6
KYLE FALCONER
The View are a four piece indie rock band from Dryburgh, a district in Dundee, Scotland. They have been active in the music scene since early 2005, supporting more renowned acts including Babyshambles, Primal Scream and The Undertones. The band initially based themselves at The Bayview pub in the Menzieshill district of Dundee, not too far from their native Dryburgh. From this pub, the band took their name. Shortly after they moved to The Doghouse, a respected music venue in Dundee's city centre, where they came to the attention of local music promoters, management and ever-growing fan-base.
The band are currently signed to 1965 Records and their debut single, Wasted Little DJs, was released 7 August 2006. The single entered the UK MTV/NME video charts on 9 July 2006. and climbed to top this chart the same day it reached 15 in the UK singles chart on 13 August 2006.
Members of the band attended St. John's High School, a Roman Catholic Secondary School in Dundee. There they performed, at school talent contests, a mixture of their own songs and covers. After leaving school the band set up base in a backroom at The Bayview Pub, where they began to write and rehearse new material. This pub also gave the band their name. They played many eventful cover gigs and weddings around the Dundee area, incuding the Centenary Bar and the Red Lion caravan park in Arbroath. Their biggest gig at this point was a large family wedding at the Invercarse Hotel.
The band continued to write and rehearse, gathering an ever-growing army of fans wherever they played. Local club promoter John (Lemuria) More, and current manager Grant Dickson, had been working together on the ambitous Lemuria Sessions project with producer Robin Wynn Evans based at T-Pot Studios for around a year, and the three worked together with The View and other local acts, continuing to work under the name of Lemuria. Most of the initial Lemuria Sessions project were filmed by Stephen Johnson who was lecturing at Dundee College, teaching a young Kieren Webster who keenly handed over a demo knowing that the Stephen was working on Music based film project. Grant and Robin later split from John and Lemuria to form Two Thumbs, John taking on the role of entertainments manager at the Doghouse which was being taken over by new management Sarah Hill who offered the band their spare room upstairs to conitue rehearsing. Both Two Thumbs and Lemuria continued to work with The View following the split with Two Thumbs taking on band management, and the band went on to write the majority of what was to be their first album upstairs in the Doghouse. Stephen Johnson went on to film the original promo video for Face for the Radio during the View's recording session for the View EP, during the actual recorded take at T-Pot
Embarking on a 'World tour of Dundee', they continued to play and sharpen their craft at 'unlikely' local bars around the town. A live performance and band interview was professionally filmed at The Doghouse on 29 October 2005 (known as the "Halloween footage" as it took place on the nearest Saturday to Halloween) as part of a Lemuria video session night. From this performance, live recordings of "Posh Boys" and "Comin' Down" were made widely available for download.
After just their second billed gig at The Doghouse, they were signed to local Dundee record label Two Thumbs and released the, self titled, The View EP in early 2006. Alongside the EP, the band recorded a complete demo album at T-Pot studios in Perthshire and this was made available for download from the band's Two Thumbs management website. Videos were also made available to accompany the T-Pot recordings of "Face for the Radio" and "Wasted Little DJs". The Wasted Little Dj's video was filmed by the bands manager on a hastily arranged trip to Derry to play in Stephen Johnstons home town. This is when they first met Mickey Bradley from the Undertones who invited them back to Derry to Support the Undertones at their New Year show 2005 / 2006.
Prior to a gig in Dundee by the band Babyshambles, The View handed over The View EP and busked to an amused and impressed Pete Doherty. The View fought off stiff competition from 4 other bands also trying to play a set in support of his own band's performance later that night. A few months later Doherty asked The View to support a national Babyshambles tour. This was to give the band much needed national live exposure.
On 27 February 2006, drummer Steve was arrested with Doherty, driving the wrong way down a one-way street in Birmingham. No charges were brought relating to drug possession despite media speculation given Doherty's reputation. Although not in the way the band might have wanted, this incident gave the band considerably more publicity.
It was during this period, the band came to the attention of BBC Radio 1 presenters Zane Lowe, Edith Bowman and Jo Whiley as well as BBC Radio 2 presenter Dermot O'Leary who gave them airplay nine months before the album hit number one. The band's live performance of "Wasted Little DJs" (later to be their first single) featured on Zane's 8 February 2006 show, alongside established acts The Kooks and be your own PET. Soon after, tracks from the debut EP began to be played on Radio 1 and other local and national stations. In particular, Jim Gellatly, at Xfm Scotland, featured the band heavily on X-Posure Scotland, his new music show. A live acoustic session was recorded for the show broadcast 3 May 2006. Tracks featured were: "Face For The Radio", "Wasted Little DJs", "Superstar Tradesman" and "Same Jeans"
Co-writer and bassist Kieren Webster, was voted No. 6 on the NME Cool List 2006 Top 50, in the issue dated 25 November 2006. The band took part in the NME Awards Tour 2007, beginning January 2007 and "Wasted Little DJs" was voted Best Track of the year at the annual NME Awards 2007.
