Their sound has been compared to artists as diverse as Jeff Buckley, The Birthday Party, The Smiths, and Joy Division. Their live shows have become famed for their emotional intensity and Finn's often scarily possessed stage presence and his unique singing voice.
They released their debut album, The Runaway Found, in Spain late in 2003. The first single from the album, Lavinia, was released through Rough Trade on November 24, 2003. They released the album globally in January 2004 with a different track listing. It went gold worldwide the following year.
The original lineup of The Veils (which included Oli Drake, Ben Woollacott and Adam Kinsella) disbanded in late 2004, and Andrews returned to New Zealand in order to find a new lineup. He spent the New Zealand summer rehearsing with high school classmates Liam Gerrard (keyboards) and Sophia Burn (bass), and the trio returned to London early 2005. There they got connected to Dan Raishbrook (Guitar) and Henning Dietz (drums). However Liam Gerrard left the band half way into their American tour in 2007.
The group recorded their second album Nux Vomica at Underbelly Studios in Los Angeles, with producer Nick Launay, and the album was released September 18, 2006. The album features string arrangements by ex-Lounge Lizard and long time Lou Reed collaborator Jane Scarpontoni. Nux Vomica featured on 9 critics' Best Of The Year lists in 2006.
In the 16 months following the release of Nux Vomica The Veils played over 250 shows across 15 countries and during the U.S. leg of the tour it was announced that keyboardist Liam Gerrard would leave the band to return home to New Zealand due to personal reasons. The Veils carried on as a four piece and, whilst living out of a classic car garage in Oklahoma City, started recording new demos between playing shows on the east and west coasts of the America. By mid-2008 they were back to London to begin work on their third album with producer Graham Sutton. The recording sessions at West Point Studios lasted only three weeks and at the end of the summer the album was done and ready to be mixed. In March 2009 they began touring the new songs in Europe and America with new drummer Raife Burchell (of Jetplane Landing), after Henning Dietz' defection. Sun Gangs was released on April 6 2009 and was featured in many websites top albums of 2009.
The band spent the summer of 2010 working on new material. On December 6 it was announced that a new 7 song EP entitled Troubles of the Brain is set to be released on January 24, and that the band had left Rough Trade after almost 9 years and started their own label, Pitch Beast Records. The EP is produced by Finn Andrews and Bernard Butler and was recorded at Finn's home studio in London.
In mid 2012 The Veils threatened legal action on UK hardcore band Veils due to the similarity in name. This forced Veils to alter the spelling of their name to Vales.
The Veils released their next album in april 2013 titled , ‘Time Stays, We Go’ in April 2013. Three years later Total Depravity (2016) saw the daylight.
In 2016 David Lynch revealed that Finn would appear in the new series of Twin Peaks due to air early 2017.
In 2023 The Veils released ...And Out of the Void Came Love after a long struggle with songwriting that only came together after the birth of Andrews' first child. The COVID pandemic had seen the departure of longtime members Dietz and Burn (who had been the longest continuous presence in the band after Andrews) and the arrival of Tiny Ruins bassist Cass Basil.
Talk Down the Girl
The Veils Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Won't let them get the better of me
They'll pass me by
Don't pass me by
My seven fears all fear of me
They'll take their leave eventually
Well they can try
They can try
My love was strong
For now it's gone
Eleven stories up
From the second floor
A love not warm
Is a love not done
Darling you let me know
Talk down the girl
Talk down the girl
So little knowledge known to me
So little colour left to see
But black and white
Black and white
A silhouette at seventeen
If they can find what's left of me
For the fire
Burn in the fire
My love was strong
For now it's gone
Eleven stories up
From the second floor
A love not warm
Is a love not done
Talk down the girl
Talk down the girl
There's little more for us to say
You've made your mind up anyway
Another world
Another world
I hate to leave you here this way
But I can't think where you should stay
I miss my girl
I miss my girl
My love was strong
For now it's gone
Eleven stories on
From the second floor
A love not warm
Is a love not done
Darling you let me know
Talk down the girl
Talk down the girl
The Veils's song "Talk Down the Girl" is a melancholic tune that tells the story of lost love and the struggle to move on. The lyrics convey a sense of sadness and resignation, as the singer tries to overcome his feelings for a girl who no longer loves him. The opening lines of the song, "Seven moons for seven seas won't let them get the better of me," set the tone for the rest of the song, suggesting that the singer is determined to overcome his sadness and move on. However, this is easier said than done, as the following lines reveal: "My love was strong, for now it's gone." Despite his best efforts, the singer cannot escape the pain of his lost love.
Line by Line Meaning
Seven moons for seven seas
I have faced many challenges in life and will continue to do so.
Won't let them get the better of me
I won't let these challenges defeat me.
They'll pass me by
These challenges will eventually fade away and not affect me anymore.
Don't pass me by
I don't want to be ignored or forgotten by these challenges.
My seven fears all fear of me
My fears are scared of me because I am strong enough to face them.
They'll take their leave eventually
My fears will eventually disappear and no longer control me.
Well they can try
My fears can try to scare me, but they won't succeed.
My love was strong
I had a strong love for someone in the past.
For now it's gone
But that love has now ended and is no longer present.
Eleven stories up
I am at a high point in my life, but also distant from the ground and reality.
From the second floor
Compared to where I am now, my past love seems insignificant.
A love not warm
My past love was not passionate or fulfilling.
Is a love not done
If a love is not warm and fulfilling, it is not a true love and therefore incomplete.
Darling you let me know
You made it clear to me that our love was not meant to last.
Talk down the girl
Encouraging someone to stop pursuing me or our love.
So little knowledge known to me
I feel lost and unsure about my future and what I truly want.
So little colour left to see
I see the world as dull and dull without my past love.
But black and white
My perspective of the world has become limited and simple.
A silhouette at seventeen
When I was younger, I had a clear image of who I was and what I wanted, but now I have become a shadow of my former self.
If they can find what's left of me
If someone looks hard enough, they will see my true self, but it may not be what they expect.
For the fire
Anything that is left of me should be destroyed or burned away.
Burn in the fire
I want the remnants of my past to be eliminated completely.
There's little more for us to say
Our relationship has run its course and there is nothing left to say.
You've made your mind up anyway
You have already decided to move on from our relationship.
Another world
Our paths are now leading us in different directions and to different worlds.
I hate to leave you here this way
I am sorry for leaving you behind and ending our relationship in this manner.
But I can't think where you should stay
I don't know where you should go or what your future holds.
I miss my girl
Despite everything, I still miss the person I once loved.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Joe Lee
One of my all-time favs.
Davide Guitar
Fantastico
Leth
So good!
Rick Sorian Cout
It tells me about a huge loss in my life, as I miss her, I miss my girl so much.
kat cat
Very good👌☝☝☝