The Sugarcubes' debut album, Life's Too Good (1988), was an unexpected international success, and produced their signature song "Birthday".

Their third and final album, Stick Around for Joy, released in February 1992, was better received and produced the successful singles "Hit" and "Leash Called Love".

In her late teens, she joined the Icelandic post-punk band Tappi Tíkarrass, who released two albums before splitting in 1983.

Drummer Sigtryggur "Siggi" Baldursson was a member of Þeyr, while Einar Örn Benediktsson, Bragi Ólafsson and Friðrik Erlingsson formed a punk band called Purrkur Pillnikk.

[2] The band first performed in July 1988 under the name "Þukl" at the N'Art Festival held at the Nordic Culture Centre in Reykjavik, Iceland.

They first came to notice in the UK when BBC radio DJ John Peel played "Birthday", which was later voted by his listeners as #1 in the 1987 Festive Fifty, and #23 in the All Time Chart.

[4] Their music has been described as avant-pop,[5][6] and was characterized by a psychedelic post-punk sound sometimes reminiscent of the B-52's and Talking Heads, whimsical yet heartfelt lyrics, and the imploring, girlish voice of Björk, accompanied by Einar Örn's erratic vocal performances.

[7] In September, the band played at The Ritz in New York, a concert attended by David Bowie and Iggy Pop.

One single that was released from the compilation, the Tony Humphries remix of "Leash Called Love", reached number one on Billboard's Hot Dance Club Songs Chart in 1992.

Trouser Press wrote that the drumming and guitar work were influenced by Joy Division, Siouxsie and the Banshees and also Cocteau Twins on the slow numbers.