Lilliput

Back in 1992 the 4AD label issued a promo package to celebrate their partnership with Warner Bros. Lilliput was a an exquisite book of stunning artwork by 4AD’s influential in-house art department 23 Envelope. The package came with an accompanying two-disc soundtrack of the label’s roster – past and present – boasting 28 songs. Today Lilliput reveals that the early ‘90s were (arguably) 4AD’s heyday, balancing post-goth artists with the then burgeoning dream-pop/shoegaze sound. Bauhaus sets the tone with “Dark Entries,” establishing 4AD’s roots with the birth of goth- rock before Modern English drop the high-school-prom staple, “I Melt With You.” Speaking of Modern English, This Mortal Coil’s cover of Tim Buckley’s “Song to the Siren” was the first time that many heard Cocteau Twins’ Elizabeth Fraser sing in English, while Xmal Deutschland’s wintry “Incubus Succubus II” made the German language sound pillowy and easy on the ears. Pixies’ catchy “Monkey Gone to Heaven” offered something for the indie kids while Spirea X’s blissed-out “Chlorine Dream” and Pale Saints’ dreamy and driving “Throwing Back the Apple” ushered in a new era.