Fronted by Paul Buchanan's haunting, spare vocals, The Blue Nile's 1984 debut, A Walk Across The Rooftops, was a beautiful blend of blue-eyed soul and shimmering synth-pop. While the Scottish trio were initially associated with contemporaries like Prefab Sprout and The Style Council, The Blue Nile's sound was actually closer to the subtle lushness of late Roxy Music and Talk Talk. Known for their exacting standards, The Blue Nile took five years to craft 1989's intimate Hats, and only two further albums followed, in 1996 and 2004.