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Review: Jack Foley
LONG-VIEW had something of a quiet year in 2004, given the hype
that had started to build around them following the release of
2003's Mercury.
The good news, however, is that they appear to be back with a
vengeance at the start of 2005, with a double-A side single, Coming
Down and When You Sleep, and a remix album, in the
form of Subversions.
It's tribute to Rob McVey's strengths as both a songwriter and
singer that a remix album can generate as many big names as this
one, with Jack Knife Lee, Mogwai and Elbow all lending their considerable
talents to this outstanding effort.
Typically, it's as intelligent as we have come to expect from
Long-View, and not merely an attempt to prolong the shelf-life
of Mercury.
The tracks featured include Further, I Would, Will You Wait
Here and Can't Explain - all of which left a lasting
impression in original form, and which are given a memorable makeover
on Subversions.
The shimmering beauty of Can't Explain, with its heartfelt
lyrics and pensive, brooding style, is leant an almost dream-like
quality by Ulrich Schnauss' epic remix, while the more lively
Will You Wait Here is given a similarly stylish treatment
by the same remixer, bringing out the expansive nature of Doug
Morch's wailing guitars, while making McVey's vocals seem all
the more haunting and aching.
Elbow stamp their intellectual class all over Further,
without detracting from the Long-View sound, while Jack Knife
Lee lend the same track a more livelier vibe to get the album
rolling.
Only really the completely offbeat I Would (by Andy
Votel) threatens to strike the wrong note, coming across as a
little too disjointed for comfort, but it does grow with each
listen, and offers a quirky time-out from some of the stronger
material.
The instrumentals merely serve to strip the remixed tracks of
McVey's vocals, thereby providing a real showcase for the rest
of the band's talents, but occasionally reducing certain tracks
to mere dancefloor fillers.
Expect the likes of John Kennedy to pick up such material for
his Remix nights, however, given that these still knock the socks
off most remix fare.
Subversions is, as you might expect, an excellent reminder
of why Long-View are so highly-rated and could well serve as an
appropriate springboard for any new material coming our way for
the rest of 2005.
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Track listing:
1. Further – Jack Knife Lee
2. Can’t Explain – Ulrich Schnauss
3. In A Dream – Mogwai
4. Further – Elbow
5. Will You Wait Here - Ulrich Schnauss
6. I Would – Andy Votel
7. Further - Jack Knife Lee instrumental
8. Can’t Explain – Ulrich Schnauss instrumental
9. Will You Wait Here - Ulrich Schnauss instrumental
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