Longview - Mercury

With their hearts exhibited loftily on their sleeves, no one could accuse Longview of being dead inside. Yet underpinning the vulnerable, Red House Painters-inspired veneer of songs like fine single "Further" is an enduring worldliness that recalls U2 or Elbow. While cascading guitar chords and plaintive strings soar skywards, the lyrics repeatedly posit the idea that love is akin to collapse. This simple conceit is used to devastating effect on the drowsy, love-drunk ballad "Falling For You". Frontman Rob McVey unravels a tumbling vocal style which apprehends the giddy uncertainty of romance in its infancy. Soft-coloured but deeply stirring music.

Rating: 4 / 10