DOVES - Constellation For The Lonely

It fell to Doves to open the list of the most influential albums of the 2000s with "Lost Souls", ferrying the last remnants of britpop into the arms of a new artistic awareness, anticipated by Radiohead and consecrated with a postmodern touch by Elbow.

Their return to the scene in 2020, after eleven years of silence, underlined the band's determination to pick up the thread where they'd left it without being corrupted by passing trends, reconciling sturdy songwriting with elegant dream-pop textures, with a renewed verve and the unmistakable stamp of their early days.

This time it took "only" five years to get the follow-up to "The Universal Want". Blame the many setbacks suffered by Jimi Goodwin, grappling with serious physical and mental health problems that kept him from being present during the initial writing of the songs. Despite everything, "Constellation For The Lonely" is another sonic triumph, not without a few rough edges, yet still fairly solid and pointed toward an interesting evolution that holds a few surprises.

The stylistic overhaul carried out on "The Universal Want" immediately finds fertile ground in the opening track "Renegade", which stakes a claim as a potential new classic for the band, with Goodwin in excellent form and an emotional crescendo with powerful cinematic overtones (the song is inspired by the film "Blade Runner"). The following track, "Cold Dreaming", takes on the task of reworking dance/trip-hop nuances, as well as introducing the more prominent presence of the Williams brothers as vocalists, a role Jez and Andy will have to take on fully during the upcoming tour, given Goodwin's unavailability.

The album flows smoothly between vigorous dream-pop ("Strange Weather", "Stupid Schemes"), yet more nods to Radiohead ("In The Butterfly House"), comforting déjà vu moments bearing the unmistakable Doves stamp ("A Drop In The Ocean"), and an unexpected prog-rock flourish ("Southern Bell") that brings down the curtain with bold, triumphant tones.

The difficulties that accompanied the making of "Constellation For The Lonely" are constantly perceptible, especially in the second half, where the British band ventures into more ambitious territory — the very passages that suffer most not only from Jimi Goodwin's reduced input, but also from the sonic compression applied during mixing and production, a choice that at times dampens the complex dynamics of the compositions.

Doves revisit the dramatic flair of britpop on the ballad “Last Year’s Man”, where a harmonica makes a fleeting appearance; not content with that, they dig into minimal-pop and bluesy territory on the album’s most aching track, “Orlando”, and plunge headlong into sacred iconography with the melancholic, touching “Saint Teresa”, introducing new elements that make the whole thing remarkable.

That the English band has by now become something of an alt-rock stereotype is undeniable, yet “ Constellation For The Lonely ” still has the merit of being an album where inspiration and the urge to reinvent still hold sway. Everything sounds pleasantly familiar, while the few variables on show point to a desire not to remain caged within an epic, dreamy sound that lacks substance.

With “ Constellation For The Lonely ” Doves confirm they're still on the front line of the crowded pop-rock scene and, despite difficulties and obstacles, deliver a record that is no mere collection of potential singles, but a cohesive, hard-won and musically lavish project.

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29/03/2025