Seeland

The electronic pop outfit Seeland, based in Birmingham, England, draws its personnel and sonic foundations from that city's "retro futurist" movement of the late 1990s and early 2000s. Tim Felton had previously performed with Broadcast, while Mike "Billy" Bainbridge had been active in Plone. Although the new project shares the earlier groups' fascination with the BBC Radiophonic Workshop and Joe Meek, it also incorporates touches of '80s synth pop and '60s psychedelia. Felton and Bainbridge formed Seeland in 2004, dividing vocal, guitar, and electronics duties, and released their debut single, Wander/Pherox, in 2005 on Duophonic, the label run by Stereolab. The Crimson EP followed in 2006, and "Torch" surfaced on the 2007 Static Caravan collection Binary Opposition. After bassist Neil McAuley joined the lineup, the band signed with the Lo imprint LOAF, which issued the single Library/Call the Incredible late in 2008. Their first album, Tomorrow Today, arrived in spring 2009.