In their cover of Prince’s When Doves Cry, Isiah & The New People take the iconic track on a deeply personal journey, transforming it into something that resonates far beyond its original message. Following the success of their debut EP, Boxes, the Wisconsin-based collective has shown their ability to strip a song to its emotional core and rebuild it with raw, unfiltered candour.
The affecting exploration of loss, love, and the painful intersections between the two makes the intensity of the emotions palpable from the first note, as the vocals quiver under the weight of heartbreak. Isiah Driessen’s voice, laden with sorrow and yearning, delivers each line as if the wounds are still fresh, allowing listeners to step into his world and experience the pain of a love that could no longer survive in the wake of tragedy.
The instrumental arrangement further amplifies the track’s emotional depth. Gone are the synth-pop hooks that made the original so iconic; in their place is an expressive acoustic guitar that seems to echo the heartache embedded in the lyrics. The fretwork speaks alongside the vocals, visualising the fire that still burns, despite the devastation left in its wake.
The decision to cover When Doves Cry was clearly not taken lightly, and it shows in every carefully considered progression. This is music as catharsis, as a means of processing the unthinkable. With each strum and vocal tremor, Isiah & The New People invite listeners into their emotional landscape, offering a glimpse of the pain that led to this release, resulting in a track that challenges you to reconsider the original, now layered with the weight of lived experience.
When Doves Cry will be officially released on August 28th and available to stream on all major platforms, including Spotify.
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Review by Amelia Vandergast