In the spring of 2006, the band signed to James Endeacott's new record label 1965 Records, part of the Sony BMG group and linked to Columbia Records. A rare live version of "Screamin' n Shoutin'", recorded at the University of Abertay Dundee, headlined the NME/1965 Records cover CD featured with the NME issue dated 25 November 2006.
In the summer of 2006, they began to record their debut album, with Owen Morris, who has previously produced albums by Oasis and The Verve. Titled Hats Off to the Buskers, the album was released on 22 January 2007 and entered the UK album chart at #1 on 28 January 2007.
Taken from the album, their first single, Wasted Little DJs, was released 7 August 2006. The single entered the UK top 75 at #73 on the week before full release, due to download sales alone, and climbed to #15 the following week. Four weeks prior to release, on July 9, 2006, the single entered the UK MTV/NME video charts at Number 9, climbing to Number 1 on 13 August 2006. The single was the BBC Radio 1 Colin and Edith show's record of the week for week commencing Monday, 10 July 2006 and entered the BBC Radio 1 daytime playlist on 12 July 2006.
The band followed up with their second single Superstar Tradesman, released 23 October 2006, also reaching #15 in the UK. Same Jeans, the third single from the album, was released 15 January 2007 and reached #3 in the UK.
In the Summer of 2006, the band began a UK wide headline tour. During this tour the band would also play dates with other major acts and feature in the MTV2 Europe Gonzo tour.. Documenting this, a half hour long special "On Tour With The View" was broadcast on MTV2 Europe on 18 November 2006.
During the Tour, The View played with the Underground Heroes at the Tap'n'Tin in Chatham. At the end of the night The View and Underground Heroes joined forces on a version of 'Same Jeans'. It was recorded and released on youtube. It was the highest rated music video for two days in a row. The union prompted the band to be called 'The Underground View'
In December 2006, the band played gigs in Tokyo, Japan and made their first trip to the USA, in January 2007, playing dates in New York, San Francisco and Los Angeles.. A follow-up US tour due in March 2007 was postponed because of visa problems. This was reportedly due to singer Kyle Falconer's arrest for cocaine possession in August 2006.. Falconer was convicted of cocaine possession and fined £1000. The tour was rescheduled for May 2007. This tour has now been cancelled indefinitely..
The band announced a national tour in April 2007 to mark the album release. Tickets for the entire UK tour sold out within 1 hour. In August, they are headling the NME/Radio 1 stage at the Carling: Reading and Leeds fisteval.
Their biggest performance so far was at BBC Radio 1's One Big Weekend in Dundee on 14 May 2006 and this was followed, soon after, by their second major festival appearance at T in the Park on 8 July 2006. Both performances to general critical acclaim.
On 22 July 2006, the band appeared , live in the studio, in an 18 minute long segment of the Dermot O'Leary show on BBC Radio 2. This featured an interview with the band as well as live performances of "Face for the Radio" and a Ska version of the Squeeze classic "Up the Junction".
On 9 August 2006, the Zane Lowe show on BBC Radio 1, featured the band in a live session and interview. "Same Jeans" and "Up the Junction" were performed live from the Maida Vale studio.
On 11 August 2006, The View performed "Wasted Little DJs" live for the first time on national UK television, on the Channel 4 show "Transmission".
On 15 August 2006, the Janice Long show on Radio 2 featured the band live in the studio. The View performed acoustic versions of "Claudia", "Same Jeans" and "Superstar Tradesman".
On 26/27 August 2006, The View were a last minute addition to the Reading and Leeds Festivals. The NME reported the fans' chant of "The View, The View, The View are on Fire!" could be heard ringing loudly around the packed tent.
On 26 October 2006 the band's complete 30 minute set for the BBC Electric Proms was broadcast live on Radio 1's Zane Lowe show.
On 10 November 2006 the band appeared on the BBC2 show Later with Jools Holland alongside Kasabian, Damien Rice and Smokey Robinson among others.
During the months of January and February 2007 the band joined the NME Awards Indie Rock Tour, along with The Automatic, The Horrors, and Mumm-ra
On 13 January 2007 the band made their debut on the Saturday morning football show Soccer AM
On 17 January 2007 the band made an appearance on Jo Whiley's Live Lounge on Radio 1 and covered Paolo Nutini's song 'Rewind'.
On 18 January 2007 the band made an appearance in The Zoo in the Virgin Radio building, performing acoustic versions of "Claudia", "Same Jeans" and "Superstar Tradesman".
On 1 March The View performed "Face for the Radio" live at the Shockwave NME Awards.
