All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

100

Uncut

Confirms Doves as the country's most innovative rock group. [Mar 2005, p.94]

100

E! Online

Some Cities brims with confidence, as the band delivers a mix of Motown rhythms and windswept melodies with unblinking force.

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Entertainment Weekly

There's an almost antiquated quality to this wondrously exhilarating, shimmering pop masterpiece. [4 Mar 2005, p.73]

Drowned In Sound

Some of the radio-friendly oompa of ‘The Last Broadcast’ has been cut back, and the new record bears more resemblance to their debut ‘Lost Souls’ in its ashen-faced detachment and bloodied-yet-unbowed pride.

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Under The Radar

A crowning achievement. [#9]

Austin Chronicle

Some Cities builds on the band's propensity for melodic grandeur and achieves pure sonic bliss in the bargain.

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cokemachineglow

Some Cities is easily their best since Lost Souls, and while repeated listens won't likely reveal it better than their debut, it's often equally as hypnotizing.

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Q Magazine

It is only after about the fifth listen that the true wonder of Some Cities slowly starts revealing itself. [Mar 2005, p.97]

Billboard

"Some Cities" is less epic, but no less important, than its predecessors.

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Urb

They throw light on their shadowy melancholia, resulting in positively euphoric tunes. [Mar 2005, p.111]

Dot Music

Whilst “Some Cities” has less radio-friendly singles than “The Last Broadcast”, it is perhaps a more cohesive piece of work.

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All Music Guide

Doves' best yet.

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Lost At Sea

The album has a mood that runs throughout, unfolding from nothing into something extraordinary.

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Pitchfork

In the three years since Last Broadcast, Doves have cultivated a better understanding of their strengths and limitations, and Some Cities beams with a revivified looseness.

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Spin

Like Coldplay killing time with the Happy Mondays at Manchester's Hacienda club. [Mar 2005, p.92]

Filter

Floating where they once soared... Doves safely straddle anthemic familiarity and hipster erudition. [#15, p.104]

Neumu.net

Suggests a progression and a retreat at the same time.

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The Guardian

Anthemic, challenging pop.

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The Onion (A.V. Club)

As has always been the case with Doves, aural environment-building sometimes seems to be all the band has going for it, like on "Someday Soon," which uses sudden dramatic hushes and angelic choirs to pump life into a ballad that's practically melody-free. But at least the practice helps Doves make its few great songs count.

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Blender

Doves' best songs are full of life and genuinely moving, like an older, wiser Coldplay. [Apr 2005, p.113]

PopMatters

Some Cities is not as strong as its two predecessors, but it does continue the band's run of consistently pleasing albums.

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Rolling Stone

Some Cities is less self-consciously arty than Souls, though the murky atmospherics and nondistinct Brit voices here will likely confine the album to the nether regions of America's Top 100.

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Splendid

While there are plenty of MTV2-ready tunes, the record doesn't bear much repetition.

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Alternative Press

There's generally more of the same here, but Doves' alternate influences this time around... don't exactly add up to a great band "stretching out." It's more like they're grabbing at straws. [May 2005, p.134]

Mojo

Sadly, the songs are less noticeable than the urge to strangle the drummer. [Mar 2005, p.101]

Stylus Magazine

Doves’ strength lies in their careful sculpting of the sonic and the emotional, and here they’ve restrained their palette and scope so much that the result is grey.

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Village Voice

Bogged in reverb tanks, delays, and other swirly effects, Some Cities' production masks their slovenly musicianship.

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Playlouder

Like most of the cities Doves sing about, these songs are grey, drizzly, often unpleasant, and more often than not... very, very dull.

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What Our Users Said

The average user rating for this album is 8.2 (out of 10) based on 64 User Votes

Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

Sean H gave it a10:
Sing Jimmi..Sing! Blow your lungs out! Very nice piece of work!

mo l gave it a9:
It's almost a ten worthy achievement, but due to some of the easilly forgotten segments of the album, it falls slighlt short. Most of these are after the song "Walk In Fire", which is the album's highlight. Great album though!

Seamus S gave it an8:
I'd give it an 8 1/2 if I could. it's incredible but not masterpeicey

Greg H gave it a9:
Beautiful. Layer upon layer of melodic, moody rock, which soothes rather than bores. From Motown to 90s to New Age, it's tough to name an influence these chaps don't draw from. And successfully at that.

JP Nesker gave it a10:
This record makes my top 3 of 2005, along with "Plans" by Death Cab, "Man-Made" by the Fannies, and "Illinoise" by Sufjan Stevens...anyone who isn't moved by the peerless pop genius of doves has no musical soul...nuff said.

Mack B gave it a10:
Nine months of owning this album (and much listening) have not dulled its intensity or impact. I understand that this music might not be everyone's cup of tea, but if you have enjoyed previous Doves releases, then this one shouldn't dissapoint. To me, it seems like they took the best elements of their first two albums and combined them here - without rehashing previous material and yet still maintaining a trademark sound. I can certainly understand that enjoying music is related to an emotional connection - but that said, I think that the Doves' music is often times described as 'boring' by those who lack the attention span to sit through one listen of their albums. (As a side note, Elbow seems to receive the same treatment, despite making such enjoyable albums.) There are plenty of hooks - but many of these songs are slow to develop, and grow on you after multiple listens. A single listen might seem disappointing to those who need instant gratification from their listening experience. But, to each his own. To me, this one is definitely a keeper.

Tony S gave it a9:
Some Cities, is a great album, not quite as good as their first "Lost Souls" but an improvement over "The Last Broadcast". This album is full of great songs. My personal favourites are, Snowden, Almost Forgot Myself, Someday soon and the towering, Sky starts falling. Sky starts falling is a an almost, "Jam" like tune, Jimi Goodwins vocals even have a Weller like feel to them, the drums pound and the guitars soa, it is the most fully realsied and formed Doves song we have yet to hear, when I first heard it, I knew it had to be a single. Doves are one of the 5 best bands in the world and have been for about 5 years but they are in such a subtle and understated way, that they will never get the acclaim for this. Long may they carry on producing records of this quality.

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