An Emotional Fish

Vocalist Gerard Whelan met bassist Enda Wyatt in a band that Whelan was auditioning for. Whelan joined the band, but it broke up soon after. After the break-up, Whelan and Wyatt formed their own band. They originally performed alone, and recorded their works on a four-track tape recorder. After a year, Whelan brought his friend David Frew into the band. Whelan and David Frew had attended the same school and lived in the same housing estate. In 1988, they decided to name the band An Emotional Fish. For a few months, they performed with a drum machine, but soon added drummer Martin Murphy as the final member of the group.

In Spring of 1989, they signed to U2's independent Mother Records label to release their eponymous debut CD. "Grey Matter" was a mild local hit, but it was followed by "Celebrate", which hit the top 10 of the Ireland charts. College radio stations began to pick up the song. It received significant airplay, and eventually reached the top 5 of the US Modern Rock Tracks chart. Atlantic Records signed the band, and re-released "Grey Matter" in the US, where it became a lesser college rock hit. Atlantic released their debut album internationally, where it received generally poor reviews but sold well in Ireland.

After a tour to support the debut album, An Emotional Fish returned to the studio to record Junk Puppets. The songs were recorded over eight months, and four of the songs were produced by David A. Stewart. In 1993, the album was released, and An Emotional Fish opened for U2 on the Zoo TV Tour. However, the album sold few copies outside of Ireland. In 1994, the band released Sloper, but only secured a distribution deal in the UK. The album was released in the US two years later.