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CD Review |
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Massive Attack - Heligo Land
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Review by Paul
Towler |
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Never mind Nirvana or OK Computer - to my mind, Massive Attack's
outstanding debut 'Blue Lines' from 1991 remains without question,
the most influential album of the Nineties. Here's why - listen to
it now, some nineteen years later, and it sounds pretty much just a
'contemporary' album. Yet, when this album was first released, it's
downtempo, roughly cut hip-hop, dub and tripped out loops were
totally innovative - there was simply nothing like it. Truly
groundbreaking albums like this don't come along very often, but
when they do, a wave of imitators usually follow in their wake. The
fact that Blue Lines sounds contemporary today is testimony to it's
far-reaching influence on mainstream music over the course of time. |
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Today, as the band release their fifth studio album 'Heligoland',
Massive Attack are now recognised the world over as elder statemmen
of their craft, untainted by the pitfalls of success or commercial
compromise, and revered architects of what came to become known the
world over as 'the Bristol sound', putting not only themselves, but
this fair city on the global map of creative cool. Two decades on
from that illustrious debut, it would probably be unfair to expect
any band to deliver anything equally as pioneering as they did in
their youth, but 'Heligoland' does indeed, cut new creative turf,
ripe for the 21st century. |
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The band's last album, 2003's '100th Window', a mostly atmospheric
based soundscape, was pretty much created by Robert Del Naja (3D)
alone. However, Heligoland, the band's first album in seven years,
sees the return of Grant Marshall (Daddy G) and the result is an
album of more organic texture. Familiar collaborators are here,
notably the staple falcetto vocals of reggae legend Horace Andy.
Also making interesting guest vocal appearances here are Guy Garvey
(of Elbow fame),
Tunde Adebimpe (TV On The Radio) and Damon Alburn.
From the barren, pounding death-march percussion and spooky
minor-key paino of opener 'Pray For Rain', to the breakbeat driving
bass of 'Babel', to the eerie skeletal rattling and silky strings of
'Flat Of The Blade' where space in the mix is left to show off Guy
Garvey's haunting voice to it's full, this is a more diverse and
challenging album that it's more subdued predecessor.
You'll find reviews of Heligoland in every magazine and website the
world over, so we'll spare you too much of the musical overview
here, but something we can speak uniquely about here at Bristol
Rocks - something which those other reviews the world over simply
can't - is the affinity we enjoy with the band as fellow Bristolians.
As I've mentioned before on this website, Bristol's placid musical
environment couldn't be more different from London's fickle
micro-fashions, where plenty of seeds may be sown, but rarely are
they left to nurture. By stark contrast, Bristol's fiercely
introspective nature has not only allowed it's homegrown artists to
develop at a pace that's not decided for them by the giddy music
industry, but it also makes us as fellow Bristolians feel we share
an intrinsic part of the music, knowing that our own bustling
streets have been the backdrop for such magnificent cultural output.
Fom Brunel to Banksy, from Blue Lines to Heligoland, it's grown with
us all, and that's something we should be proud of.
Heligoland is released by Virgin on Febrary 8th and is, without
question, one of this year's most eagerly awaited releases.} |
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