The Psychedelic Furs

Rising from the ashes of the punk scene, Richard Butler's Psychedelic Furs added the melodic oddity of The Doors, Roxy Music and David Bowie to the sneer and snarl of the era; and created a new wave of guitar pop that would prove highly influential on the New Romantic scene and American alternative rockers like REM and B-52s. With a mix of blaring saxophone, driving guitars and producer Steve Lillywhite's slick studio tricks, second album Talk Talk Talk (1981) is generally regarded as the band's finest moment, producing the fine singles “Mr. Jones”, “Dumb Waiters” and the first incarnation of “Pretty in Pink”. “Pretty in Pink” was later re-recorded as a soundtrack to the classic 1980s teen movie of the same name, becoming their defining anthem and sending the album Midnight To Midnight (1986) to number 12 in the UK charts. The band split in 1992 but reformed in 2000 for a Greatest Hits album and returned to regular touring through the 2000s. In 2020, 29 years on from the release of their previous LP, the group returned with the critically acclaimed Made of Rain. Released via independent label Cooking Vinyl and co-produced by Guns N’ Roses’ Richard Fortus, it peaked at number 13 in the UK.