The chart success of the Jesus and Mary Chain was virtually nonexistent, but their artistic impact was incalculable. The Scottish group made the world safe for white noise, orchestrating a sound dense in squalling feedback that served as an inspiration to My Bloody Valentine and Dinosaur Jr. Though the supporting players drifted in and out, the heart of the Mary Chain remained vocalists and guitarists William and Jim Reid, brothers heavily influenced not only by underground legends like the Velvet Underground and the Stooges but also by the sonic grandeur and pop savvy of Phil Spector and Brian Wilson. These two polarized aesthetics converged. Equal parts formless guitar distortion and bubblegum, their sound celebrated pop conventions and thoroughly subverted them. ~ Jason Ankeny