"Psychocandy" is the debut studio album by Scottish rock band the Jesus and Mary Chain, released in November 1985 on Blanco y Negro Records. It is considered a landmark recording, known for its combination of guitar feedback and noise with traditional pop melodies, a sound that proved influential on the shoegaze genre and alternative rock in general. The album reached No. 31 on the UK Albums Chart and was preceded by three successful singles: "Never Understand," "You Trip Me Up," and "Just Like Honey."
The band was formed by brothers Jim and William Reid in 1980 after they quit their jobs. They were inspired by bands like German industrial group Einstürzende Neubauten, the Shangri-Las, and The Velvet Underground. In 1983, with £300 from their father's redundancy money, they purchased a Portastudio, where they recorded a demo tape that included the songs "Upside Down" and "Never Understand." The demo caught the attention of Glaswegian musician Bobby Gillespie, who passed it on to Alan McGee, the founder of Creation Records. McGee became the band's manager, and after several London concerts, they recorded their debut single, "Upside Down," at Alaska Studios in 1984. The single sold out quickly and helped the band gain recognition, placing at number 37 in John Peel's Festive Fifty.
In 1985, after recruiting Bobby Gillespie as their drummer, the Jesus and Mary Chain signed with Blanco y Negro, a subsidiary of WEA, and entered Island Studios to record with engineer Stephen Street. However, the sessions at Island were unproductive, so they returned to Alaska Studios to record "Never Understand." The band then began recording Psychocandy in March 1985 with engineer John Loder at Southern Studios, completing the album in six weeks with a production budget of £17,000.
Psychocandy contains fourteen tracks, with a total running time of 39 minutes. The music is characterized as "bubblegum pop drowned in feedback," merging melody with harsh bursts of white noise. The album draws influences from '60s pop groups like the Beach Boys and the Rolling Stones, as well as from influential rock bands like the Velvet Underground, the Stooges, and Suicide.
Jim Reid provides the lead vocals for most of the album, with William Reid singing on "It's So Hard." The album's unique blend of catchy pop hooks and abrasive noise made it a critical success and laid the foundation for the shoegaze movement that followed.
