Reviews (page 7 of 14)
This album came out of the gate with a massive early 90s feel. The bass, the vocals, the delay in the drums, the percussion. Felt like a theme to a cop show. Wait, was this used on the Wire? (I realise that's not 90s). I listened while doing housework, and while I have no complaints, I wasn't particulary engaged. No melody stuck out. Despite the fact my five year old son ran and got his toy microphone hoping to sing. That's never happened before! 'Unfinished Sympathy' stuck in my head a bit. I'm sure I've heard it before. But nothing else on the album was memorable. Not bad, but not memorable. 3 Stars.
This album is like sitting in your lounge with a couple of friends, having a deep conversation while drinking a rich bodied merlot and eating fine camembert cheese. It is a quiet night and it doesn't feel right to turn on the main light in the lounge, so instead you light a couple of candles and let their flickering glow, coupled with the moonlight coming in through the windows, provide the lighting.
Was ok. Nothing to excited you but nothing offensive. Good background music.
Not bad
Trip hop!!!! Yes!! Ok, so I’d never heard of Trip Hop before I started blazing through these 1,000+ albums. I got Tricky earlier and enjoyed his album, so I figured I might like this. It was good, though far from amazing. It did get off to a great start with Safe From Harm. That was an excellent song. Unfortunately, they threw all that momentum away with One Love, which desperately needed to be sped up a few notches. I found this one to be very boring. Most of the rest of the album was up and down. I have to say, I kind of get why Tricky decided to go solo. He’s the most interesting voice after the first song on this record. I like the vibe of this album, and it has some diverse sounds to it, but the individual songs aren’t that great, and it’s far from complete. A solid effort all the same.
very chill, background music. not my personal favorite, a solid 3/5??
I only heard these guys before in Guy Ritchie movies. This album was a lot more mellow than that stuff. I dug the R&B rap vibes
Massive attack of boredom
Pretty whatever. Didn’t hate it
Igen mycket som låter samma men gillade detta bättre än Nebraska helt klart. Typ skön bakgrundsmusik
Is trip hop the adult contemporary wing of electronica? I like it in theory, or in small doses, but every time I try to listen to a full Massive Attack album I get bored. Overall I think I prefer Portishead, but they can be very gloomy. There are trip hop songs I really like. Teardrop is a classic, and there are great tracks on Portishead’s Dummy and Third. One of Radiohead’s great b-sides, Talk Show Host, is very trip hop flavoured. Ultimately I think I prefer this sound as a seasoning rather than a main dish. I know this album basically created this sub-genre so this must have been exciting to listen to in 1991. The instrumentation, sampling, and genre blending sound ahead of its time, but the vocals are a bit cheesy. I think the cheese factor is also coming from the fact that this sound quickly became cliche for music played at pretentious lounge bars with staff that take themselves too seriously. I don’t know if I’ve even been to a place like that, it’s just something that got filtered into TV and movies. Unfinished Sympathy is the most famous and best song on the album.
This album sucks. And now I'm starting to think trip hop is just not for me. I don't like portishead. And now i don't like massive attack. And those are 2 of the 4 seminal trip hop artists according to Wikipedia. At least Portishead is putting effort into their music... this album felt pretty dull, soulless, lazy even. The quality of the track is entirely dependent on the quality of the vocalist. The instrumentals are just vibey nothingness. Repetative beats that don't really go anywhere. Give me 10 minutes and a midi keyboard and i could make a "trip hop" beat as good as something on this album. With such boring instrumentals, it's entirely left up to the vocalist to make something out of nothing. And there are 3 categories of vocalists on this album: 1) boring rap with zero personality (bad UK rap) (the daydreaming song with the interpolations of other famous better songs, boooo this track) 2) Cheesy singers who bring a cringey vibe to the tracks that make the songs feel dated or 3) Great soul/funk singers who turn these mid instrumentals into truly great songs. Now you might be wondering, how many tracks fit into each bucket. Well there are only 2 tracks in bucket number 3 (Be Thankful For What You've Got AND Unfinished Sympathy), the rest split pretty evenly between cheesy and boring. It's not a good album. Be thankful is super cool though. Feels like a 90s, hip hop Marvin Gaye song, which is a great combination of things. The vocal performance on Unfinished Sympathy is beautiful, just a great soul performance. And the instrumental does add some nice melodic elements that complement her. Again this nice mashup of 60s/70s soul and 90s beats works well. Without these 2 tracks, i would have given this album a 1. But these 2 songs carry the album and make it a 2. The rest either put me to sleep or made my skin crawl (and not in a good way).
Groundbreaking and still sounds fresh 30+ years later. Unfinished Sympathy = top 10 songs ever made. 4.5/5 rounded up to 5/5
1. Unfinished Sympathy 2. Safe From Harm 3. Lately
This album pioneered the genre of trip-hop! I don't like trip-hop.
Great! Fav: Five Man army
I like this, don't have any idea where I was when it came out but love a 2nd chance.
Wait... Massive Attack doesn't just do TV themes? Huh. Nothing really stuck me, except for the final song, Hymn of the Big Wheel. Really cool and thoughtful. 3/5
Ha, I accidentally listened to this when it was another MA album day. So I'm skipping today. Because this album sucked.
I liked it, very modern
אלבום מצוין אהבתי ממש את שירי הראפ אבל פחות אהבתי את השירים בהם הזמרת שרה וזהו. שיר מועדף - Daydreaming
🥰😍
I’d give this 6 stars if we could throttle back on Horace’s vibrato.
I think, in general, trip hop has catastrophic flop potential for me - only because so much of it is trying to emulate something only Massive Attack has. Not my fav album of theirs but lightning in a bottle no less
It just barely misses the mark. It is almost good but it isn't Best Song: Five Man Army Rating: 4.5/10 Stars: 2/5
Massive attack on my ears
Great middle tracks and big bangers. 90's sound to the maximum, suspect/weird lyrics, but I imagine that they are fun when out in a 90s/2000s rave.
Brilliant 5 stars
A nice chilled listen with Unfinished Sympathy the clear stand out track. Some nice vibes and perfect in the right setting I’m sure.
Ok in places and I liked Unfinished Sympathy.
Great album in terms of the influence on what it was ushering in…….the trip-hop boom to follow. As a stand-alone album it illustrates a transition point. The bassline in the first track was a great sound they and others explored further. 5 man army is a great dub track and Unfinished Symphony just has its own classy uniqueness. The album also has a few of late 80s dance/soul/hip hop style influenced tracks, which was never my bag really. So it’s a bit of a mixed affair, but we know they continue to improve. Which is nice.
BEST SONGS: - One Love - Five Man Army - Daydreaming
Good choice - Tricky is his prime!
