Doves

Four stars

Brighton Racecourse, Brighton, Friday, July 26

WITH the western world in turmoil and our national politics spiralling, it is tempting to want to travel back to simpler and more stable times.

And so it came to pass, on a cloudy Friday night on a hilltop in Sussex, that several hundred Brightonians found themselves transported back to the early 2000s of New Labour and Napster.

After a record-breakingly hot week, it was an oddly grim and understated early evening atmosphere at Brighton Racecourse, with a sparse and static crowd gathering for Scouse psych-folk rockers The Coral.

Although littered with hits such as Pass It On and In The Morning, their set felt overly clinical and a little underwhelming – although to witness Dreaming Of You performed live is always a treat.

After a short intermission, the arrival of Welsh indie-punk band Feeder seemed to energise the occasion with the dimming of the natural light.

Set opener Feeling A Moment was attention grabbing, while the anthemic Just The Way I’m Feeling and Buck Rogers reminded the crowd of the sheer strength of the band’s back catalogue.

The headline spot was reserved for Mancunian indie three-piece Doves, whose last album Kingdom Of Rust is over ten years old.

Their set coincided with a biblical downpour reminiscent of Glastonbury at its worst, but it only made the crowd more defiant and up for embracing their returning heroes.

Doves certainly had the gravitas of a headliner, even if singer Jimi Goodwin’s voice was audibly suffering by the end of the night.

The band have a unique gift for conjuring euphoria, and after witnessing inspiring renditions of the likes of Pounding, The Cedar Room and There Goes The Fear, it is clear that Doves haven’t lost their mojo.

Tom Furnival-Adams