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Previews: from bedroom to stardom
Metromagazine2/12/2005
IF you can find it in you to forgive David Gray for the
irritating tune that made him famous, it's probably worth joining
the thousands of others who will be watching him live at the
Arena.
Gray's redeeming feature is that he is also rumoured to dislike the
song Babylon nowadays, even though it was the crossover tune that
plucked him to stardom four years ago, after several years spent
slaving away in relative obscurity.
And with his latest album the Manchester-born singer/songwriter,
brought up in Wales, has moved even further to distance himself
from his past music.
He has moved from what he has described as the `bedroom' production
of his previous albums to a full-scale studio production for his
seventh, Life in Slow Motion, with help from Marius de Vries, more
famous for working with the likes of Madonna and U2.
Gray reckons he doesn't want to be the underdog any more and hopes
the new style of his music will lead to bigger and better
things.
Perhaps it is the blue-eyed boy growing up, though I'll bet he's
not grown out of waggling his head while singing yet.
He wowed a packed house at the Apollo back in September and, as
with his albums, he can be expected to make the most of the move to
a bigger stage.
David Gray performs at the MEN Arena on
Sunday.
Brothers Jez and Andy Williams, and Jimi Goodwin met at school
when they were 15 and had some success in the early 90s as dance
collective Sub Sub, including hit single Ain't No Love (Ain't No
Use).
Later in the same decade they returned as Doves (never The Doves,
fussy beggars), the change in direction inspired apparently by a
feeling of being pigeonholed and the fact that their studio burnt
down.
The first three EPs were generally well received but they didn't
really get going until their debut album Lost Souls in 2000. It was
nominated for the Mercury Music Prize, but fellow Mancunian Badly
Drawn Boy pipped them at the post.
The second album The Last Broadcast was also nominated for the
Mercury, reaching number one in the UK album chart, with hit single
There Goes the Fear number three in the singles.
By the third album, their fan base had grown considerably and Some
Cities went straight to the top of the album chart in February this
year, spawning hit singles including the piano-driven Black and
White Town, Snowden and Sky Starts Falling.
With their beautiful melodic melancholy anthems and multi-layered
sound they prove they're a very accomplished act.
Even so, they do suffer from comparisons with bands such as
Radiohead, The Stone Roses, New Order, The Smiths - they're good
but not that good.
Doves perform at the Apollo on
Tuesday.
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