Music like Cranes

Cranes are a British rock band formed in 1985.

Formed in 1985 in Portsmouth, England by siblings Alison and Jim Shaw and named after the many mechanical cranes around the city's docks, Cranes are best known for the singular childlike vocals of lead singer Alison.

The band's first release was the self-financed Fuse cassette. Signing with Portsmouth based independent label Bite Back!, Cranes recorded the Self Non Self mini-LP in 1989, which led to them recording their first of two sessions for John Peel's BBC Radio 1 show. They moved to the BMG offshoot Dedicated Records in 1990. With the addition of Mark Francombe and Matt Cope (both guitar), Cranes attained a front cover with Melody Maker magazine and released a series of critically acclaimed EPs in 1990 and 1991 that preceded their debut full-length album, Wings of Joy, which reached number 52 on the UK Albums Chart. Following a general softening of their sound, the introduction of pop elements to their music, and a world tour with The Cure in 1992, the band's popularity increased, and peaked with the release of the album Forever (UK No. 40), which contained their biggest hit single, "Jewel" (UK No. 29). Loved followed in 1994.