Portishead - Third
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Free Music Notes for Third
Free Music Review: NO "DUMMY"...
Hit: 5 Stars
...I've waited a good solid week of listening to the new Portishead "Third" before diving into the review. That's to say, its been almost a non-stop solid listen for me...while I'm finding it be a rather difficult task to eject from the CD player...hasn't been since the release of Radiohead's "Kida" that I've found anything quite as artistically embracing and sensually orgasmic as "Third."
Nah! "Third" is no "Dummy" nor it is a replication of the self-titled release...this is a band that is too intellect to do the same thing twice and too far removed from the media to give a toss, as admitted by Geoff Barrow in a recent SG interview. For those who were expecting a "dance" album--toss that one out!!!
No, Portishead is not a dance-music making band! As "Dummy" might have helped to define "trip-hop"--it had its gleeful soulful moments, enriched with periodically sampling. Happy music?!? When has Portishead ever put out a bouncy Celion Dion whimsy of inspirational "white" fluff for the masses?
But, it's not all about the gloom on "Third," as the seductive-pulp sounding ballad "Hunter" sedates the listener with the lines: "...and if should fall will you hold me? Will you pass me?"--a brilliant love song. Likewise, "Nylon Smile" carries on writing the same sweet-heart letter that cries: "I don't know what I've done to deserve you/and don't know what I'll do without you..." "The Rip" on the other hand is a rather vibrant colorful mellow humming, creating a visual sensation like staring into a kaleidescope and slowly turning the dial as the tempo gradually glides into a colorful rose-pedal of colors--perhaps the most "upbeat" blissful moment of the album.
"Third" is by far the most studio-experimental release that Portishead has created YET. "Machine Gun" splices two electronic drums together, creating a fired-ammunition trigger-happy effect. "Plastic" is a hard-grinding mix, recalling the claustrophobic thump of "Elysium, with a choppier, looser feel with its quick surged-cuts. "Silence" is fast-drive raid of panic nightmare rage--the song is cut just before it fades (classic!).
Removing themselves from the electronica dark-wave feel of the previous two studio albums, on "Third," the band introduces its first few acoustic guitar intros on "the Rip" and "Small," while "Deep Water" stands naked of any electronic effects with its barber-shop croon.
Both "Small" and "Threads" are the climax gems of "Third." "Small" begins as an angelic melody layered with Beth Gibbon's ethereal ice-breaking vocals which suddenly morphs into a spiraling swerve of galactic swaying guitars and early Pink-Floyd-like thumping organs. "Threads" is the most haunting of any of delicate delights featured on this 49 minute-long orgasm with its droning hallow-sound guitar riff accompanied with the constant high-pitch "squeal" in the back ground, induced by the chill of hypno-voodoo beats--producing a entangling effect of euphoria. The song ends like a heavy moan of a Tibetan chant and slowly fades--what a brilliant place for the last song!
No, "Third" is not a dance album, it's not another "Dummy," nor it is all "happy"--it's the avante-garde masterpiece of the 2000's. On "Third" Portishead is solid proof that the band is less about producing music and more about creating the art. Ten years was well worth the wait for this magnificent stereophonic high!
Free Music Review: Surprised, then not
Hit: 5 Stars
The first time I heard this album, I was disappointed with it.
The reason I thought this was more likely the main reason most people were surprised by this album: it's very different. I really wanted the old Portishead, the creepy noir soundscapes wafting in your head and the air like incense smoke.
Then I realised: as a fellow musician, would I want to produce music from the same stencil over and over again? No, I would want to break that form, challenge myself and those who listen to my work. I had a new template to listen to the new album with.
So I did it again...and the brilliance came through.
If you're expecting the smokiness of "Roads" or "All Mine", you're not going to get it here. What you are getting here is an album moving away from samples and exchanging them for more unorthodox arrangements (the toms on "Silence", ukelele on "Deep Water", keyboard arpeggios on "The Rip"), but this works due to the talents of instrumentalists Geoff Barrow (also considered the architect of the band) and Adrian Utley (who finally gets his props as a third band member, not sideman as the contract they had through Dummy and their self-titled album stated).
