Let’s start off by making one thing clear; The Verve Pipe have never gone away. The group has been around for 30 years, having released their first album I’ve Suffered a Head Injury back in 1992, though they didn’t arrive at mainstream prominence until 1996 with their hit single “The Freshmen” (note: these are not the “Bittersweet Symphony” guys – that’s The Verve), leading the album Villains to go platinum. While 1999’s self-titled album didn’t make as big of an impact, they returned fresh with 2001’s Underneath and the great “I Will Never Let You Down”. Since then, the group has released a couple family-friendly albums, plus two more studio LPs, most recently 2017’s Parachute.
Cut to four years later, and the band is back and readying a new album. While the first single from the new set “No One’s Gonna Break This Heart (Again)” had a slow burn quality, its second single “Forever Reaching” that deserves to be at the top of your Fall playlist on repeat. Musically, the track has some light prog influences, with it’s spacey keyboard intro and near-falsetto vocals. The lyrics are pure poetry, “It’s just a thread of crimson that binds us. Wrapped in red it always reminds us”, but the meaning comes through as the pre-chorus kicks up the tempo with a propulsive delivery, “And though it’s fleeting, it’s enough. Just for now, we belong”.
This all climaxes with a soaring chorus that packs in a huge amount of emotion within the delivery of two words; “forever reaching”. The layered harmonies and vocal rounds at the end give the track a fervent spirit that packs an emotional wallop. Don’t sleep on this song – The Verve Pipe have earned a comeback. Start listening here.
The Indy Review 
1 Comment