The Atlanta, GA, band Mary My Hope appeared a little too early, carving layers of post-punk and hard rock a few years before the Smashing Pumpkins would turn similar ingredients into multi-platinum sales. Founded by James Hall (vocalist) in the mid-'80s with guitarist Clinton Steele, bassist Sven Pipien, and drummer Steve Lindenbaum, Mary My Hope were minor-league players in the college-radio world, several ranks below all-stars like Love and Rockets and Peter Murphy but above the gone and forgotten such as Fatal Flowers and the Sandmen. Those familiar with late-'80s campus station sounds can easily imagine what Mary My Hope sounded like, traces of goth rock borrowed from the Mission and the Sisters of Mercy, the folksy moodiness of R.E.M., and the psychedelic metal of the Cult. Adored in their hometown, Mary My Hope weren't quite as popular nationally. The group released its first and only LP, Museum, in 1989. An EP, Suicide Kings, followed a year later, but Hall left the band after tours with Love and Rockets and Jane's Addiction. Hall relocated to New Orleans, a place where he could escape from the shadow of Mary My Hope and the local recognition his old group gave him. Deciding to go solo, he recorded two albums -- 1993's My Love, Sex & Spirit and 1996's Pleasure Club -- that were loved by critics but were sadly underexposed. ~ Michael Sutton