At an impressively young age, John Fryer already had his name on the sleeves of some of the most influential records of the past 30 years by artists like Depeche Mode, Cocteau Twins, Fad Gadget, and solo projects by Wire members Graham Lewis and Bruce Gilbert. Then, in 1984, he found himself one of just two constant members of the legendary 4AD collective This Mortal Coil, whose “Song To The Siren” has been described by David Lynch as being “high on my list of all time most beautiful songs” (the director tried for years to get it into one of his films and finally succeeded with 1997′s Lost Highway). It was in those days, working out of Blackwing Studios, South London, recording and producing other people’s songs, that John began following the noise in his own head. While working on albums that are now considered to be genre- and era-defining recordings, he started formulating his own project. Ideas expanded and multiplied until they spilled out from between the seams in his head, though it would take years for him to bring them fully to life. Over the years, as John moved from project to project, he carried these songs with him. While putting his indelible signature on This Mortal Coil’s records (and nearly every other seminal 4AD records release, as well), Nine Inch Nails’ “Pretty Hate Machine”, the biggest albums from Jesus Jones and Love & Rockets, Cradle of Filth and HIM’s “Razorblade Romance”, he was also perfecting the sonically powerful arrangements of his own tracks

View on Last.fm →