DOVES
Kingdom of Rust
(Astralwerks)
Rating: 
Resolutely somber, ambitiously epic, undeniably English: Manchester’s Doves have been tilling the same doomy Brit-pop soil for years now and, judging by Kingdom of Rust, the band’s dour fourth album, they don’t see a need to switch things up… or, ya know, crack a smile. Jimi Goodwin still bellows every lyric like it’s his last, while his bandmates churn up a bass-heavy acoustic stew that calls to mind the charms of the North Atlantic on an especially rainy day. Only “Spellbound” provides relief.
