Imitated many times but rarely equalled, The Sundays' debut album is rightly hailed as one of the key indie guitar albums. Released in 1990, just as Manchester seemed to be the dominant force, The Sundays made music that was the antithesis of the moodiness of the time; the innocence and joy of youth versus the Stone Roses and Happy Mondays 'E'-loving slackers if you will. Even the beginnings of the group were fairytale-like. Guitarist David Gavurin and singer Hariet Wheeler met at University, became lovers and then the music came after. It was hardly an afterthought, however, with the flowery 'Can't Be Sure' topping John Peel's end of year poll in 1989. Tin Tin Out's otherwise pointless late 90's dance reworking of 'Here's Where The Story Ends' served the purpose of reminding listeners just what a great song it was. Yet behind the apparent prettiness lurk downbeat tracks a-plenty, 'I Won' and 'A Certain Someone' even revealed a a modicum of anger. 'Skin & Bones' and 'You're Not The Only One I Know' were and still remain excellent album tracks; far from making up the numbers their subtlety and melodic glories are perennialy charming.

'Blind' arrived 2 years later and is a far more sophomore effort. Lacking the immediacy of its predecessor, unsurprisingly it wasn't hailed as a major success at the time. Clearly influenced now by The Cocteau Twins' softer side, tunes disappear into the ether and float away. 'Life & Soul' and 'On Earth' are gorgeous and dreamy in their own way but they are far too short. Fans of their trademark jangly guitar will find solace in 'Goodbye' and 'Love', perhaps the most attention grabbing offering on the album. Far too often though the guitars lilt rather than jangle and even though the seamlessness and prettiness of their recordings remained intact there's a sense of water being trodden here. Better was to arrive on 1996's 'Static And Silence' where they discovered a talent for adult folk/pop.