The Universal Want

After a decade away, The Universal Want arrived not with a whisper but a rush of clarity. Released on 11 September 2020, Doves’ fifth studio album was their first since 2009’s Kingdom of Rust, and marked a triumphant return. It entered the UK Albums Chart at No. 1, their third to do so, and proved that time apart had only sharpened their sense of purpose.

Recorded across several English studios, including their barn-turned-studio Frank Bough Sound III, the album carries both the grandeur and grit of Doves’ earlier work, but with more space to breathe. Freed from the “militant” schedule that defined their last record, the trio allowed the process to unfold with patience. “If someone wasn’t feeling great one day,” said drummer Andy Williams, “we’d reconvene at a later date.” That sense of empathy bleeds into the music.

Jimi Goodwin takes lead vocals across the entire album for the first time, though guitarist Jez Williams joins him on the winding, woozy “Mother Silverlake.” The record’s three pre-release singles “Carousels,” “Prisoners,” and “Cathedrals of the Mind”, each reintroduce Doves as both nostalgic and forward-looking. There’s still a Northern ache in their songwriting, but it’s elevated by sleek production from longtime collaborator Dan Austin and stunning artwork by Maria Lax, whose ghostly photography replaces the band’s usual visual language.

Critics called it cathartic. Uncut labelled it a “comeback from the kings of Northwestern noir”; Gigslutz declared it their finest work. While Pitchfork was less effusive, most agreed. The Universal Want felt necessary. Not just for the band, but for listeners too. In a world cracked wide open, Doves returned with songs stitched from shared experience, shadowed with melancholy, and lit with quiet defiance.