March 24, 2005
Long-View
Coca Cola Roxy
By Iain Bluett

If the Roxy holds 1200 people, 1100 people missed out on seeing one of the best bands to emerge from England since The Verve graced us with Urban Hymns 8 years ago.

Watching Long-View along with only 100 others, I felt like I was catching The Verve before they became widely popular. There's just something really special about this band, and it's not just because they're so good musically. There's something else. A lot of something elses…

Nowadays, there aren’t many bands that can effortlessly knock out four part harmonies over lush, anthemic tunes. Whether they were familar with the band or not, the crowd that saw Long-View play were treated to a solid set from a band good beyond they years and worthy of Coldplay-sized acclaim.

Formed 4 years ago, after lead singer/guitarist Rob McVey went looking for a drummer at a Jazz College in Manchester, Long-View were rewarded quicker than most with a publishing deal by Warner Chappel after releasing a 4 song EP that included the tracks "I Can't Explain" and "Further." The band played just a handful of gigs at a couple of venues, including Night and Day Cafe, a 300 person venue in heart of Manchester England.

The band then signed to a deal with Warner in the UK before moving to a new startup label, 14th Floor Recordings, (started by Christian Tattersfield, former head of East West Records) and shipped off to Seattle WA to record their full length album.

At the helm was US producer Rick Parashar, whose production credits include Pearl Jam, Blind Melon, Alice in Chains - typcially harder bands, but also bands known for good melodies. After releasing the Further EP (and undeniably one of their best songs), the band released Mercury, their debut full length in July 2003. Subsequent touring of the UK built a loyal following and generated some chart success with the single “I Can't Explain.”

There are too many soft-rock bands falling into the mock-Coldplay genre. However, there needs to be more bands like Long-View who are able to get emotional, melodically rich songs across that rock. Too many bands like Keane or Thirteen Senses just come across as soft. Long-View prove you can have great vocals, beautiful songs and still be powerful.

The band are currently playing their first US tour opening for Scotland’s Dogs Die In Hot Cars (when is it ever that hot in Scotland?) and France’s Phoenix. It's a good first tour for the band, but I think they'd do better headlining their own gigs in smaller venues. Maybe it's just selfishness and wanting to experience the "I saw them first phenomenon," but this band deserves a full hour on stage. They were only allowed to play 6 songs The Roxy, all of which were taken from Mercury. Firing off with “I Can't Explain,” the band came out strong.

Long-View finished their set appropriately with "Further," and by then, the crowd had swelled considerably. There's nothing more satisfying yet frustrating than catching the last song of an opening band and wishing you'd seen the whole set. It was a great feeling to stand amongst people cooing, "Wow.. who was that?" And all along, you've stood there grinning, feeling like you've got one up on them, and loving the fact that you saw them first.

www.longviewmusic.com