Doves ponder the city
A brilliant guitar album, Some Cities is Manchester rock trio Doves at their best: innovative, mesmerising, melancholic and technically accomplished.
As its title and opening song suggests, the album is about our experience of growing up in ever-evolving cities where 'buildings brought to ground' and 'roads come together'. It mourns places, love and friendships that no longer exist and our lost collective memories.
Outstanding songs include Some Cities, Black And White Town, Almost Forget Myself - three fast-tempo tracks with driving guitars - and Shadows of Salford, a hauntingly beautiful ballad.
The impact of space is evident in Doves's songs, whose styles vary from moody to euphoric depending on their choice of recording locations. The delicate final song Ambition, recorded in a Benedictine Monastery, has an ethereal quality while Snowden, recorded in Snowdonia, UK, calls to mind the remote Welsh landscape.
Doves may not be as radio-friendly as Travis, but with their trademark atmospheric rock and thoughtful lyrics, this low-profile outfit is on the way to becoming a rock classic.