Yum-Yum was the short-lived project of Chris Holmes, a Chicago-based multi-instrumentalist who experimented in a variety of musical genres without ever settling for or excelling in any of them. Prior to forming Yum-Yum, of which he was the only constant member, Holmes had been the main songwriter for Sabalon Glitz, a second-string entry in the Chicago post-rock scene with a clear fascination for '70s Krautrock and the old TV series Doctor Who. Yum-Yum was entirely different; apparently inspired by chamber pop revivalists like Cardinal or the High Llamas, Holmes affected the look of a rather pretentious graduate student in English and began writing songs heavily indebted to the Beach Boys, Nick Drake, and Belle & Sebastian, without the tune-making ability of the first two, but with all the irritating preciousness of the last. He played live with a string section and a French horn player.