Fate (Bonus Track Version)

iTunes Review

Fate is the refined, purified amalgamation of the creative output from Dr. Dog over the last several years, carefully filtering and distilling the spirits of pop music from decades past and present into a breezy, seemingly effortless affair. There’s an organic warmth to these songs, along with a wealth of confidence that belies their “aw-shucks-we-barely-know-how-to-make-records” vibe of records past. When a band shifts so easily from shambling pop (“The Breeze”) to grimy blues ballads (“The Ark” and “The Beach”) and Philly-soul piano rock (“Hang on”), you realize all those earlier glances back to the days of pop yore worked towards Dr. Dog looking straight ahead to the future. One could surmise, from the nostalgic feel of the record and its themes of trains and days gone by, that the band is celebrating moving on.  Jewels like “The Old Days” and “Uncovering the Old,” with their orchestrated strings, glossy organs, and descending piano melodies, are perfect soundtrack tunes to the band’s time-travel haze. The last song, “My Friend,” even wraps things up with cameos from each of the previous songs, their snippets neatly hooked together like boxcars, rattling off into the sunset. Perhaps a hugely symbolic outing, Fate also delivers real, simple pleasures.