Secret Shine

Secret Shine
In performance, 2009
Background information
Also known as	Amelia's Dream
Origin	Bristol
Genres	Indie rock, shoegazing, dream pop
Years active	1991–1996 2004–present
Labels	Sarah A Turntable Friend Clairecords Razorblade
Associated acts	Junkie Collide Dreamscape
Website	Official Site
Members	Scott Purnell Jamie Gingell Kathryn Smith Dean Purnell Tom Adams
Past members	Nick Dyte Paul Vowles Dean Tyler Tim Morris Richy Lee

Secret Shine are a British shoegazing band formed in the early 1990s, who were signed to Sarah Records. Although early releases with both Sarah and A Turntable Friend followed the more linear Sarah pop stylings, the 1992 release Untouched broke into unapologetic shoegazing territory, earning the band many comparisons with Slowdive and My Bloody Valentine.

Career

1990 to 1996

The group originally formed under the name Amelia's Dream.^[1] After sending a 3-song demo to Sarah Records, Scott Purnell and Jamie Gingell recorded their first single for the label, After Years. After recruiting three more members (Nick Dyte, Dean Purnell, and Paul Vowles) they recorded the Unbearable single for the A Turntable Friend label in Germany. The addition of Dean Tyler to the lineup resulted in the Ephemeral single on Sarah. Later, Jamie and Scott recorded some demos that became the Untouched album.

In 1993 the album, along with the Loveblind single, was recorded and released. The addition of vocalist Kathryn Smith to the band added a new dimension, and this period saw them enter the Indie charts and become part of the burgeoning shoegazing scene.

Untouched tracks:

• 1. Suck Me Down
• 2. Temporal
• 3. Spellbound
• 4. So Close I Come
• 5. Into the Ether
• 6. Toward the Sky
• 7. Underworld
• 8. Sun Warmed Water

Just as things were starting to grow, Jamie and Scott felt it was necessary to go back to University for their final year, which slowed things down somewhat. After University, however, the band got back together and recorded the Greater than God EP, which they regard as their most accomplished work 1.

After the recording of the Each to the Other flexidisc, Dean Tyler left the band, followed by Nick Dyte. Tim Morris joined, on drums, the rest of the lineup being Jamie (vocals and bass), Scott (guitars), Dean Purnell (guitars), and Kathryn (vocals). The single Wasted Away was recorded, released on Spoiler Records as Sarah had recently folded. After playing a gig in Oxford in early 1996, the band decided to call it a day, though they never officially split.

2004 to Present

In 2004, a retrospective collection called After Years was released by the Tonevendor label, containing all their Sarah material (apart from the first single, and including the Untouched album).

Though not the main reason for the band reforming, it was certainly a "catalyst" 2. To begin with, events were fluid. Scott left for a while, and, tragically, Tim Morris died. This made the band get back together again, and as a tribute to Tim they recorded the 8-song, acoustic Morris album.

Morris tracks:

• 1. You are inside
• 2. Lost all your friends
• 3. Loveblind
• 4. Silver machine
• 5. Take me slowly
• 6. Ignite the air
• 7. Tim’s song
• 8. Decay

The band are still together. Their album All of The Stars was released 8 April 2008.^[2] And the album The Beginning and the End, featuring 12 new songs, was released 5 January 2011.

Discography

Albums

EPs

Singles

Tracks on Compilations

References

External links

• Official Site
• Band MySpace page
• Secret Shine on Allmusic
• Sarah Records entry
• OpusZine review