Is there an element of mystery here like the original albums? Most definitely. These songs still exist in a unique Portishead universe, swirling, drifting, quiet in nature. There are some differences that are also welcome. Beth Gibbon's vocals aren't as distorted as the first two albums, which is a step in a new and better direction for her (also, check out "Out of Season", her solo album). The instrumentation, as I mentioned before, makes a big difference on this album. I read an article where Barrow and Utley said that they were going into the making of this album staying away from the original Portishead cliches, and they did. "Silence" has quite an energy, almost rocking. "Hunter" uses chimes and an almost early sixities approach in ballad making. "The Rip" may be my favorite. For the first 2 minutes, it's just Gibbons, a guitar, and a theremin-like hum. Then, her voice is looped and a keyboard takes over the arpeggio the guitar was playing. There is also a video up for it, which I highly recommend. "We Carry On" seems to go on a small riff on what sounds like a harmonium, but it works well. "Machine Gun" uses drum pads with cold sounding industrial samples, but it carries the song like a march while Gibbon's vocals drift around it.
The only problem I've with the album are the last three songs.I am having difficulty being captivated by them, but it just may take some time, or more listens like the second time through did for me. If you like Portishead, buy this album. It may be a challenge at first, but give it several listens and try expecting something new about the songs. I find after a while, this album gives both the first and second a run for their money.
Free Music Review: Genius, 4.5 stars.
Hit: 5 Stars
I have been a Portishead fan from the very beginning. I can still remember exactly where I was and what I was doing the moment I heard Dummy for the first time. Such is the power of their music and the impact it has left on me.
When I heard Portishead was releasing their first studio release in 11 years I was excited and a part of me was hoping it would be more Dummy-esque. Another part of me was glad that it isn't. Had they did another Dummy it would have been good, no doubt, but for me it would have come across as artistically lazy and creatively constipated.
Instead Portishead delivers a hard, gritty, and abrasive sound on 3 and it works, it works real well. Some of their signature elements are still here : Beth's haunting, mournful vocals; that eerie Theremin sound; their bleak lyrics; and the occasional beat that harkens back to Dummy. Other signature elements are missing: the samples and scratching; the trip-hop beats; the film noir soundtrack feel. These missing elements are replaced with relentlessly staccato drumbeats, percussion that sounds like helicopters, high pitched tones, live drums and rock guitar.
The standout tracks for me are "Silence", "Nylon Smile", "The Rip", "Plastic" and "Threads" because they maintain that old Portishead feel infused with a gritty breath of fresh air. Although all of the tracks are pretty good except "Deep Water" which is this weird Hawaiian luau song that doesn't really fit in but it does calm you down a bit before the sonic assault of "Machine Gun". The most notably different tracks are "Small" which goes off on a two minute psychedelic tangent that Jefferson Airplane would be proud of and "Machine Gun" with its sonic assault of abrasive, unrelenting beats.
Before purchasing the disc, I burned a copy off a friend who had an advance copy. In my haste to have this delicious morsel of music in my hands, I accidentally burned the tracks in reverse order starting with "Threads" and ending with "Silence". I must say the album flows beautifully in this order and, even after purchasing the disc, I find myself returning to my burned copy because the flow is more cohesive. Before you naysay 3 try listening to the tracks in reverse order. "Deep Water" is a perfect calm moment after the abrasiveness of "Machine Gun" and the abrupt ending of "Silence" is a perfect closer.
This is still Portishead, a more mature Portishead that is still forward thinking in their approach to music. Sure, those who want another Dummy or more mind numbing trip-hop (even though that genre has been dead for years) will more than likely hate 3. It's a polarizing release and diehard fans will either love it or hate it. Frankly, I'm glad they've decided to try something different but at the same time manage to maintain their signature sound. Genius.
