Newsgroup: it.arti.musica.rock
Titolo: Doves Live (recensione)

When the Doves try...
Askin Ojumu
Sunday May 12, 2002
The Observer
The Doves Forum, London NW5
A decade after the country's ravers danced to a Mancunian beat, the music
capital of the north is at the centre of attention again. 24 Hour Party
People, the zany, charmingly inaccurate account of the rise and fall of
Factory records is partly responsible. But there is a new generation of
bands keeping it lively up the M62.
The Doves are at the front of the new wave, though they originally emerged
in 1993 in the guise of house music one-hit wonders Sub Sub ('Ain't No
Love'), having earlier been on the fringes of the Hacienda scene. Unlike
local legends, the Happy Mondays and the Stone Roses, who blazed brightly
but all too briefly, the Doves have painstakingly put in the studio hours to
become one of the most fashionable bands of the moment.
Unlike those bands, especially the former, who provided a textbook example
of rock excess, the Doves fit into the category of 'unlikely popstars'; a
trio of amiable thirtysomethings who look like they have swapped
pills'n'thrills for the school run.
To their credit, considering that many of their contemporaries recently left
24 Hour Party People wallowing in nostalgia, the Doves are only now
approaching critical mass.
Their second album, The Last Broadcast, is a worthy follow-up to the
Mercury-nominated debut, Lost Souls, which was six years in the making.
Whereas Lost Souls was a swirling mass of dense, melancholic psychedelia,
inspired by a love of paisley-hued Sixties guitar bands, the new album is a
pacey fusion of dance and trippy rock. It made me think of what the Stone
Roses would have sounded like if they had hurried up and made their second
album before the rot set in. They have a fine ear for catchy melodies
supported by vibrant guitars and drums that get tonight's casual-clad crowd
nodding their heads and shifting from one foot to the other in appreciation.
Admirers of their first album might be forgiven for thinking that the Doves
were a pallid bunch of shoe-gazers, but they are a robust looking group. At
first glance, when they appear on stage, I wonder if they are a trio of
opportunistic roadies who have picked up their guitars and decided to have a
bash. Thankfully, they are not, and they can play, even if Jimi Goodwin
doesn't possess the most versatile voice in pop; it's a rather flat sounding
instrument better suited to the Maine Road terraces than a large venue.
The shimmering guitars and bouncy basslines exemplified by their last
single, 'There Goes the Fear', are fleshed out live to provide a pulsating
rhythm section on all but a handful of tracks. The band hammer away at their
instruments with punkish intensity, interrupted by the occasional joke by
Goodwin. The music, the attitude, the clothes - it's as if Britpop never
happened.
Like most bands, the Doves sacrifice finesse, plus some of their trademark
layered sound, for extra decibels onstage, so at times they sound one-paced
and unimaginative, while elsewhere they still produce a stirring noise.
It is certainly refreshing how they transform an album favourite like
'Words' into a full-blooded anthem, releasing the pressure, before starting
all over again. On 'N.Y.', a more typical indie song, hushed verse followed
by a loud declamatory chorus, Goodwin does his best Elvis Costello, which,
tellingly, sounds better than his natural voice. 'Caught by the River',
their epic ballad, sounds uncomfortably like Starsailor at their most
indulgent but they quickly redeem themselves with their encore, 'Here It
Comes'. This song inspires jubilation, followed by a singalong - cute.
With all the talk about the sad state of Britpop, the Doves should be
welcomed. They may not be the most forward-thinking band on the block - it's
2002 but they're gonna party like it's 1992 - but they're a cut above most
of the competition.
No one is going to make a movie about them, but their musical adventure is
one worth following.

bash. ...........
...mmmh, non vedo l'ora di papparmeli a Bologna il 21 maggio...
bye
Valerio