Not really my thing.
great
I feel like this type of music isn't my cup of tea. This album has 9 songs so it's easy to divide it by saying 3 of these are pretty good and could easily listen to again like add to a playlist or something like that, 3 are okay, and 3 aren't sitting with me at all. Maybe another album from them or another in this sub genre of hip hop I could say something different, but I doubt it.
A couple of bangers with a mixed bag in the middle of the album.
Not aware of this band until now. Some good tunes. Uplifting sound. A good album overall.
Damn close to a 1. I couldn’t really get through, skimmed the second half, and I think that should be a consideration. If I can’t listen to it then how could it be worse? I liked the vocals on “Lately”.
I listened to three songs. I just don’t understand the appeal of subdued rap.
Not horrible, but definitely needs context for its significance. I didnt know that massive attack essentially branched hip hop into soul/funk genres. Its super clear after seeing the release date (91’) that this was very ahead of its time. I find trip hop mixes everywhere on youtube that resemble this without as much character (especially vocally) Unfinished Sympathy and Lately were my favorites tracks. Somewhere around the 2.5 stars mark
Been a Massive Attack fan for years, and this record was my first.
meh
Great record
MORE TRIP HOP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
that was... a trip. Some songs I liked, some others not. But bonus points for creativity! This felt like a bunch of friends playing around with different instruments and genres
The sound of hooking up with someone in the 90s. I don't remember the big single (by Spotify numbers) "Unfinished Sympathy" at all. It's loaded to say this is by the numbers trip hop because Massive Attack punched in those numbers. I like how they create thick atmosphere about almost nothing, but I get tired of the vocals in pretty much every song. Also doing a cover of a song using samples of that song ("Be Thankful") is a real feat of postmodernism.
Massive Attack dragged the late-80s dance music of Soul II Soul, Janet Jackson and the like into a new era, adding elements of dub, hip hop and spooky effects to make something that sounded dark, sinister and cinematic. “Unfinished Symphony” gives me all the feels about life in the 90s that I cannot put into words. There are plenty of bangers but the momentum lags at a couple points. Still, Blue Lines did essentially invent the trip-hop genre.
I like this record and think its a fantastic debut. That said,1001 is tripping if they think that Protection belongs on the list but Mezzanine doesnt.
Given that this is considered the first official trip-hop album, I give it 5 stars. It's also a great album. Not the best MA album, IMHO. But perhaps the most significant one given it birthed an entire genre. Plus Horace Andy is on it.
Alright, after the first listen I was fairly unimpressed, but I decided to give it a second go and somehow it's hitting differently today. Really enjoying how smooth it is and the driving bass each song has.
I'll give it points for uniqueness, but I just didn't really vibe with most of it. I really enjoyed Unfinished Sympathy.
This isn't bad actually. Probably my favourite electronic album on the list so far. Usually they are so repetitive. I didn't really find that with this one too bad.
Cool, chill hip hop and funk beats with 90s electronic flair and lots of cool vocal performances
What a treat this is. Barebones, but still scratches every musical itch I have. Absolutely going in the rotation. Infectious grooves, creative basslines, really fun incorporation of electronic elements. Ambitious project for the time that pays off so well. LOVE shara nelson in this. Also Free Palestine.
Nice work, Banksy! The songs are a little different but also work together: good album
More palatable than Mezzanine in some regards but also less groundbreaking and memorable for those reasons. A lot of 90's stereotypical production flairs/techniques with the reverb, dub and synth layers. I don't mean to sound overly critical as there are some of their best tracks on this but it really does feel like the starting gun to their eventual seminal trip hop sound.
I enjoyed this. The electronic elements were cool. The songs were a little long for me and there wasn’t a big pay off or huge song I was blown away by.
Mean bass and drums. Deep voices with a slightly upbeat bass. Loved it the first time around, new style and mix of genres I havent learn before. Music wasnt so intense, its one you have to pay attention to. Not the voice but the melody and the nice little accents created by drums and electronic noise. Would listen to again, as a once, not repeatedly in one sitting
Pretty good! I like the instrumental stuff much more - some of the vocals I could work with very well, some less so
Love the smooth Trip Hop sound. Recognised several of the tracks from back in the day on Triple J. There album Mezzanine is better in my humble opinion.
Very good production.
An absolute classic. Easiest 5 stars ive given so far.
Perfect. Their first 3 albums are faultless.
Lighter and more lively than the subsequent Massive Attack albums. Groovy soulful beats, lovely voices on great rhythm and bass.
My wife has been a huge MA fan for forever, so I know all this tracks pretty well. My issue with it, and trip-hop in general, is thats no real highs and lows. Its all pretty much right the middle and very samey sounding.
I was open to this record, but I really struggled to get into it. Other than unfinished sympathy everything seemed a bit meh.
This album surprised me. Interesting compositions and slick engineering that balances electronic and acoustic vibes.
Wish it was Mezzanine
these white boys (and also Tricky) can RAP (check out Tricky’s debut)
Introspective and good quality. title track on was where it really got going for me.
the groove of the night is the dance of the heart
Pretty good
Very good, not their best but still excellent. Horace Andy and Tricky support the vocals, musically excellent.
I'm not a fan of electronica but this had a little soul and kind of worked for me. It was enjoyable enough for a review listen but I won't return to this. 2.5/5
I enjoyed listening to this. Very entertaining.
This holds up remarkably well.
Actually ended up enjoying this, really liked the last song
Oooooh a dream! En massive attack gege die viele semi-guete Albe wo sich da bim Album Generator so Tümmlet! Grossartigi Band, grossartigs Album, aber da gits paar Albe vo ihne wo no chli meh fägget. Für 4 Ahzündwürfel und en gutsch Brennsprit langets aber allemal! Verbrennet eu ned Fründ*inne.
Jajaja, easy mentig morge rege home office album. Flutscht im hintergrund, meisten legere, meistens nöd am stresse. Aber s album rüehrt eim ez au nöd us de socke oder es litzt au kei ärmel ume oder susch was. Das heisst nach de klassische Album Klub 3er formle: jawol 3 Dezenti quaulquappe
sehr schön hed‘s da platz für massive attack – nonie es ganzes album glost, sondern bin nur familiär gsi mit de big hitters. vo dene ih dem album isch entweder keis ganz ah die ane cho oder ich han z‘wenig guet zueglost, aber spass hed‘s ufjedefall gmacht! drum gids da 4 massivi attackene uf‘s trummelfell & zwar uf en gueti art – so ganz liechti liebevolli kläps – massivi liechti liebevolli kläps
Some pretty groovy tunes. Didn't totally grab me but not a bad listen.
