Dogs Are Everywhere

An anti-tribute, if you will, to the laddish hard-drinkers who formed Pulp’s rhythm section in the mid-‘80s, bassist Peter Mansell and drummer Magnus Doyle, “Dogs Are Everywhere” is another almost-pop song from this era. It’s nearly wry, especially lines like “They have too much and then/ They have too much again/ And then more.” But Jarvis’ voice is oddly ponderous, striving for profundity. You remember that he really did disapprove of their carousing back then. But now, 20 years later, it’s difficult to tell that the song is not, in fact, a rickety indie-goth novelty, i.e., a joke.