The Belltower

The Belltower were something of an anomaly in the early '90s, a shoegaze band from the U.S. But calling them a shoegaze band would be somewhat limiting, given the strength of vocalist Britta Philllips' voice. Most shoegaze bands buried their vocals in washes of guitar fuzz; this is where the Belltower differed, existing as more of a proper pop band. Co-founding members Phillips (also known as the voice of Jem on the '80s cartoon of the same name) and Jody Porter moved the band from New York City to London in 1990 and began issuing their material on the independent Ultimate l...