Love Spirals Downwards

Ethereal Dream Pop Duo

Love Spirals Downwards was begun in the late 80's by multi-instrumentalist and producer Ryan Lum, but didn't truly take flight until the addition of girlfriend-turned-vocalist Suzanne Perry in 1991. Two of their three initial demo tracks were featured on the "Across this Grey Land 3" compilation, garnering international attention from fans and critics alike, and sparking their career as one of Projekt Records' most successful artists to date. At first unsure what to term the unique sound of "Idylls," their premier album, many referred to the band as ethereal or darkwave. By their second release, "Ardor," the band had embraced the newly emerged shoegaze movement. With "Ever," the third offering, the band stripped down their sound a bit, while at the same time beginning to explore the beats and synth textures of trip-hop. Their last studio album, "Flux," culminated in a unique mix of jungle break beats and rhythms with all of their earlier ethereal, folk and world elements. "Temporal," a post-mortem compilation released in January 2000, finely illustrated how each successive Love Spirals Downwards album successfully incorporated new elements into their basic foundation of beautifully atmospheric melodies and gorgeous female vocals. Primarily a recording project, the duo performed live about a dozen times -- generally in conjunction with Projekt Festivals -- almost all of them acoustically. Love Spirals Downwards' last live show was in 1998. In 1999, Lum began working with a new collaborator, Anji Bee, under the shortened moniker of Lovespirals.