Barry Adamson's work as a bassist for Magazine and Nick Gave's Bad Seeds gave little indication of the complex,

cinematic works he has composed as a solo artist. After leaving the Bad Seeds in 1987, Adamson decided

to follow the path of film composers like John Barry, Ennio Morricone, and Bernard Herrmann, whose work

had intrigued him since childhood.

His first full-length album, 1989's Moss Side Story (he had released one previous EP in 1988),

was a tour de force blending post-punk, industrial, spy guitar, and various classic movie composer quotes

into a seamless 54-minute soundtrack to an ominous film noir that didn't exist.

This recording led to Adamson's work on soundtracks for actual films in the early '90s,

including Delusion, Gas Food Lodging, and Shuttle Cock. Adamson also continued to compose quasi-cinematic

recordings for imaginary films like 1996's Oedipus Shmoedipus, although none has matched the sustained

excitement of Moss Side Story, As Above. So Below followed in 1998, and a best-of compilation titled

The Murky World of Barry Adamson appeared a year after that.