There was no Top 10 hit in 1985 quite like “Life in a Northern Town,” a gentle-then-thundering folk-pop tune by British trio The Dream Academy. The gentle tribute to Nick Drake, counterpointed by an African-inspired, nearly wordless chorus, hit No. 7 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 15 in their native U.K. – but there was much more to their story. Cherry Red will tell that story – with input from the band’s frontman, Nick Laird-Clowes – in a new deluxe box set to be released in February. Religion, Revolution & Railways (The…