sun dial

Sun Dial (occasionally spelled Sundial) is a British psychedelic rock band formed in 1990 by Gary Ramon.

History

  precursor to Sun Dial was Ramon's the Modern Art, formed in the mid-'80s with a loose lineup that never played gigs but did see the release of two studio albums.  Ramon disbanded the group out of a desire "to make a more live-sounding group that could go out and play".

The band gained prominence after the release of their first album, Other Way Out, which quickly sold out its initial run through word of mouth alone. The album was near-universally praised in the independent music press, winning several awards and accolades. However, the album saw little popularity among mainstream critics and radio stations as their authentic '60s psychedelic sound was out of fashion at the time. Other Way Out remains popular to this day in the psychedelic and prog rock communities, and has gone through eight reissues since its original release. Subsequent albums have explored many branches of psychedelia, including space rock, acid rock, stoner rock, neo-psychedelia, and psych pop. Their music has been compared to, influenced, or praised by prominent artists such as Monster Magnet, Nirvana, Spiritualized, and Spacemen 3. Sun Dial in turn were influenced by the '60s and '70s psychedelia and hard rock of Jimi Hendrix, the Beatles, the Open Mind, Pink Floyd, and Led Zeppelin, as well as the drug-influenced "Madchester" sound of the Stone Roses, Inspiral Carpets, and Happy Mondays. After the 1996 live album Live Drug, Ramon took Sun Dial on an extended hiatus and devoted his time to producing records by other bands, including Hypnosis, Chemical, and Fantasyy Factoryy. Many of these records were released on Ramon's own Acme label. During this time Ramon also released Quad, a solo project exploring ambient electronica and kraut rock. Sun Dial reconvened for a live performance in December 2002 and released their next album, Zen For Sale, a few months thereafter.

Members

As with fellow psych rocker Nick Saloman's The Bevis Frond, Sun Dial has always been an instrument of its frontman Gary Ramon; the band's lineup tends to change from album to album. The most stable lineups include the following:

1990 (Other Way Out)

1991 (Return Journey)

Gary Ramon (guitar/vocals)
Anthony Clough (keyboards)
John Pelech (drums)

1991

Gary Ramon (guitar/vocals)
Anthony Clough (keyboards)
John Pelech (drums)
Nigel Carpenter (bass guitar)
Chris Dalley (guitar/backing vocals)

1991–1992 (Reflecter)

Gary Ramon (guitar/vocals)
John Pelech (drums)
Nigel Carpenter (bass guitar)
Chris Dalley (guitar/backing vocals)

1993 (Libertine)

Gary Ramon (guitar/vocals/drums)
Nigel Carpenter (bass guitar)
Chris Dalley (guitar/backing vocals)
Craig Adrienne (drums/backing vocals)

1994–1996 (Acid Yantra, Live Drug)

Gary Ramon (guitar/vocals)
Craig Adrienne (drums/backing vocals)
Jake Honeywill (bass guitar)

2002 (Zen for Sale)

Gary Ramon (guitar/vocals)
Laurence O'Toole (guitar/keyboards/backing vocals)
Joolie Woods (keyboards/violin/flute)
Peter Dunton (drums)
Lee Moon (bass guitar)

2003–present

Gary Ramon (guitar/vocals)
Laurence O'Toole (guitar/keyboards)
Joolie Woods (keyboards/violin/flute)
Russell Barrett (bass guitar)
Danny Maidens (drums)

Discography

Sun Dial are noted for releasing limited-edition albums and singles on independent labels. The discs (often printed on vinyl only) become highly sought-after by collectors.