Brighton, U.K. indie pop/dream pop band Fear of Men began in early 2011 as an extension of work Jessica Weiss was making for her art degree. Weiss had been making ambient soundtrack recordings for her short films, and met guitarist Daniel Falvey when he came to the exhibition of these films. The two art students started working toward a more pop sound in bedroom recordings, and eventually made a series of lo-fi demos designed to lure in other players to be in the band. Almost immediately, the bait was taken by Alex Flynn-O'Neill, who joined in on bass, and Michael Miles on drums. Weiss took the role of lead vocalist and also played guitar. The group quickly completed a well-received cassette and quickly rose to acclaim through a series of support gigs and a string of 7" releases on smaller indie labels such as Sex Is Disgusting and Italian Beach Babes. Fear of Men perfected their woozy sound, falling somewhere between the moody shoegaze of '90s acts like Curve and Lush and the beachy indie currents of their own era. A compilation of various cassette and 7" releases called Early Fragments was released in early 2013 while the band prepared to record its proper debut album. By this point some bandmembers had relocated to London, and some shifts in lineup occurred as they embarked on their first international tours. The band showed up as the initial trio of Weiss, Falvey, and Miles on their 2014 debut LP, Loom, aided by various string and woodwind players on several tunes. The album received critical acclaim, and the group toured North America and Europe, opening for the Pains of Being Pure at Heart. Two years later, Fear of Men released their second album, Fall Forever. ~ Fred Thomas, Rovi