Doves were born after a studio fire caused them to lose all of their recordings as previous incarnation Sub Sub. Revitalised, they regrouped, and the rest is history. Now, four years since their last album ‘Some Cities’, a similar refocusing has worked its magic to create a new chapter for Wilmslow’s finest.
Fusing epic indie overtures and dance music structures, they’ve made an album that successfully copes with both elements that brought them to our attention in the Nineties and early Noughties.
Album opener ‘Jetstream’, as well as being an imaginary song for the closing credits to the film Blade Runner, also stakes an early claim for the largest-sounding track on the album. It’s quickly followed by lead single ‘Kingdom Of Rust’, which could easily be described as a stone-cold classic Doves anthem in the making, and already the four-year wait doesn’t seem that long.
Early, maybe premature, suspicions of greatness are confirmed later on with the rebellious ‘The Outsiders’, with its piercing thunderous bass; it’s followed by ‘Winter Hill’, which suitably brims with the Doves’ trademark soundscape largesse.
Somewhat alternating between the indie and dance side of things, the differing pace and ordering gives the album a constantly moving vibe. A touch of Sub Sub here and there combined with the emphatic Doves sound we’ve become accustomed to, and you’ve got something for fans both old and new.
With a knack of churning out loud yet smooth songs, you can always rely on Doves to deliver – four albums in they’ve never even made an average one. Those ready and armed for the possible crossover that fellow Manchester suburbanites Elbow have attained may have to wait, but those who buy this will realise that such thoughts, such hopes, are easily vindicated by the material on show.
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Check the new issue of Clash magazine – out April 2 – and ClashMusic.com next week for exclusive interview content with Doves.
