Chrome, Catherine Wheel, LP

Double 180gm vinyl LP pressing housed in gatefold jacket. Includes bonus track. Overseen by Pixies producer Gil Norton and recorded at Pink Floyd's Britannia Row Studios, where band favourites, Joy Division, had made Closer, Chrome marked a huge step forward, honed on the road after the constant touring to support previous album Ferment. With it's sleeve designed by Storm Thorgerson, it's as if the album was a dry run for Muse. There is increasing experimentation – the 7 minutes plus of Fripp are, as writer Ben Cardew noted, "celestial and full of dread." As Pitchfork wrote, "It's as if Chrome were imported from another history of alt-rock, one more textured and romantic, where it sits deservedly atop the pile."