How've You Been (All This Time)? marks the debut album release for this capable Glasgow-based duo. The sound of Doghouse Roses is a twenty-first century update on the weathered troubadours that skirted the rock-tinged boundaries of folk and country music some forty years ago, inhabiting all the most alluring aspects whilst avoiding any of the much-laboured cliches.
The predominantly acoustic arrangements, headlined by Paul Tasker's outstanding guitar dexterity, move between sparse and expansive -- this is music that really gives you space to think, but more importantly provides stimulation to think. "Gone There" opens the album with the enduring acoustic guitar offensive of Paul Tasker, immediately providing a deliciously cyclical melody that sets a foreboding yet totally engaging backdrop over which Iona Macdonald lays her shimmering vocals. "Pilgrim's Tale" carries a similar otherworldly lyrical imagery to the songs of Sandy Denny, and the ghost of Denny is often evoked by the lucidly unadorned vocals of Iona Macdonald. Indeed this particular song would sound right at home on Denny's Fotheringay album. From start to finish, "Stalling" delivers a most deliciously brooding melancholy. A piano-led ballad with sparing bass and ghostly harmonies, it's impossible not to lose yourself in its introspective beauty. Though it's the darker aspects that dominate, there are more buoyant moments with the chic folk-blues of "Happiness," the pop-imbued "Greener The Grass," or the triumphant, rousing climax to "Border Hills." With the seasoned talent of Malcolm Lindsay taking the production helm, and featuring some fine session musicians, this is an album brimming with honesty. Doghouse Roses are no fly-by-night wannabes. These are musicians who've paid their dues, and taken time to grow comfortable with their sound -- and it pays dividends here. Prepare to fall under their spell -- prepare to fall in love!
Mike Wilson, September 2008
