The The – Burning Blue Soul (1993)

Often regarded as the first The The album, Burning Blue Soul was recorded in 1980 and released the following year under Matt Johnson's own name. I don't recall buying it, nor ever listening to it.

Released on 4AD, and produced partly by Johnson himself, and partly by 4AD boss Ivo Watts-Russell (as well as a couple of tracks produced by Wire's Gilbert and Lewis), it has an uncompromisingly sparse and distant sound, strangely experimental for such a young artist (Johnson was 19 at time of recording). And as you'd expect from experimental music some of it hits the mark, some of it doesn't, but there are definite signs of where Johnson was going.