ARTIST · INDIE / ROCK

Doves

Club roots transfigured into stadium-scale melancholy—rhythm loops, live drums, and northern atmosphere.

Indie rock
Alternative rock

Updated 27 October 2026

Biography

Emerging from dance act Sub Sub, Doves fused sequencer memory with guitar-rock catharsis for a uniquely UK 2000s sound.

Jimi Goodwin’s bass-led vocals and the Williams brothers’ twin-guitar architecture favoured slow burns over instant gimmicks.

Programmers who favour emotionally weighty indie still reach for peaks like There Goes the Fear when spacing upbeat blocks.

Clean streaming keeps ride patterns, synth pads, and amp grit distinct in mixes designed for car and club alike.

Jimi Goodwin and twin brothers Jez and Andy Williams had a hit as Sub Sub with Ain’t No Love (Ain’t No Use) in 1993, but a fire destroyed their studio and equipment in 1996. They regrouped as Doves, turning from dance music to sweeping guitar rock. Lost Souls (2000) was followed by The Last Broadcast (2002), which was shortlisted for the Mercury Prize and contains There Goes the Fear.

Some Cities (2005) and Kingdom of Rust (2009) kept the momentum going before a break from 2010. They returned with The Universal Want in 2020, their first album in 11 years.

Doves: recent news, 2020–2026

2020 The Universal Want, the band’s first album in 11 years, was released in September.

Interesting facts about Doves

01 English alternative rock band from Greater Manchester, active from the late 1990s.
02 Members previously released dance music as Sub Sub before pivoting to guitar-led arrangements.
03 Albums such as The Last Broadcast (2002) cemented their brooding, melodic style.
04 The band was formerly known as the dance act Sub Sub.
05 The Universal Want (2020) was their first album in 11 years.