Got Anita Baker booming
Ze proberen zo hard om het bijzonder te laten klinken maar het lukt gewoon niet
3/1001 :: Massive Attack - Blue Lines Heard before? ❌ Would I revisit? ❌ Rating: 2 Fav Tracks: ——— I’m here to tell you I tried. It wasn’t the first…could be the last. Thing is “Massive Attack” is such a great name. But I want them to be a 90’s post hardcore band or something and they are far from that. I like Portishead but maybe Trip-Hop isn’t my thing. I know there are people that love this album but this vibe is not for me. You folks like this?
Solid. I don't think I like it as much as a lot of people seem to - it seems to kind of drone on, and the album finale is literally terrible. But, it's a very enjoyable listen with a lot of groove and a lot of hits. Makes me feel like I'm in the Matrix. Perhaps the closest I'll ever get to liking reggae. Fave songs: - Safe From Harm - Blue Lines - Five Man Army - Unfinished Sympathy - Daydreaming
I like the mix of genres, I think it works well. It’s an ok album overall, just now really my thing. I really liked Shara Nelson vocals tho
Just not remotely my thing. I was bored to tears! 2.5
Tengo muchos sentimientos encontrados con este album. En cuanto a lo bueno, massive attack consigue un sonido propio y característico, lo cual tiene mucho mérito. Lo de que canten como 5 personas diferentes en un mismo album como solistas también es original y hace que sea entretenido. Como música de fondo para ganar aura es la polla, o para estar haciendo otra cosa de mientras. Lo malo es que se hace bastante repetitivo (a pesar de lo de los cantantes). Son canciones muy tranquilas y completamente anti estructurales. No hay partes, es el beat y ya. Como escucha activa es un coñazo vamos. En cuanto a la puntuación dudo mucho. No me dio la sensación suficiente para 4 estrellas, pero puede que objetivamente si. Nose 6,9/10—3/10
I liked the beats and the instrumentation, but the soft jazz sounding vocals (it was a popular sound at the time) took me out.
album cover giving whmis
Interesting listen and a genre defining album, just didn't really hit for me.
It still seems slightly incongruous that the city of Bristol should be responsible for the entire trip hop genre, but in retrospect this mix of laid back vibes with a hidden edge fits the place perfectly. This is easily one of the best albums of the 90s, albeit overshadowed by Britpop a few years later and a ridiculous controversy during one of the Gulf Wars where they were forced to change their name to Massive for a while. Unfinished Sympathy is the best known track on here, but everything else is worth listening to on the best headphones that you can lay your hands on.
This album is brilliant. Among the pioneers of trip hop, this debut album is one of the cornerstone of the genre. Even if I prefer the colder atmospheres of Portishead or the progressive leanings of Archive (or at least of the Archive from the 2002-2006 period), this is great by all means.
did not like this
Some of the beats are nice but the vocals throughout are really terrible
I simply do not like this music.
90s massive beats, classic album with nostalgia, solid 8/10
Its not 100% my cup of tea but its definitely a groundbreaking new sound for electronic music and hip hop. Bridges the gap between a lot sounds and in turn would influence an entire generation of producers to come. The songs are mellow, the vibes are there but it just didn't quite do enough for me. I feel bad giving something this innovative a 3 but yeah it ain't Mezzanine just yet. Favourites - Safe From Harm, Be Thankful For What You've Got, Unfinished Sympathy
Really struggle to see where this album fits in among a general audience. It’s electronic but not the kind you’d play in a club. It’s rap, but with no real political or gang connection, and no drive or passion behind the lyrics. It’s lowkey and lo-fi for much of the album, but not so much so to become an album of passive listening (I couldn’t listen to this while I relax/study). I simply did not enjoy it. There was too much going on for it to feel like I could just groove to it in the background, but far too little going on to reward an in depth, proper listen. Vocals were fine but boring and repetitive by the end. Rapping was awful; sounded like they just picked the first guys walking by the studio to lay down some bars who’d never rapped before in their lives. Songs were far too long. Nothing catchy, nothing memorable, just a waste of time. Safe from Harm (5/10) One Love (4/10) Blue Lines (3/10) Be Thankful for What You’ve Got (5/10) Five Man Army (3/10) Unfinished Sympathy (5/10) Daydreaming (3/10) Lately (4/10) Hymn of the Big Wheel (3/10) 3.9/10
6'5/10
Liked the vibe. A little too old school rap for me.
This is album 700 from the generator. It's wild how much quality British electronic music I've gotten so far. I've heard this already. Chill and laidback, it's an easy album to have on repeat all day. Jose Gonzalez brought me to Massive Attack with his cover of Teardrop. Headphones, coffee, animal friends, hummingbirds, in the backyard on a pleasant Saturday morning. I need more days in my life like this.
Outstanding production, mediocre vocals.
This album has value as ambient / background noise like seemingly so many of the albums on this list. (Maybe thats a consequence of having only 1 day to absorb?) The opening song sounds so much like 311 I had to check the queue to make sure I hadn't erred. All said, I liked the variety of vocal styles but not something I could see myself listening to much in the future. 3/5
One good, a lot of fillers
it was okay. nothing special for me
Absolutely fabulous album
I liked this more than I expected but nothing super memorable.
It was very interesting. I had never heard of this band before and thought the music was great.
The first few songs faded into the background for me, but were enjoyable. "Blue Lines" caught my attention with some bars delivered plainly and smoothly. I really enjoy the "lo-fi hip-hop" instrumental in the background. "Be Thankful For What You've Got" was smooth and soulful. I didn't know who Massive Attack were prior to today, but this isn't what I was expecting out of them. "Daydreaming" made me realize that what I actually like is the rapper, Tricky. I'm enjoying all of his songs on this record. This album was really good. It wasn't too long, the beats were engaging and diverse, and the vocals/rapping were great. 8/10
This is the 153rd album I’m rating. Massive Attack is weird for me because I hated Protection but I loved Maxinquaye so I'm not sure what to think about getting Blue Lines. Adding to my Playlist - Blue Lines, Be Thankful for what You've got, Daydreaming, and Hymn of the Big Wheel. Not Adding to my Playlist - Safe from Harm, One Love, Five Man Army, Unfinished Sympathy, and Lately. One Love - I feel bad for not liking this because I really really liked Maxinquaye and I'm not sure why I don't like this. I hope the rest is better. Blue Lines - This is a lot better. This is the kind of trip hop I like. All in all I liked 4/9 songs. Better than Protection but worse than Maxinquaye. I really like Tricky but I'm not sure about the other members.
Generally too cool for me, but I liked it okay.
