New Doves CD- Kingdom of Rust
One of the most underestimated rock bands in the UK, Kingdom of Rust
recently release their fourth album which was their first since 2005.
This is definitely the trio's best release so far. With a combination of
the passion of their previous album and the forlorn charm of their 2002
single "There Goes The Fear", Kingdom of Rust is tremendous the whole
time. From the introduction "Jetstream", a rightfully cinematic rush
motivated by the Blade Runner soundtrack, to the graceful closer
"Lifelines", Doves sound more improved than ever.
The leading track is a smoothly grooving, peculiarly scary but memorable space-blues type melody, above a rockabilly beat. It's called "The Outsiders" and is created with a motorik tempo and an intense bassline. “The Outsiders,” deceptively starts out with Pink Floyd-like psychedelic sounds, and then merges into a Coldplay-like rocker which pushes into a major head-thrashing beat.
Their track "Winter Hill" joins an immediately memorable folk tune to some persistent and delicate sequencing. But it’s the witty provision from vocalist Jimi Goodwin in addition to the Williams brothers who denote the listener, fine points such as the pounding Northern Soul bassline that kicks in at the end of "Winter Hill" or the deep, chattering synths that remain energetic tunes like "Jetstream" onward. Merely the somnolent, if pleasing funk of "Compulsion" disrupts the unified vibes.
The quality of the songwriting on the new album gleams with anxiousness
and integrity. This sets apart the new
Doves CD from most of their contemporaries. In between the the
catchy performance of the opening song 'Jetstream' and the touching but
shady sound their title track and lead single, the 'Kingdom
Of Rust - Doves' contains most of the Dove's most accomplished
material. The band's previous albums, "Lost Souls" and "Some Cities"
were great as well, but some people might have disagreed because of the
odd music. The songwriting was great in the first two albums but is
extraordinary in Kingdom of Rust.
“Spellbound,” and ”Compulsion” sound like brit-funk, and really gets caught up in this albumtaking up only a short five and a half minutes of time. The loud, strong vocals of Jimi Goodwin’s drive this song right to the top, and the tempo and melody suggest years of pop ancestry. All the while, the sound that formerly drowned the band is now goes together in perfect harmony with the tune. With the variety and the openness to try just about everything, whilst not neglecting the center of their unique sound, the Kingdom of Rust carries on that trend and many might agree it surpasses the Doves previous albums.