Album Review: DOVE, Belly

Of all the early ‘90s indie standard bearers, Belly seemed most in danger of being forgotten. While Pixies, The Breeders et al enjoyed a long afterlife – and successful reunions – this candy-cane offshoot of Throwing Muses had been consigned to pop’s wastepaper basket.

This was baffling. Sure, their music was ephemeral but contained deliciously hazy melodies. Besides, in their time, they were hugely successful, charting in the United States and the UK and gracing the cover of Rolling Stone (we were fond of them at Hot Press too).

A successful 2016 reunion saw songwriter Tanya Donnelly rejoin with the definitive line-up of Gail Greenwood, and brothers Thomas and Chris Gorman. Now they’ve released a swoonful and deeply rewarding third album which attests to their influence on a new generation of songwriters – Waxahatchee, Angel Olsen, Pale Waves etc – while confirming their mastery of the ageless art of twinkling alternative pop.

That we were in for a treat was hinted at by ‘Shiny One’, a single that had tremendous fun ticking your favourite ‘90s indie rock clichés (it is “shimmering” and “chiming”, with Donnelly cooing in the fashion of a student disco wallflower with relationship issues).

The LP is even better, with the rib-punching ‘Army Of Clay’, for instance, recalling Donnelly’s original outfit Throwing Muses whose ace and aching ‘Not To Soon’ she wrote).

Crucially, however, Dove – which continues their tradition of albums with four letter titles – rises above nostalgia. Donnelly and co put their heads down and rock furiously on opener ‘Mine’; ‘Artifact’ is a successful venture into Americana (a direction Donnelly hinted at back in 1993 with her duet with Juliana Hatfield on the B-side cover of Gram Parsons’ ‘Hot Burrito #1’). Twenty-three years later, it’s great to have Belly back – but even better to hear them so eager to explore new vistas.

Rating: 9/10