Trash
Still fresh today. Kinda sunny, kinda dark.
This album has a unique and consistent sound plus some interesting ideas, but it doesn’t speak much to me. British music started going in some weird directions from the 80s onward. Best song: Be Thankful for What You’ve Got
I love massive attack but this album just isn't that good. Pails in comparison to Mezzanine.
A very cool album, of it's time but lots of r&B and reggae influences. Creating the genre of trip hop unto itself is impressive. I wouldn't say huge standouts on here, but I particularly liked Unfinished Symphony. The whole album had a mysterious, sexy vibe
I actually really enjoyed this one. Solid relaxing tracks. Perfect for the Monday back after break! 7.3/10
generally I did not enjoy listening to this album. I enjoyed the songs with shara nelson more than the other guys, and i liked unfinished sympathy and hymn of the big wheel better than the other songs. i haven’t listened to a ton of slower hip hop, so maybe i’m just not used to the conventions of this sort of music. horace andy’s voice worked well in the last song, but i found it didn’t mesh with the instrumentation in one love.
Really good vibes, innovative and interesting
Massive attack is great! This was a great album! They are such good a good band! I really enjoy just vibing to them and this album you can vibe very well!
Yea this album rocks. Fave song: Be Thankful For What You've Got
Love it. Great production, immersive and unique. Unfinished Sympathy is one of the best ever.
Solid production. Sounds great on headphones. Not totally my thing. Lyrically sorta silly. More 3.5 stars (rounding up).
🗣️ I'VE BEEN WAITING FOR MASSIVE ATTACK It's no Mezzanine, but this one near-incredible too. Highlights: Unfinished Sympathy, Hymn Of The Big Wheel, Safe From Harm
I really enjoyed this! No notes, just nice to listen to Fav songs: Daydreaming, Hymn of the Big Wheel
Safe from Harm is sooo good, the bass/electric guitar is super grungy and fun to listen to. Shara Nelson really killed with vocals. Next we have One love which was so hard to go through. I actually laughed when they started adding random sounds it was so bad, and Horace Andy sounded like he was whining constantly and fighting for his life. Overall beats are trippy and I like the experimental side of this album. First song was amazing, great start off. Be thankful for what you’ve got is groovy and enjoyable. I love how album differs and goes from reggae to hip-hop, groove and grunge, soulful music and r&b. Unfinished sympathy was a little bit boring, too repetitive, although piano and violin¿ were beautiful. I would say album is chaotic, lots of genres put together and this was something fresh, haven’t listened to anything like this. But will i be coming back to it? Not really. As much as it’s experimental with genres, every song has the same beat going on for 4-5min, same goes for lyrics. The only songs that were really standing out to me were Five man army, Safe from harm and Be thankful for what you’ve got. Buuut, I will go and listen to their albums:p
Instrumental for trip-hop. That’s about it.
Already a fan, but I think I prefer Mezzanine - more trip, less hop.
This was better than my last few albums , but that is a low, low bar. I am not a fan of this music although reading the description I would have thought I’d like it better. I wouldn’t ever go back to it but given how low it can go I’ll give it a 2.
2 out of 5. Trip hop isn't my thing but the last song was my favorite from this album.
Liked it but mezzanine was better
Trip hop is definitely the gateway end of hip hop for me. This was listenable and I even recognised a few tracks.b might listen again.
It is obviously brilliant and was groundbreaking but it never has done much for me. I always had several other albums in the same vibe that i preferred. Would much rather listen to Sneaker Pimps and Morcheeba than Massive attack.
Preferred this to Protection. Unfinished Sympathy is so good
Moins un coup de coeur que Heligoland, mais bon! Plus campé dans son époque (90s), le hip hop le scratch.. en même temps Blue Lines est sorti bien avant, en 1991, ça devait être très innovateur à l'époque Des tones peaufinés clairement, exemple le son de snare dans la premiere track Safe from Harm, les sons de snare en général! Clairement recherchés. Fun fact wiki sur la page de MA : "Chaque album est enrichi par de très nombreuses collaborations et la participation systématique de Horace Andy." Chanteur de reggae jamaicain. Dans Blue Lines : Five Man Army, pièces clairement inspirée des codes du reggae
Interesting, will inspire me to check out more “trip-hop” Very vibey
These trip-hop beats and British rapping/singing are so 90's; while they feel dated at times once I was on the album's wavelength I overall enjoyed it.
Interesting! I have no familiarity with trip-hop. I like the electronic elements. I will likely come back to this one.
3.4 - I like massive attack, but maybe I just thought it lacked a bit of depth
Didn't really get a lot from this, quite disappointed. Unfinished Sympathy stood out, and a lot of other songs fine, but mostly I found the dub tracks uninspiring. 3.2/5
I love a bit of trip hop and this is the starting point. I think I even prefer it to Mezzanine. An easy 5 stars.
Deserves to be on the list I just didn't like it at all.
this is so cool, favorite tracks include one love and unfinished symphony
I was worried this was going to be more of that mid UK stuff that shouldn't be on the list but because the author has a soft spot for anything UK from early 1980s to early 1990s it's on the list anyway. This was actually good. It had some interesting ideas and was well executed.
Bland. The middle of the middle of the road. 2/5
One time listen
4- Stars (10/15)
Intéressante découverte
I'm sure there are people that love this album but I am not of them. Not a record I could get into. I did try though
This is #day312 of my #1001albumsyoumusthearbeforeyoudie challenge, and… if you want to know where trip-hop comes from, this is the record to listen to before you die. So many fun stories behind it, like the one when the band had to sell their car to pay the orchestra for recording strings for Unfinished Sympathy, etc. I used to spin Blue Lines a lot when I worked at a local record store exactly five years ago. There was this signed copy on display, which you could put on so the music played out into the street and drew people in. And in the summertime, like in June, it was just the right kind of sound. Smoky, hazy, daydream-like. I loved that part of the job. Anyway, this album is a classic and a true snapshot of its time. I quietly observe, standing in my space. This is a 5 out of 5. Looking forward to #day313.
Groovy
Omg yezzz. Cool af album. Lots of flavor and coolness.
More like 4.5
that last song tho
Not bad
I love Massive Attack but have mostly listened to their later albums. This was great but felt a bit dated.
Pretty cool, but the production is too smooth. Irons out any life it could have. I don’t remember, maybe that’s the point
Sounds rather dated, and a lot of the vocal performances aren't really to my taste. But a few interesting ideas here that paved the way for their later work.
Sounds really dated and largely uninteresting to me.
träge und hat mir nicht wirklich gefallen. Ein Album was nen Flow hat wie Melasse, seeeeeeeeehr slow
alright
I wasn't too big on some of the vocals on this album but for the most part I enjoyed it, there was some really good funky instrumentation up in here.
