This Mortal Coil
'Song to the Siren' was meant to be just a B-side. Elizabeth Fraser and Robin Guthrie of Cocteau Twins recorded Tim Buckley's composition alone for the Sixteen Days / Gathering Dust EP, but 4AD founder Ivo Watts-Russell liked it so much he made it the A-side of the seven-inch single version, and it quickly became an underground hit.
That success led to a full album, and This Mortal Coil grew into a rotating collective with the label boss and John Fryer as its only official members. The idea was to free artists from what was expected of them, and to give him a way to cover tracks close to his heart.
Across It'll End in Tears (1984), Filigree & Shadow and Blood, contributors from Dead Can Dance, Cindytalk, the Breeders and Belly drifted through gothic, dreamlike, ethereal soundscapes. The project wound up in 1991.
If you like This Mortal Coil you should check out: Cocteau Twins, The Breeders, Slowdive, Mazzy Star, Lush, Talk Talk, Kate Bush, Siouxsie and the Banshees, The Cure, Bauhaus
