The House of Love

Formed in London in 1986 around Guy Chadwick and guitarist Terry Bickers, The House of Love was part of the late‑1980s British alternative scene, playing guitar-driven rock that mixed indie rock, neo‑psychedelia and noise pop — Chadwick’s melodies meeting dense textures and often tense guitar work. The original core also included Pete Evans, Chris Groothuizen and Andrea Heukamp, who appears on the earliest recordings before her departure. After the singles “Shine On”, “Christine” and “Destroy the Heart”, The House of Love released a self‑titled debut in 1988 on Creation, followed by another eponymous album in 1990 commonly identified by its butterfly sleeve. The years that followed featured heavy touring, several lineup changes and a shift toward more direct songwriting without losing the psychedelic backdrop, evident on Babe Rainbow (1992) and Audience with the Mind (1993). The band split in 1993, reformed in 2003 around Chadwick and Bickers, and resumed releasing records with Days Run Away (2005), She Paints Words in Red (2013) and A State of Grace (2022). Since then, The House of Love has continued under Chadwick with a new lineup.