Chapterhouse

Chapterhouse, from Reading, made hazy, guitar-led music that placed them at the heart of early 1990s shoegaze. Formed in 1987 by Andrew Sherriff, Stephen Patman and Simon Rowe, they had shared teenage heroes in Cocteau Twins and The Jesus and Mary Chain. After moving to London in 1989, they were first tagged acid rock, then shoegazing alongside Lush, Ride and Slowdive.

Signed to the newly formed Dedicated label, they released "Pearl", featuring Rachel Goswell of Slowdive, which reached No. 67 in the UK Singles Chart. Their debut album Whirlpool (1991) peaked at No. 23 in the UK Albums Chart and is cited as a high point of the genre. The same year they played Reading Festival straight after Nirvana. Blood Music (1993) leaned towards dance, largely through Sherriff, and produced "She's a Vision" and "We Are the Beautiful". After the 1996 compilation Rownderbowt, a fifteen-year hiatus began, broken in 2008 when they backed Ulrich Schnauss on "Love Forever" at Truck Festival. Their 2010 reunion dates took in London, Japan and North America, and the 2023 box set Chronology added twenty unreleased songs. A 2026 tour marks the 35th anniversary of Whirlpool.