Ambitious deviation into the wonderful but wacky orbit of 'world pop', with added Todd Rundgren.

Mira was a trans-cultural musical collaboration initiated by Martin Gordon and Peter Culshaw in 1995. Martin Gordon is well-known through his pop pedigree and his involvement with Sparks, Jet, Radio Stars, John's Children and assorted others. Peter Culshaw is a globetrotting journalist/musician who worked with the West India Company. The pair began working together in Bombay in 1991 during a West India Company/Boy George recording.

Mira began life as a performance art duo which made well-received appearances in London art galleries. They developed material for a live stage show that ran in London and featured dancers, trapeze artists, martial arts performers and computer graphics. Oh, and musicians. Their sole CD New Hope For The Dead made an appearance in the World Music Chart Europe, the band performed at the 1996 Montreux Jazz Festival and then collapsed under weight of numbers.

Here's what the press said of New Hope For The Dead:

The Wire: 'New hope for world pop'. The Times: 'Intriguing, exciting and impossible to define - unsuspecting aliens will probably love it'. Mojo: 'A delicate and dignified affair of deceptive power'. The Observer: 'Bollywood-inspired moments that make the project come truly alive'.

Alas, there just weren't enough unsuspecting aliens to go around, and the band didn't make any further recordings. This release is re-mastered with new artwork and sleeve notes and contains three bonus tracks, including two remixes and the Mira version of Todd Rundgren's 'Tiny Demons' recorded at the Tuvan Horse Traders and Cross Dressers Annual Fair in Tuva. The tune 'TV on Fire' features the stratospheric vocal of the Tiger Lillies' Martyn Jacques.