I wasn't going to write a review of this album, mainly because I think Doves albums always grow on you and you always discover more about them the more you listen to them. However, when I was listening to the album I found I had lots to say about it.
First off the important news, it's good. How good, I'm not sure yet but it's good. It's nothing new for the band, not that it's a replica of the previous albums but they still have that Doves sound. Like Muse, Doves have their own, very distinctive sound. If Muse are space rock then Doves must be desert rock, sometimes desolate, some times hard and dirty, some times beautiful and a real feeling that it's something different from everything else, something with real depth.
You can tell that when you listen to the album that they've thought about the album as a whole, that it's designed to be listened to in one sitting and thankfully all the stand out tracks aren't at the start of the album.
That takes me nicely on to what I think are the stand out tracks of the album. Kingdom of Rust has grown on me recently and while I would rank it up there with the top tracks on the album there are plenty of other tracks to talk about. The Outsiders starts like a futuristic alarm but then steps up to be a classic Doves track, great guitar, building as the track plays out. OK now I'm stuck as to which track to mention next, each track stands out in a way that they add something to the record as a whole. Winter Hill's repetitive riff at the start, 10:03 starts innocently enough but then has Sigor Ros - Festival type drums towards the end that build up - I'm a sucker for those every time, bring in the guitar and I'm there, in the song, consumed. Then wait, wait for the last two songs, the excellent House of Mirrors going in to the equally good Lifelines. Man these guys know how to write an album, not a single, an album. That's a real talent that even a lot of the top acts don't know how to do.
Why you should already be in to Doves:
My favourite song by the band, a song that I played so much when on a two week training course that when I left the hotel the receptionist asked me what song I'd been playing as she really liked it.
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I'm sorry it's a bit clichéd to post this but it's something that if you're not in to Doves could catch your ear on the first listen.
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I remember when Some Cities came out I thought this was the "There Goes The Fear" of the new album. The start of the song clearly signals that it was written to be included on an album but after that it's straight in to an apocalyptic feeling track.
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