The band was originally formed in 1975 by college friends Mike Finney (vocals) and Steve Perrin (guitar),[1] alongside Lawrence Tickle (bass) and Tony Trappe (drums).

[5] The band had already signed a deal with Island Records in September 1979, before the Factory single was released, according to Wilson "due to irresistible desire to play the game".

[5] Two further singles were issued – It Doesn't Bother Me and Boys Cry before the release of Nobody's Perfect, the group's first album that, ultimately, received significantly more media plaudits than it achieved sales.

Perrin and Finney were back in the studio in June 2010 to record new material – this time for a 12" vinyl EP, Come Home featuring "Lost", "Nicole" and "Oil Painting".

The following summer, and following some geographically challenged songwriting, Perrin and Finney alongside Arash Torabi (The June Brides), Mike Kellie (Spooky Tooth / The Only Ones) together with producer Nick Halliwell (The Granite Shore) entered a studio in Exeter.

Five years in preparation, a full scale Distractions retrospective – entitled Parabolically Yours – which covers the group's entire career to date was issued by HiddenMasters in 2017.

The current line up are original members Mike Finney and Alex Sidebottom, plus bass player Joe Brehony and guitarists Chris Dutton and Jonny Poole.