It’s been an incredibly busy time for The View, what with two top 20 singles to promote on their full UK tour, so they could be forgiven for taking it easy this week with a break in their gigging schedule, writes Alan Wilson, Rocktalk reporter.
And with their new single Superstar Tradesman entering the charts at number 15 this week, exactly the same position as their debut Wasted Little DJs a couple of months ago, it would be the perfect point to have time out.
Except they had the small matter of nipping down to London on Monday to record their performance on Later with Jools Holland.
Then it was straight into the studio to record some more songs to accompany the next single, Same Jeans, before nipping back up to Dundee to film the video for that single today and tomorrow.
Like their last video, it has being filmed in their home town. Unlike Superstar Tradesman, it’s not confined to lead singer Kyle’s mum’s back garden.
“We’re doing it in various places in the town,” bass player Keiren Webster said.
“There’s a bit more of a storyline to it as well, with Kyle wandering about Dundee.”
The exact locations are being kept a secret although, knowing The View’s fans, there’ll soon be a huge crowd following the cameras around the city.
They’ve been great mates for a few years now, played dozens of gigs together and they’ve all just been on tour throughout the UK. So it comes as no great surprise that The Law are following in The View’s footsteps by releasing a single on their label, 1965 Records.
Watching The Paint Dry comes out a week on Monday on James Endeacott’s label and Stewart, Steve, Simon and Martin are all hoping it follows their mates’ efforts into the charts.
One thing is for sure, though, whatever happens in the future, the band are suffering for their art right now, having jacked in their jobs recently to pursue their dream.
“I’ve never been so skint or so hungry,” lead singer Stuart Purvey said this week.
“But I’ve never been so happy either,” he added quickly.
“The tour was great for us, very productive, even though we didn’t have any money. We even got a parking ticket when I was sleeping in the car one day. The traffic warden must have sneaked about putting the ticket on so he didn’t wake me up.
“But we’ve started building up a fanbase down south, people travelled up from Brighton to see us in Coventry, and there’s been loads of people joining our Myspace, so it was well worth it, even though we were skint.”
Lack of money aside, everything in The Law’s garden is rosy at the minute.
Record companies are queuing up for their signature, they’ve got an album’s worth of quality material ready to be recorded and they’ve got one of the most respected producers in the UK offering to work with them.
“The feedback has been great, everybody’s been saying the set we’ve been playing is perfect for an album, we’ve got the songs all written and Owen Morris (Oasis, The View) says he wants to produce it and our management have a headline tour set up, so the package is all there, we’re just seeing which record company wants to take us on.
“Relentless (EMI) and Mercury have been watching us so we’ll see what happens with that.
“I don’t know what’s happening with it all, I don’t like the politics of it all, that’s why I play rock’n’roll and don’t get involved in all that stuff. I just want to play, rehearse and write new songs and be a musician.
“The good thing is that we’ve got a whole load of new songs written that nobody has heard. I think it’s the best stuff we’ve ever written, I’m really excited about it.
“We wrote the songs before we went away and although we mucked about with them and finished some on tour we didn’t get a chance to rehearse them properly.
“We’re rehearsing them just now, it’s too early to play them at our gigs this week because you really want to get them tight before you play them live.”
The Law are in Arbroath tomorrow night, at the Inverpark Hotel, along with Luva Anna, Audiofever, the Get Downs and Alonia. Doors open 7.30pm, entry £5.
Then on Sunday they’re back in Dundee at The Doghouse, where London friends The Underground Heroes continue their love affair with all things Dundee.
Big mates with The View, it’s their third visit to the City of Discovery after they played at the Radio 1 aftershow at the Marquee and the now-legendary gig at the Cotton Club earlier this year.
Given the date (November 5) it could be an explosive night in more ways than one, although Stuart is hoping it’s not quite as explosive as their headline show at the Windmill in London recently.
“We were on stage and somebody ran in and threw a firework. It nearly hit Keiren from The View who was watching us, we thought he had just dropped a bottle of beer or something.”
Young Dundee band The Get Downs also support, while those Wasted Little DJs will be providing some of their own fireworks behind the decks, spinning some tunes between the bands. Doors for Sunday’s gig open at 8pm and it’s £5 entry.
The Courier 2/11/06
