Elly Roberts reviews
Doves: Some Cities
Distributed by
Heavenly Recordings (EMI)
CD: 
CD+DVD:
- Released: February 2005
- Rating: 8/10
- Cat.no.: HVNLP50CD
They dare to be diferrent: but will they pay the price? Hopefully not.
The Doves have been flying high ever since their successful album
Lost Sides from 2003. The non-conformist Mancunians like to do things
their own way, with the music press loving every bit of them.
Whereas the tendency is to fall into the Embrace-Coldplay-Keane et al formula,
this quartet are proving to be real troubadours in every way possible. If I
was to set them apart for the run-of-the-mill exponents of melodic rock, they
would stand out as Pink Floyd did in the early days. There’s even a hint of
the Floyd on their last album, a track called Valley.
On the British scene, they have no comparison or rivals. Album number three -
Some Cities, finds the boys at their creative best (expanding on the
magnificent Lost Sides) with their stature growing year on year. Not only are
they profound songwriters, they have a subtle knack of experimentation, with
all kinds of sound and quirky effects, which turn up when you least expect them.
Listen number one:ok. Listen number two: very good and very interesting.
Listen number three: gotcha! That’s how it seems to go with the Doves. Somehow
they’ve embraced the Rolling Stones, U2, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Northern Soul,
Pink Floyd and yes even Coldplay, without the killer riffs and killer tracks
that will supply them with hit singles. Clearly their agenda is not to ‘sell-out’
at any cost.
It’s a long, long, long time since I’ve heard anything as inspiring and
influential from a very British sound, from a very unique (northern) British
band.
Standout tracks: Black and White Town, Storm, Sky Starts Falling.
Visit the websites:
Doves.net
The full list of tracks included are :
Review & concert pics copyright © Elly Roberts, 2004-2010.