On 4 May 2007 they appeared on both Friday Night with Jonathan Ross (performing "The Don") and Transmission with T Mobile (performing "Skag Trendy" and "Same Jeans")
On 10 June 2007 The View, as the musical guest, performed "Same Jeans" on Rove on Australian television.
The band are currently signed to 1965 Records and their debut single, Wasted Little DJs, was released 7 August 2006. The single entered the UK MTV/NME video charts on 9 July 2006. and climbed to top this chart the same day it reached 15 in the UK singles chart on 13 August 2006.
Members of the band attended St. John's High School, a Roman Catholic Secondary School in Dundee. There they performed, at school talent contests, a mixture of their own songs and covers. After leaving school the band set up base in a backroom at The Bayview Pub, where they began to write and rehearse new material. This pub also gave the band their name. They played many eventful cover gigs and weddings around the Dundee area, incuding the Centenary Bar and the Red Lion caravan park in Arbroath. Their biggest gig at this point was a large family wedding at the Invercarse Hotel.
The band continued to write and rehearse, gathering an ever-growing army of fans wherever they played. Local club promoter John (Lemuria) More, and current manager Grant Dickson, had been working together on the ambitous Lemuria Sessions project with producer Robin Wynn Evans based at T-Pot Studios for around a year, and the three worked together with The View and other local acts, continuing to work under the name of Lemuria. Most of the initial Lemuria Sessions project were filmed by Stephen Johnson who was lecturing at Dundee College, teaching a young Kieren Webster who keenly handed over a demo knowing that the Stephen was working on Music based film project. Grant and Robin later split from John and Lemuria to form Two Thumbs, John taking on the role of entertainments manager at the Doghouse which was being taken over by new management Sarah Hill who offered the band their spare room upstairs to conitue rehearsing. Both Two Thumbs and Lemuria continued to work with The View following the split with Two Thumbs taking on band management, and the band went on to write the majority of what was to be their first album upstairs in the Doghouse. Stephen Johnson went on to film the original promo video for Face for the Radio during the View's recording session for the View EP, during the actual recorded take at T-Pot
Embarking on a 'World tour of Dundee', they continued to play and sharpen their craft at 'unlikely' local bars around the town. A live performance and band interview was professionally filmed at The Doghouse on 29 October 2005 (known as the "Halloween footage" as it took place on the nearest Saturday to Halloween) as part of a Lemuria video session night. From this performance, live recordings of "Posh Boys" and "Comin' Down" were made widely available for download.
After just their second billed gig at The Doghouse, they were signed to local Dundee record label Two Thumbs and released the, self titled, The View EP in early 2006. Alongside the EP, the band recorded a complete demo album at T-Pot studios in Perthshire and this was made available for download from the band's Two Thumbs management website. Videos were also made available to accompany the T-Pot recordings of "Face for the Radio" and "Wasted Little DJs". The Wasted Little Dj's video was filmed by the bands manager on a hastily arranged trip to Derry to play in Stephen Johnstons home town. This is when they first met Mickey Bradley from the Undertones who invited them back to Derry to Support the Undertones at their New Year show 2005 / 2006.
Prior to a gig in Dundee by the band Babyshambles, The View handed over The View EP and busked to an amused and impressed Pete Doherty. The View fought off stiff competition from 4 other bands also trying to play a set in support of his own band's performance later that night. A few months later Doherty asked The View to support a national Babyshambles tour. This was to give the band much needed national live exposure.
On 27 February 2006, drummer Steve was arrested with Doherty, driving the wrong way down a one-way street in Birmingham. No charges were brought relating to drug possession despite media speculation given Doherty's reputation. Although not in the way the band might have wanted, this incident gave the band considerably more publicity.
It was during this period, the band came to the attention of BBC Radio 1 presenters Zane Lowe, Edith Bowman and Jo Whiley as well as BBC Radio 2 presenter Dermot O'Leary who gave them airplay nine months before the album hit number one. The band's live performance of "Wasted Little DJs" (later to be their first single) featured on Zane's 8 February 2006 show, alongside established acts The Kooks and be your own PET. Soon after, tracks from the debut EP began to be played on Radio 1 and other local and national stations. In particular, Jim Gellatly, at Xfm Scotland, featured the band heavily on X-Posure Scotland, his new music show. A live acoustic session was recorded for the show broadcast 3 May 2006. Tracks featured were: "Face For The Radio", "Wasted Little DJs", "Superstar Tradesman" and "Same Jeans"
Co-writer and bassist Kieren Webster, was voted No. 6 on the NME Cool List 2006 Top 50, in the issue dated 25 November 2006. The band took part in the NME Awards Tour 2007, beginning January 2007 and "Wasted Little DJs" was voted Best Track of the year at the annual NME Awards 2007.