Free Music Review: Adventurous Yet Harrowing Record That Wallows in Anxiety and Hopelessness
Hit: 5 Stars
A brilliant return after such a long wait. Portishead changes the game plan on THIRD, largely abandoning the trip-hop formula they helped pioneer. I completely understand those who call this music "prog" because it's very sophisticated and goes on mind-bending tangents. I prefer not to label it. This is a pretty unique piece of music and a striking reinvention. By far the most depressing thing they've put out yet. A tour de force.
"Silence" - launches out across unknown territory like a train running off the tracks into a barren land, tumbling headlong into Beth Gibbons' nightmare-ish world spinning out of control. *****
"Hunter" - This one's a sweet and hazy dream. And like dreams, it morphs in strange ways, burrowing through tunnels and going to disturbing places. *****+
"Nylon Smile" - Gibbons is worrying her heart out on this hypnotic, unsettling trip through emotional wreckage. *****+
"The Rip" - A supremely beautiful song - "Wild white horses, they will take me away . . ." It begins with sweetly picked acoustic guitar followed by driving keyboards and further intensified by insistent drums. Possibly the best track. *****+
"Plastic" - features an off-kilter, unraveling sound like a slow-motion helicopter followed by white hot intensity. A masterpiece loaded with abrupt left turns. *****+
"We Carry On" - A jumble of oppressive electronics, this music is dark and deformed. This is some of the most interesting, exciting stuff I've heard in a while. *****
"Deep Water" - This track is a radical departure from everything else here. I frankly find Beth's vocals to be terribly weak and I'm really not feeling the ukulele or the quaint minstrel back-up singers either. Some subversive purpose may be served here, but I still prefer to just skip this one. **
"Machine Gun" - Underneath the jarring, mechanical atmosphere lies an amazing, futuristic-sounding song. This album is all about uncomfortable feelings and this track sounds like a schizophrenic hell. *****
"Small" - a beautiful contemplative meditation that reeks of paranoid isolation. *****
"Magic Doors" - dramatic and truly strange sounds abound. Is that the trumpeting of electric elephants? Or maybe it's the opening of secret portals. *****+
"Threads" - absolutely bleak and harrowing, this could be the most emotionally unhinged song ever. *****+
Free Music Review: "I saw a savior, a savior come my way."
Hit: 5 Stars
Third is the third (hey!) album by Portishead, one of the 90s' top trip hop bands, although from what I can tell it's not very close to what that sounds like. I don't have to be familiar with their earlier work though to know that this is one of the bleakest and most gripping albums I've heard in a while. It's one of those things you really have to listen to with headphones.
The overall sound is a sort of a downbeat industrial/electronic thing with a healthy mix of normal guitar and percussion added. Any remnants of hip hop scratching or whatever aren't there. The songs flow perfectly, with the instrumentation sparse when it needs to be and booming where required. It's another record that nails the balance of a cohesive tone while varying the sound enough to keep the songs unique and interesting. "Silence" has a quick drum beat and some dissonant feedback to play with the electronic sounds. In "Hunter", they go back and forth between the chirps and a more normal, slow guitar and drum thing. "The Rip" starts in with a plucking acoustic melody and eventually brings in quicker drums with an infectious electronic element. "Plastic" has the most obvious trip hop sound to it, I think. "We Carry On", as Pitchfork aptly mentioned, sounds a lot like a Clinic song, with its constant and off-putting beat. "Small"'s another track that bounces back and forth between styles. "Magic Doors" manages to work a piano in there along with some horns. The closer, "Threads", might be the most aggressive, with a nefarious twinge to it, and ends with a minute of a very angry sounding machine sound.
I've been ignoring one of the most important elements though, which is the vocal work by Beth Gibbons. Her voice is mournful and haunting, and fits perfectly with every track, and she sings the depressing lyrics in a very evocative, affecting way. Just look at two back to back songs, "Deep Water" and "Machine Gun", completely different musical styles, one a simple, acoustic, folksy number, the other pure minimalistic industrial with a few synth chords added in, both improved greatly by her singing. Third isn't exactly the most wonderful thing to listen to, but for what it's trying to do, it's one of the best constructed and executed works I've heard.