song of the day: april 19/2011

Doves - Last Broadcast
Album: The Last Broadcast [2002]

when doves issued "lost souls" in fall 2000, britpop was immersed in its melodic gloom-and-doom era, ushered in by the success of radiohead. the likes of coldplay, travis, and elbow followed in their wake, as did doves. what separated doves from the rest was a glint of passion, evident on their 2000 debut, "lost souls". two years later, the atmospheric dreamscapes of their debut were torn away for the musical daybreak of "the last broadcast". as it turns out, the psychedelic vibrancy of "catch the sun," the brightest track on their debut, pointed toward this brave second record. gone are the hazy space rock trips and the cheerless attitudes. the seven-minute sonic boom of "there goes the fear" finds jimi goodwin sharing vocals with jez and andy williams for a glorious chorus. each of them switches up vocal duties throughout, lending a joyous feel to the album itself. from the bold front of "words" to the fiery momentum of "pounding," the album shows a refreshing rawness that was absent before. the album delivers sweeping orchestral arrangements for some of it's more sublime songs, and there is a divine ambience on the title track that comes from the undeniably awesome "la la la's" that bed the song. doves were caught up in making grand compositions on lost souls, which worked fabulously, but it was too much. they've stripped down to the basics, letting the optimism of "the last broadcast" take center stage. it's a brilliant moment from a continually brilliant band.

amazon