Cocteau Twins consists of Elizabeth Fraser, Robin Guthrie, Simon Raymonde.
Cocteau Twins were an influential and prolific Scottish band.
Robin Guthrie ( guitar) and Will Heggie ( bass), both from Grangemouth, Scotland, formed the band in 1980. At a local disco, Nash, they met Elizabeth Fraser, who eventually provided vocals.
The band's influences at the time included The Birthday Party, Sex Pistols and Siouxsie & the Banshees. The name Cocteau Twins itself comes from an early (unreleased) song by Simple Minds. Their debut recording, Garlands, released by 4AD in 1982, and was an instant success, as was the subsequent Lullabies EP. (In 2005, Deftones released a version of "Wax and Wane" from Garlands, becoming one of the few groups to attempt a cover of a Cocteau Twins song.)
Though the entire band was praised for their performances, Fraser received the most attention. Even on their early recordings, her singing was startlingly unique, and with little precedent. At times barely decipherable, Fraser seemed to veer into glossolalia and mouth music. Ned Raggett writes that "part of her appeal is how she can make hard-to-interpret lyrics so emotionally gripping."
Will Heggie left the group after the tour that followed the 1983 release of the band's second EP, Peppermint Pig. The band's sound on its first three recordings relied entirely on Heggie's rhythmic basslines, Guthrie's minimalistic guitar, and Fraser's voice; Cocteau Twins' next full-length LP, Head Over Heels, had to rely solely on the latter two. This led to the growth of Cocteau Twins' characteristic sound: heavily affected guitars (Guthrie has often said that he is far more interested in the way the guitar is recorded, than in the actual notes being played) combined with Fraser's voice, by turns ethereal and earthy. Like its very dissimilar predecessor, Head Over Heels was well-received by the public and press.
