Doves - Kingdom of Rust

It's a truism that you can't judge a book by its cover, one that could equally apply to music. Doves look like the archetypal northern band, seemingly originating from an area where rain hammers everyone every second of the day, where the landscape is either barren fields or collapsed industrial infrastructure, and where babies are born with scruffy three-day beards, ready to be wrapped in their first parka jackets. These impressions of bleakness sit at odds with a band who write uplifiting pop songs, indie-janglers infused with optimism and shot through with a dance groove. While many puzzled journalists have poured over Doves' work, looking for the grime hidden beneath the shine (how could northerners possibly be that perky?), Kingdom of Rust is yet another slab of hope-against-the-odds wrapped up in country (the title track), dance (Jetstream), and even funk (Compulsion). Hints of dourness remain, but this merely adds to their gruff charm.