Good vibes, love when the last track feels like the last track
absolutely class i love massive attack, so surreal genuinely could listen for hours, house md reference
Mezzanine is the true classic
Some songs were groovy, but a lot of them had a rhythm/instrumentation that made me antsy
I previously covered Tricky's solo debut, Maxinquaye, as album #20 on my journey. Now I get to check out the group he was in prior, the trip-hop pioneers Massive Attack. The group originated from multiple DJs and rappers who emerged together as part of a sound system collective in the Bristol club scene of the mid-1980s. Spinning off together as a quartet, and with the assistance of Swedish singer-songwriter Neneh Cherry and producer/manager Cameron McVey, they were able to put out their debut album, Blue Lines. Since this record is genre-defining, a lot of the descriptors that come to mind would end up describing trip-hop as a whole. It's an eclectic mix of electronica, hip-hop, dub, soul, and reggae, where the vibe of each track is distinct, dependent on the rappers and guest features present. From the sultry delivery of Shara Nelson opposite Robert "3D" Del Naja's laid-back chopped-up verses over the sampled bassline on "Safe From Harm", to the posse cut rapping over a chill breakbeat on the title track, to the funky record-scratching rendition of William DeVaughan's "Be Thankful for What You Got", to the uptempo clash of sample percussion and string orchestration on "Unfinished Sympathy", no two tracks come off the same. Sure, the scope of this record can seem rather simplistic, and the production can come off as minimal. But Massive Attack, this early in their career, were effective in their pocket, delivering vibing music that kept engaging through the runtime and didn't overstay its welcome. There's a reason Blue Lines gets called a classic, and I see no reason to disagree.
Medio punk, medio reggae y medio hip hop. Zarpado. Mejor canción: Unfinished sympathy. Varias canciones me resultaron medio aburridas.
My 2nd favorite Massive Attack album, but it's a big jump from here to Mezzanine at #1. Good album though, probably more like 3.5/5
I feel so guilty not loving this record given how much people have tried to get me to get into it so much. I do really like Mezzanine, but the featured vocals are just not doing it for me as much as I expected
This is an amazing album. I just have nothing bad to say about it. All tracks are very good, no skips at all. I loved Dummy by Portishead, and this one is pretty close to that trip-hop sound. I think this is more easy to listen to, much less dark, so I think they go together really well. Solid 5
Harsh on the ear
Massive shit
Had heard good thinks about MA..Just didn’t feel it. Not bad but just meh IMO
It was OK. I think trip hop was pretty groundbreaking when this came out, but I found it a little boring nowadays. I didn’t know tricky was in massive attack of learning that was cool.
such an awesome album. I never listened to them, but this was great. Every song was different. The music was incredible. I loved this one.
Considering this is the first trip hop album and Massive Attack have attracted a large dedicated fan base, I guess I was expecting more. It felt underwhelming, but there wasn't anything that made me dislike it or annoyed me, so in many ways that's a win. The beats are chill and the rapping was right on, it was enjoyable enough to keep my interest, at least until the end. Nothing on here will be life-changing or inspire me to seek out more Massive Attack. Overall, it's solidly, a definite maybe.
Really solid album, better than mezzanine. A couple lesser tracks on here, but overall a calming listen.
Some cool sounds, some decent rhymes, goes on to be the blueprint or 'white guy raps' parodies.
The structure is interesting. 9 songs, but all 5 minutes or so. This isn't my genre but I get why people like it. The be thankful for what you got cover is very fun though maybe says something that it's my fave so far with a guest singer and covering a different genre. It's hypnotic, genre defining, but not my thing.
pretty good
Love the beats in this one. Five Man Army is my favorite.
Lysande
Second 1991 album in a row (after Blood Sugar Sex Magick) and second midfest in a row too. On my birth year of all things. Yawn. Also, two Massive Attack albums Jeremy? You must be insane.
I like it… there are some great beats and melodies, but it does sound of it’s time and that time is kind of silly to me.
Always a fan of massive attack, and I already knew some songs from this album.
A pretty chill album. I didn't realize these guys invented trip hop. Definitely an album ahead of its time. It's a good album, and I can see why people like it. Kind of like lowkey background music though. Not sure it draws much emotion from me, though it's definitely a mood. 3/5
I mean, Unfinished Symmpathy is an absolute banger, the rest are pretty mediocre.
Quite good.
Some tracks are too repetitive for me but that is normal for the genre. Definitely a vibe and you gotta be in it to enjoy it.
Uninteresting. (admittedly, I listened to this while operating a paper shredder.)
I'm struggling to listen until the end, Trip hop has never been my shit
It's like, you always know in the backnof your head that this is an all time record, but then you listen and are blown away with the amount of genre bending innovation was unleashed
Electro/House/EDM, whatever you want to call it, is either really, really good, or repetitive as all get out.
3 - too slow
A truely fantastic album. Giving it 4 because I know how good Protection, No Protection and Mezzanine are. Also I'm looking back and feel like I'm giving out too many 5 stars and can't find edit. Would be handy if we could do half stars also... But then again so many amazing albums exist, so whatever.
Very consistent all throughout, with hypnotic instrumentals and varied performances. Though, I feel like "Hymn Of the Big Wheel" was lackluster as a closing track. I also wish the performances matched the tone of the instrumentals more closely. Overall, not as good as Mezzanine, but still a great collection of songs front to back.
