Goldfrapp

Bath, England's singer/composer/keyboardist Allison Goldfrapp began exploring music as a part of her studies as a Fine Art Painting major at Middlesex University, mixing sound, visuals, and performances in her installation pieces. While she was still in college, she appeared on her friend Tricky's 1995 debut Maxinquaye, which led to appearances on albums from other cutting-edge electronic artists, including Orbital's Snivilisation and Add N to X's Avant Hard. By the late '90s, Goldfrapp began honing her own compositions; one of her friends passed some of her demos on to composer Will Gregory. Finding much in common in their musical tastes and approaches, the duo took Allison's surname as the name for their collaboration. After signing to Mute in 1999, Goldfrapp delivered their debut album, Felt Mountain, in fall 2000. Felt Mountain went on to nearly universal acclaim and spawned several singles, including the Utopia Genetically Enriched EP, which arrived in early 2001. After spending most of that year touring, Goldfrapp spent most of 2002 recording and returned with Black Cherry in spring 2003. 2005 saw the release of the "Ooh La La" single and the full-length Supernature, both of which continued the disco and glam rock influences of the duo's previous album. 2008's The Seventh Tree moved in a calmer, more acoustic-based, but just as sonically lush direction. ~ Heather Phares, All Music Guide