In the spring of 2006, the band signed to James Endeacott's new record label 1965 Records, part of the Sony BMG group and linked to Columbia Records. A rare live version of "Screamin' n Shoutin'", recorded at the University of Abertay Dundee, headlined the NME/1965 Records cover CD featured with the NME issue dated 25 November 2006.
In the summer of 2006, they began to record their debut album, with Owen Morris, who has previously produced albums by Oasis and The Verve. Titled Hats Off to the Buskers, the album was released on 22 January 2007 and entered the UK album chart at #1 on 28 January 2007.
Taken from the album, their first single, Wasted Little DJs, was released 7 August 2006. The single entered the UK top 75 at #73 on the week before full release, due to download sales alone, and climbed to #15 the following week. Four weeks prior to release, on July 9, 2006, the single entered the UK MTV/NME video charts at Number 9, climbing to Number 1 on 13 August 2006. The single was the BBC Radio 1 Colin and Edith show's record of the week for week commencing Monday, 10 July 2006 and entered the BBC Radio 1 daytime playlist on 12 July 2006.
The band followed up with their second single Superstar Tradesman, released 23 October 2006, also reaching #15 in the UK. Same Jeans, the third single from the album, was released 15 January 2007 and reached #3 in the UK.
In the Summer of 2006, the band began a UK wide headline tour. During this tour the band would also play dates with other major acts and feature in the MTV2 Europe Gonzo tour.. Documenting this, a half hour long special "On Tour With The View" was broadcast on MTV2 Europe on 18 November 2006.
During the Tour, The View played with the Underground Heroes at the Tap'n'Tin in Chatham. At the end of the night The View and Underground Heroes joined forces on a version of 'Same Jeans'. It was recorded and released on youtube. It was the highest rated music video for two days in a row. The union prompted the band to be called 'The Underground View'
In December 2006, the band played gigs in Tokyo, Japan and made their first trip to the USA, in January 2007, playing dates in New York, San Francisco and Los Angeles.. A follow-up US tour due in March 2007 was postponed because of visa problems. This was reportedly due to singer Kyle Falconer's arrest for cocaine possession in August 2006.. Falconer was convicted of cocaine possession and fined £1000. The tour was rescheduled for May 2007. This tour has now been cancelled indefinitely..
The band announced a national tour in April 2007 to mark the album release. Tickets for the entire UK tour sold out within 1 hour. In August, they are headling the NME/Radio 1 stage at the Carling: Reading and Leeds fisteval.
Their biggest performance so far was at BBC Radio 1's One Big Weekend in Dundee on 14 May 2006 and this was followed, soon after, by their second major festival appearance at T in the Park on 8 July 2006. Both performances to general critical acclaim.
On 22 July 2006, the band appeared , live in the studio, in an 18 minute long segment of the Dermot O'Leary show on BBC Radio 2. This featured an interview with the band as well as live performances of "Face for the Radio" and a Ska version of the Squeeze classic "Up the Junction".
On 9 August 2006, the Zane Lowe show on BBC Radio 1, featured the band in a live session and interview. "Same Jeans" and "Up the Junction" were performed live from the Maida Vale studio.
On 11 August 2006, The View performed "Wasted Little DJs" live for the first time on national UK television, on the Channel 4 show "Transmission".
On 15 August 2006, the Janice Long show on Radio 2 featured the band live in the studio. The View performed acoustic versions of "Claudia", "Same Jeans" and "Superstar Tradesman".
On 26/27 August 2006, The View were a last minute addition to the Reading and Leeds Festivals. The NME reported the fans' chant of "The View, The View, The View are on Fire!" could be heard ringing loudly around the packed tent.
On 26 October 2006 the band's complete 30 minute set for the BBC Electric Proms was broadcast live on Radio 1's Zane Lowe show.
On 10 November 2006 the band appeared on the BBC2 show Later with Jools Holland alongside Kasabian, Damien Rice and Smokey Robinson among others.
During the months of January and February 2007 the band joined the NME Awards Indie Rock Tour, along with The Automatic, The Horrors, and Mumm-ra
On 13 January 2007 the band made their debut on the Saturday morning football show Soccer AM
On 17 January 2007 the band made an appearance on Jo Whiley's Live Lounge on Radio 1 and covered Paolo Nutini's song 'Rewind'.
On 18 January 2007 the band made an appearance in The Zoo in the Virgin Radio building, performing acoustic versions of "Claudia", "Same Jeans" and "Superstar Tradesman".
On 1 March The View performed "Face for the Radio" live at the Shockwave NME Awards.
On 4 May 2007 they appeared on both Friday Night with Jonathan Ross (performing "The Don") and Transmission with T Mobile (performing "Skag Trendy" and "Same Jeans")
On 10 June 2007 The View, as the musical guest, performed "Same Jeans" on Rove on Australian television.
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Photographer:
Steve Goudie