Dad- 7 Mom- 8 Mike- 6 Lori- 7 Michael- 7 Miles- 7 Cole- 8.5 Avg- 7.21
I've listened to Mezzanine a few times as it's on of my dad's favourite albums, though I've never checked out their other stuff. Hoping it's of similar quality though I'm guessing as it's much earlier in their career, this one might be a step down. Expecting something trippy and hypnotic, yet something that stays focused and consistent at the same time. Really looking forward to this one. Safe From Harm Has an interesting atmosphere to it. I like the looping bass. The female vocals are very solid. I'm not too sure about the male vocals, they seem very of the time. I really like the some of the production choices on here, like the vocal layering and the clever stops before the chorus. The higher pitched synth almost sounds like a radar beep which adds an almost aquatic feel to the track. Decent. 3.5/5 One Love Yeah the production sure is interesting, though the horn sample is a bit distracting. Don't love the singer's voice, sort of takes some smoothness away from the track. The piano near the end is a pretty excellent way to end the track. Average. 2.5/5 Blue Lines Really don't like the record scratches. The jazzy piano sounds really good. The entire track remains jazzy and smooth throughout, I really like the subtle guitar in the background. The vocals are fine, I do like the back and forth quite a bit. They are however a bit repetitive. Has a great moody atmosphere. Decent. 3.5/5 Be Thankful For What You Got Great groove, love the bass and organ. Love the singer's voice, goes really well with the production. Mediocre lyrics. The backing singers sound a bit weak. Some cool percussion at times. Decent. 3.5/5 Five Man Army I like the dub like bassline. Great percussion. Awesome synthline. I like the background vocals quite a bit. They add a lot of atmosphere and dynamism to the track. Does lose quite a bit of focus near the end, feels like it's just going through the same few bars without really adding anything of interest, though the groove is still quite good. Decent. 3.5/5 Unfinished Sympathy The large cinematic strings add a lot of texture to the song. Decent percussion. The vocals are performed really well. It's very impressive. how they've made this very stylized vocal performance work with the chaotic production. Love the string arrangement, feels like the two different parts run paralell to each other. Good. 4/5 Daydreaming The drum pattern is quite infectious. Very dated sounding rapping, the rhyme schemes are kinda bad and the references don't quite hit. Boring flows make for a monotonous listening experience. Pleasant vocal, but not enough to save the track. Dislike. 2/5 Lately Incessantly average beat. Hollow and uncharismatic with very little interesting going on. The vocals are well performed, but not special enough to keep this interesting. Boring and unsatisfying. Dislike. 2/5 Hymn Of The Big Wheel The synths are pretty retro, I like the warm sound they provide to the track. I like the imagery presented in the lyrics of the track. The singer does a good job bringing them to life with a spirited and passionate performance. Well crafted and atmospheric. Good. 4/5 Am I wrong to be a bit disappointed with this one? It feels a bit sparse, like every track is missing something to make it stand out. I didn't find it neither trippy nor hypnotic and while the production is good it's never mindblowingly clever like I sort of expected it to be. Record scratches plague this album, making it really show its age. The rapping comes off as samey and honestly a bit goofy at times. And while most of the tracks have outstanding atmosphere I can't help but feel they sound a bit empty. Where this album shines best is with how they choose to work around the various vocal styles. They pick unexpected combinations of basslines, synths and percussive elements and build a composition that never is obvious, but tends to work really well with the vocals. I do like the mesh of styles. Dub, soul, reggae and hip hop are examples of genres they blend uniquely with electronic electronic elements to create a consistent and recognizable style. In the end you get a bit of a mixed bag, where you can tell it was pretty revolutionary for its time. However it does feel quite dated and a bit unsatisfying, especially considering the quality of their later work. In the end it's just fine with a few tracks worth revisiting every now and then. 3/5
I had very little experience with Massive Attack before this album. I only ever heard one track from them, which I love, Teardrop. So I had a vague idea what I what I was getting into. It mostly fit into the box of what I anticipated. Blue Lines being their debut album and 7 years before Teardrop, was definitely Massive Attack in the raw. Unpolished and eager to show the world their creations. For that, I can see why it’s on this list. A forerunner of the genre in it budding stages. What I didn’t see coming was the bad attempts at rapping. I know it was 1991, but by this time De La Soul, Tribe, Ice Cube, Big Daddy Kane, Rakim, amongst many others had all elevated the lyrical game years earlier. The lyricism and flows on these songs is bad and a bit disappointing. This record could have been a strong 4 of the script read more like the strong trip hop, trance, with easy flowing female vocals. I was loving those tracks. And the beats in the rapping tracks were all great beats, just ruined by the vocals. It’s like having an original Monet and drawing one of those S’s where you connect the 6 hash lines to create a pointy “wannabe graffiti” S right over top of the masterpiece. 6.6/10 #64/1001
This is not my favorite album from Massive Attack, but it's not bad. Unfinished symphony is by far my favorite song off of this album. Overall a solid album, just not my first choice.
Cool vibe. Had heard Safe From Harm before, not the rest. Dig the style.
great
Very good
Mouef. Très quali mais pas mon del
This is an album that I was looking forward to listening to but I will admit that I was pretty disappointed. I wouldn’t say that the album was bad but it is pretty mid, having a very mixed bag of songs. The album starts off really strong with Safe From Harm, which I think is a beautiful song, which does also go for pretty much every other track on the album, with being the perfect mix of hip-hop with electronic influences. It is so clear why this album is considered to be so amazing, being pretty much the first trip-hop album, which is a sound that I absolutely love. I've said before that I am not the biggest fan of the hip-hop genre, but when this is mixed with electronic music, holy shit. It is a combination that should not work in theory but when it is executed properly, it makes such a fun listening experience. I wish I could sit here and say that the rest of the album matches the expectations that I had after listening to the opening track but I unfortunately cannot. One Love was honestly the only track on here that I was severely disappointed with and it did honestly just ruin the whole album experience which is such a shame.They might have been able to get away with making a bad song if it wasn't five fucking minutes long. It was so repetitive and dragged on for so long that I was begging for the song to be over with. It really does suck because pretty much every song on here is so beautiful but in between all that we have the piece of shit song that is One Love and I’m just so upset. However this is completely redeemed in Unfinished Symphony. This song alone deserves a 10/10, and I would argue that while being the best Massive Attack song, it is also such a strong contender for the best song of all time. I can’t describe how ethereal this song is, it’s one that you have to listen to in full to understand what I mean. I think I am being way to harsh with One Love here, but it just doesn't fit at all with the rest of the album, and it stands out wayyy too much to ignore. Anyway, Trip hop is such a fun genre which I love so much and I have to thank Massive Attack for essentially leading the creation of the genre.
Too many songs sound the same. That electronic drum beat gets old after a while.
Masterpiece. Literally invented the trip-hop genre.
Rather Large Onslaught of the senses, for want of a better phrase. Top three of 1991 and that is saying something.
This is an absolute classic of an album. And super groundbreaking I guess. Plus ‘Unfinished Sympathy’ is a timeless gem. It gets a 4 or a 4.5 but rounding up to compensate for the that Mezzanine, one of my all time faves, doesn’t feature on here. Shame! Shame!
Interesting but not a lot of crescendo moments, maybe not the point of the album or genre but still. Looking for some jolts of interest
Man, really boring
honorable 3
Pre-listening thoughts: no idea who this band is or what to expect from their sound. Going in blind Post/during listening thoughts: immediately got scared by a record scratching sound effect in the first song. It was like right in my ear and I deadass thought someone was clawing at my door or something. I'm one song in but I can tell this is going to be a three. It's kind of like that Everything But the Girl album. meh whatever elevator music 5/10 DID I NEED TO HEAR THIS BEFORE I DIE: no Fav tracks: Unfinished Sympathy Least fav tracks: One Love
Les voix sont chiantes et redondantes, l'instru ne sauve pas les morceaux pour moi
house theme
Enjoyed this a lot more than I expected to
Good album to work to, catch a vibe in the background. Different than what I expected from the band name, and after listening to metal this week.
