The precursor to Sun Dial was Ramon's The Modern Art, formed in the mid-1980s with a loose lineup that never played gigs but did release two studio albums.
[citation needed] However, the album received little popularity among mainstream critics and radio stations as their authentic 1960s psychedelic sound was out of fashion at the time.
[citation needed] Sun Dial in turn were influenced by the 1960s and 1970s psychedelia and hard rock of Jimi Hendrix, the Beatles, the Stooges, Pink Floyd and Led Zeppelin, as well as the drug-influenced "Madchester" sound of the Stone Roses, Inspiral Carpets and Happy Mondays.
In 2010, they released a 20th anniversary 2-CD anthology, Processed For DNA, via Shrunken Head, their own imprint with Cherry Red, before returning with a new eponymous studio album, musically much heavier than before, and more influenced by early 1990s Seattle[clarification needed] than late 1960s psychedelia.
The most stable line ups include the following: Sun Dial are noted for releasing limited-edition albums and singles on independent labels.