final live performances, with Canadian shows alongside UK band China Crisis and a tour of Mexico, with a final performance in Mexico City on 7 March 2020, as the COVID-19 pandemic began to take hold, affecting many aspects of normal life, not the least of which were international travel and live music globally.