At first listen, it might be tempting to lump pacificUV into the pile of the umpteen number of bands that currently worship at the altar of Spacemen 3. But if you listen further, and dig deeper, as their followers already have, you’ll notice that there’s much more that’s going on under that pretty dreampop surface. There has to be, considering the changes that pacificUV has undergone in the past few years. The band practically imploded while recording their first full length in 2003, Longplay 1. What survived was a record that garnered critical praise from all corners of the music world, including the likes of Rolling Stone, who called it “…a masterpiece.”

After an exhaustive tour supporting Longplay 1 (that ended with most of their gear stolen outside of a NYC venue), tension was high. Co-founders Clay Jordan (guitar) and Howard Hudson (guitar, voice) amicably split as recording for EP was underway—leaving Jordan holding onto all their remaining delay pedals. A fitting swan song to Hudson’s involvement in the band, EP reflected their live show, stirring up more intensity than the band had previously produced in the studio. After the split, Jordan, who was now the sole remaining member of pacificUV, decided to relocate from Athens to Portland for a change of temperature.

It obviously worked. In April of 2008, Jordan and his new band mates (Mike Irwin on keyboards, Kevin Davis on guitar and drones, and Jesse Robert W on drums) released Longplay 2, pacificUV’s long awaited sophomore full-length. Strangely, despite all the changes in personnel, Longplay 2 is a fitting sequel to the debut album. Several songs on Longplay2 are textured, languid laments similar to the first album, while others, like the 10-minute long “Arson”, are dense, crash-and-burn noisescapes. Almost equally divided between instrumental and vocal songs, Longplay2 is a perfect balance of noise and melody. While the haze and blissy drone of their debut is echoed here, a more abrasive,sinister element has seeped into the mix. Lyrically there’s something added too, with words creating a mood akin to the ambient shadow of a Lee Friedlander photograph or the dripping Southern Gothic intuition of a Tennessee Williams script.

Don’t get us wrong, there are plenty of electronic blips and disgruntled electronics that whip around and interweave themselves in a way that even Jason Pierce would be proud of. But there’s something else moving under there as well…