| Geneva | |
|---|---|
 From left: Steven Dora (guitar), Keith Graham (bass), Andrew Montgomery (vocals), Stuart Evans (guitar), Douglas Caskie (drums).
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| Background information | |
| Origin |  Aberdeen, Scotland |
| Genre(s) | Alternative rock Art rock Indie |
| Years active | 1992–2000 |
| Label(s) | Nude Records |
| Website | Official archive site |
| Members | |
| Andrew Montgomery Steven Dora Keith Graham Stuart Evans Douglas Caskie |
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Contents |
Origins
Geneva were a British indie band from Aberdeen in Scotland. The band were formed in 1992 by vocalist Andrew Montgomery and guitarist Steven Dora. They recruited second guitarist Stuart Evans, bass player Keith Graham and drummer Douglas Caskie. Originally the band were called Sunfish. One of their demos found their way to Suede’s record label Nude who signed the band in 1996. The band changed their name, originally to Garland, then later to Geneva, and released their debut single No One Speaks the same year. The band garnered enough press to headline NME’s annual Bratbus tour of up and coming bands in early 1997. The band released second single Into the Blue to coincide with the tour.
Musical Style
The band fitted well with the current musical scene and were well promoted by the UK music press of the time. As a reaction to the fading Britpop scene many bands rejected the laddish ideals of bands like Oasis and wrote darker, more intelligent songs. This was perfectly shown by Radiohead’s OK Computer and other bands like Strangelove. Montgomery’s high pitched vocals were often compared to Suede. However it could be said that being on Suede's record label did them few favours because they were unable to find their own sound and own fanbase compared to the more successful band.
Albums
Geneva released their full-length debut album, Further, early in the summer of 1997. The album mixed traditional power pop with darker brooding songs. Though the album was said to be one of the best of that year by some critics, it had little commercial success, despite including the NME-voted "Single of the Year", "Tranquilizer". Other singles from the album were "Best Regrets", "No one speaks" and "Into the blue" The second album, Weather Underground, was released in 2000, after more than a year of wrangling with the band's incompetent record label. It was preceded by the single Dollars In The Heavens and followed by the single If You Have To Go. The album flopped, partly due to the vast amount of time between the albums, partly due to the complete lack of record label publicity for the album's release. The band split later that year.
Current Whereabouts
Following the break up of Geneva, Andrew Montgomery embarked on a number of musical collaborations, most notably with American composer Ben Neill and Leeds electronica guru Overseer. Montgomery formed a band called Amityville with guitarist Stuart Peck and drummer David Bevis; they released the Pacific Radio Fire EP in 2004 to critical acclaim - a limited release, it quickly sold out. Despite moderate success Amityville broke up in late 2005 and Montgomery formed a duo with Keris Howard called St Famous, which is ongoing. Montgomery continues to collaborate with a number of musicians in the Southeast and some notable music producers. Stuart Evans and Keith Graham formed 69CORP and released an album, Our Present to the Future in 2005. 69CORP now consists of just Graham, and further releases are planned for 2008.
Singles
| Year | Song |
|
Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | "No One Speaks" | #32 | "Further" |
| 1997 | "Into The Blue" | #26 | "Further" |
| 1997 | "Tranquillizer" | #24 | "Further" |
| 1997 | "Best Regrets" | #38 | "Further" |
| 1999 | "Dollars In The Heavens" | #59 | "Weather Underground" |
| 2000 | "If You Have To Go" | #69 | "Weather Underground" |
