The Dream Academy - The Dream Academy (1985)

One of the most graceful, evocative and shamefully underheard pop albums of the '80s, The Dream Academy's almost forgotten debut (it's out of print in the U.S.) has withstood the test of time marvellously. That's a big deal, considering that much of the pop from that time is rather unlistenable now.

I dove into this like a dolphin long deprived of water, and spent many hours soaking up its bewitchingly lush, luscious and painterly textures. The hit 'Life in a Northern Town', an exquisitely melodic and introspective piece of chamber-pop dedicated to Nick Drake, is the most immediately alluring thing here. But the other tunes are equally strong and sweet, treating casual themes with a subdued poetic elegance and a sense of brooding romanticism.