Silver Sun

They were initially called Sun..! and released their first EP under that name. They were forced to alter the name soon afterwards. The single "Lava" was their first under the new name. They are best know for their use of The Beach Boys-esque backing vocals. Groups like Super Furry Animals also wrote music in a similar style at the time. Their critically acclaimed eponymous debut album was released in 1997, and was characterised by strong vocal harmonies and energetic choruses. It was also the first album to be produced by (now) uber-producer Nigel Godrich, who went on to produce Radiohead and Paul McCartney among others. The song "Golden Skin" was featured on the soundtrack to the 1990s British comedy film, Shooting Fish. The band's second album Neo Wave was released the following year. This album had a slightly more polished sound, which some found a little lacking compared to the fuzz-toned wall of sound that the band had cultivated with their debut release. It contains their biggest hit "Too Much, Too Little, Too Late", a cover of the Johnny Mathis ballad which the band originally recorded as a joke and have since disowned. The EP release also contained a version of Rush's 10 minute prog-epic "Xanadu" which the band condensed into a 3-minute pop song, as well as a cover of My Bloody Valentine's 'You Made Me Realise'. The band re-formed to promote a third album, Disappear Here, in 2005, this time released on the Invisible Hands label. This album is remarkable in that lead vocalist, James Broad, is the sole artist to appear on the recordings, having played all musical instruments and sung all of the vocals. In a more recent rare foray into the mass-media, their song "Last Day" was used on the Hollyoaks soundtrack on 24 January 2006. Their fourth album, Dad's Weird Dream, was released in Japan on 11 September 2006. However, the decision was taken to remix it for the UK edition, where was released on 4 December 2006. One track, "Fallen" was remixed by Nigel Godrich, working with the band for the first time since their debut, currently available as an itunes exclusive EP. Unlike its predecessor, the entire original line-up has participated in the recording, though Richard Sayce is only credited with backing vocals, suggesting that a drum machine was used instead of live drumming. James Broad has stated that the next album (which is expected to be titled "A Lick And A Promise" and is due in 2007) will be the four members playing live in a studio.