This album was released to critical acclaim as a landmark in electronic music, and its praises are still being sung thirty years later. The production techniques, tempos, chilled-out modalities, classic hip hop samples, integration of live instrumentation, and fusion of genres were a revelation. Released in 1991 ‘Blue Lines’ individually ushered in a new sound that would come to be known as trip-hop. It predated the genres next wave of classics by three years: Portishead’s ‘Dummy’, Nightmares On Wax’s ‘Smokers Delight’, and DJ Shadow’s ‘Endtroducing’ came out in 1994, and were in direct conversation with the groundbreaking sound Massive Attack established on ‘Blue Lines’. Contemporary listeners discovering this album for the first time amidst the enormous electronic landscape today may find the sound and production dated. Early hip hop records released in the few years before and after ‘Blue Lines’ suffer from a similar reaction from modern audiences. Electronic production technology has evolved drastically since ‘91, and while the music may not be to the taste of today’s listeners, the impact these records had catapulted electronic music on a trajectory that would become the dominant musical expression of the future. Regardless of the schism between old and new inherit in ever musical tradition, the innovation on ‘Blue Lines’ cannot be overstated. Artists that push their art form into completely new territories are cemented into the foundation of a new landscape — and though it may crack and crumble over time under the weight of the beautiful, magnificent things built directly atop it, the structure they provided to generations of artists that follow must be recognized and respected, not unlike placards and monuments posted and erected at the foot of sparkling, sky-high buildings.
kinda cool
I prefer Mezzanine and surprised that is not also on this list given how critically beloved it seems to be these day but this is still great. I like the slightly darker, grittier sound, and interested to hear more of their discography to work out which era of the band I enjoy most.
Before this, I had only ever listened to Protection, and I thought this would be another so-so album to pass through my ears. It's certainly still not a genre I care for, being a rather saccharine type of music, but I can certainly see why people might want to enjoy this one.
Not for me.
Nothing here should make your ears bleed, either literally or metaphorically.
Enjoyed the album when it came out. Don’t find it so exciting now.
what in the funky
Honestly, aside from the lyrics themselves the rapping parts really reminded me of a potential cypher or a rap battle going down in Hogwarts. The voices and pronunciation just couldn't let me escape the thought which definitely affected the songs from being taken as seriously as perhaps I should have. The melodies and the musicality also seemed mostly like walkout songs and not something that could necessarily be danced to. The highlights were definitely the female vocals across numerous songs and "Unfinished Sympathy" but overall the album will be getting a 2.5 overall which will be downgraded to a two as it was just a miss personally.
One of those albums on here for pioneering a new genre but it's never been my thing. Unfinished Sympathy is the highlight. 2.5/5. Raising to 3.
I closed this review without saving or rating and I can't get through this album again. Suffice it to say, it was not the worst album I have ever heard and that's about the highest praise I can give it. I have yet to hear a British rapper that made me think that artform should have ever crossed the Atlantic.
Meh
Bueno
A classic, sure—but Blue Lines now sounds like it belongs in a ’90s museum. Influential, yes. Timeless, no. Dated sounds rarely makes for great records. This one’s just a fine one.
I understand the impact, but this wasn't quite for me.
7/10?
Not the best Massive Attack album but still a very good one.
This is a great debut which I haven't listened to for a long time due to overplay. It still packs a lot of its power, especially on the 2012 remaster. Unfinished Sympathy is the obvious standout but I am fond of the deeper cuts like the title track and Five Man Army. The only mis-step is the cover of Be Thankful For What You Got which sounds a bit twee and doesn't fit in with the rest of the album. Also not a big fan of the last track, but for the most part it still holds up. Their next two albums are better though, hope they are in the list also.
This album held my four-month-old daughter in a trance, keeping her quiet through its duration. For that alone it deserves five stars. For real - these beats are effing good, and I really got into this low-key rapping style.
An infinitely relistenable album. 10/10 would recommend
Lots of catchy songs, but that's not necessarily meaning you'll have a good experience. The tracks with Shara Nelson are the highlight. Other vocalists are misses. I don't REALLY get trip-hop/downtempo, but guess this must have sounded mental in 1991.
Lasted almost two minutes of the first song before I had to turn it off
Pretty good but not my fav album
Smokkeeeee
Lot of duds some good. Gorilla vibes a lot. Was hoping to like this way more than I did 2
Can appreciate why others might like it, and I recognise the influence it’s had on music that’s come since, but it wasn’t a particularly enjoyable listen as an album and had me wanting to skip tracks a few times.
Good fun.
The debut album of the founders of trip-hop.
Semmonen kiva.
Dope
I can see why this is called trip-hop. I expected to dislike this band, but it was actually pretty cool. And I hear their live shows are epic. It's not my favorite style, but I found myself bopping along, especially when the female vocalist was featured.
Enjoyed the hits, but the rest don't stick that much.
This one surprised me. How had I never heard this album before? What is trip hop (I thought I knew, but now want to explore the genre more)? So much variety on this album, it really kept me engaged.
Meh. It’s not bad. It’s just, nothing.
I expected more from this album.
The Good: It’s not a small thing… The Bad: That it’s attacking us… The Ugly: Where the blue lines are taking us! Trip-Hop… so it seems… I used to call this ambient, or lounge. Guess we can call it whatever we want! 1 MASSIVE hit, the rest just trip-hop, I guess… I could listen to the massive hit multiple times, but I couldn’t be bothered with the rest. 2* because of the Unfinished Symphony… maybe 3* if they would’ve finished it?
Holds up after over 30 years. Sounds as fresh and relevant as ever. Really groovy and laid back. Something kinda jazzy in the execution.
Fine but I don't like trip hop
ned so gfühl. has au ned cheggt was das album wot sie. sochli hiphopig zum teil? denn eis lied eif es cover gsi. im bisschen confusion
interesting listen.
2.5
As far as trip hop goes, this isn’t too bad. Unfinished symphony is incredible. Preferred the female vocalist tbh.
Very interesting music! From Wikipedia: Blue Lines blended elements of hip hop (such as breakbeats, sampling, and rapping) with dub, soul, reggae, and electronic music.
Trip hop or whatever they call it??? The drums are just immaculate, grabbed me in as soon as the album started. Vocals are also very nice as well :) Really in the border between a 3 and 4, flipped a coin at it landed tails so it’s a 3
Listened to it, and felt that the electronic trip-hop album sounded just a bit murky. It wasn't pronounced, and it felt like it went everywhere, not my jam.
love it
Impressive trip hop album, I found it a bit boring though.
En cambio, esta es una obra maestra. Imagina poner este cd en tu equipo de música, por allá en 1991 o más tarde si vivías lejos de las urbes, y lo primero que escuchas es el hipnótico bajo de Safe from Harm... ¿cómo no terminar encantado, enganchado con el trip-hop? Igual prefiero el mezzanine
Well that was.. boring? I’m not really sure how else to describe this record. The entire time I spent listening to it, I just couldn’t wait for it to end. I found most of the lyrics to be uninspired and predictable, any hooks were mediocre at best, and everyone playing and singing and rapping sounded almost as bored as me. 1*
Listening to this album, it’s more obvious why the genre was called “trip hop” than when listening to later entries that are a bit more downtempo, more atmospheric, moodier. By comparison this is very jaunty, makes extensive use of sampling, and has much more rap/hip hop vocal stylings. But I just… don’t like it as much. Their slight reworking of “Be Thankful for What You Got” was enjoyable, but didn’t feel like enough of a departure from the original to really make sense on this album to me. “Unfinished Symphony” was probably my favorite track overall. I appreciate that this was a very influential early trip-hop album, but I really prefer the stuff that came later. I will not listen to this again.
3.5/5.0: Very Good
interesting listen. not something id put on but it was good
I think this is generally alright. I'm not huge on it but I think this coming out in 1991 was pretty revolutionary and inspired a lot of future work for this kind of hip/hop pop type album.
People not giving this album 5 stars are American and/or deaf.
Nie siadło mi. Nuda po chuju
Very unique, not all good but none outright bad
Rentouttava ja kiinnostava kokoelma kilisevää jumputusta
Great album
It was ok
*Blue Lines*, the debut album by the Bristol trip-hop group Massive Attack starts off unpromisingly with a couple of repetitive jams that go nowhere, but hits its footing with third track "Blue Lines" where Tricky rhymes over a well-constructed beat reminiscent of A Tribe Called Quest. After digressing with a well-executed cover of "Be Thankful For What You've Got" (whose robust chord progression casts the lesser songs in an unfavorable light), the album heads back into hip-hop territory with the strong but overlong "Five Man Army". The album's centerpiece, "Unfinished Sympathy", features dramatic chords, a compelling lead vocal from Shara Nelson and a complex beat, all of which gels into a sophisticated whole. "Daydreaming" is a solid track has Tricky on the mic again, with vocal embellishments by Nelson. "Lately" finds the album retreating back into a repetitive groove that never reaches escape velocity. Closing track "Hymn Of The Big Wheel" takes an unexpectedly upbeat turn but feels misplaced after the darker tone of the rest of the album. 3
Favorite Track: Be Thankful For What You've Got
Groovy
Very good as always 👍
I enjoyed a few songs, casually liked the album but it’s not something I would have on repeat. Regardless, it’s cool and reading the wiki entry gave historic context that made the listening experience really nice.
Not a fan of trip-hop. Very of its era, and now sounds really dated to me. One Love had interesting Chinese (?) zither on it, and an exciting synth-tuba in the background, but it wasn't developed at all, it's a great sound and it's like they didn't have any idea what to do with it. It sounds like Anna Meredith heard that and then built the whole of Nautilus on top of it. After those few interesting moments, it's straight back to boring percussion loops with synth jazz keyboards and hushed-voice tapping. Five Man Army has a cool, insistent, steady rap from the first rapper, then Tricky comes in, sounding like an American doing an impression of a Cockney rapping, somehow his voice sounds like he's doing a fake accent. Another track with an interesting sound which never makes it out of the background, a sonorous, reverberating twang which realises it's not welcome on this toneless album and quickly excuses itself.
Didn’t love it as much as I wanted to. Was expecting something akin to Mezzanine and it just didn’t really get there. Felt very much like a product of its time.
Best song: Safe From Harm Worst Song: Blue Lines
I really enjoyed this. The vocals were so different from track to track that it felt like a mix of styles that were meant for seperate records at times
First listen. Fairly solid album but nothing overly inspiring to me. Considered the first trip hop album. I do like that vibe to chill out to, so thank you for that.
Pretty enjoyable album. I liked it.
Positive suprise
Хороший чилловый трип хоп, база от массив аттак
Solid.
Acid jazz was not my jam in 1991, and trip hop isn’t my favorite now by any stretch. But I can recognize the importance of this album as the originator of the sound and genre. For that it gets an extra star: 3⭐️
It was pretty good, a little repetitive
Even if a couple of songs are slightly under par, Unfinished Sympathy more than majes up for then
Determined to stop liberally tossing 5s to albums I listened to extensively in my youth... Except...I can't start here - this still sounds so good, so crisp. I don't think I would have guessed at a Spring '91 release - I don't think really this came onto my radar until at least 2 years later - although it was very formative in developing my changing tastes once it did.
A definitive album in shaping my mid 90s taste and leading me into the trp hop genre. Still sounds great. It’s a nailed on 5 stars from me.
An awesome album, I have enjoyed hearing again.
Een fundamentele pilaar in de Trip Hop-scene. Constant was ik hem aan het vergelijken met het debuut van Tricky, een aantal jaren later. Vanwege zijn intensieve inbreng op deze plaat, en ook omdat we nog niet echt veel Trip Hop zijn tegengekomen op deze lijst. Maar eigenlijk is het een scheve vergelijking, gezien ''Maxinquaye'' de Engelse hitlijsten bestormde op een volwassen Trip Hop-voedingsbodem. ''Blue Lines'' is een pionier. Dat gezegd hebbende, miste ik op dit album de bite en de energie die ''Maxinquaye'' bij vlagen te bieden had. Dat doet een down-tempo genre vaak wel goed, door af en toe te schakelen. Dat gebeurde uiteraard even bij 'Unfinished Sympathy', met verve, maar de rest van het album is ietwat loom. Maar daar doe ik sommige individueel sterke songs als 'Safe From Harm' en 'Daydreaming' wel echt te kort mee. Aan de andere kant mist ''Maxinquaye'' soms de melancholiek, sfeer en soul wat ook wel echt in Trip Hop verschuild zit. Dit is dan wel weer in overvloed aanwezig op deze plaat. Bijna elke featuring is raak, en zo'n afsluiter als 'Hymn of the Big Wheel' tilt de plaat om humaan vlak naar een hoger niveau. Daarom geef ik deze plaat de 'edge' over het debuut Tricky. 8/10 Highlights: Safe From Harm Unfinished Sympathy Daydreaming Hymn of the Big Wheel