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Frequently Bought Together
Product Details
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Track Listings
| 1. Cowboys |
| 2. All Mine |
| 3. Undenied |
| 4. Half Day Closing |
| 5. Over |
| 6. Humming |
| 7. Mourning Air |
| 8. Seven Months |
| 9. Only You |
| 10. Elysium |
| 11. Western Eyes |
Product Description
From Amazon.co.uk
With Dummy, their 1994 debut, Portishead not only created a classic of turntable-derived soul, but defined their sound so exhaustively as to spawn a host of imitators. So what to do for a follow-up? As it happened, the answer was simple--refine the template. This self-titled album simply ups the ante on everything that made their debut so special: the brooding sense of menace, that deep streak of romantic fatalism. Much is made of the cinematic quality of Portishead's music--and indeed, many of these tracks sound like they should be accompanying some existentialist spy flick from the mid-1960s. But ultimately, it's singer Beth Gibbons that's their greatest asset: her vocals gliding effortlessly from the furious ("Cowboys") to the forlorn ("Mourning Air"); from the exuberant ("All Mine") to the exhausted ("Only You")--and all set to the group's most ambitious and expansive arrangements to date. A majestic, damaged and frequently terrifying masterpiece. --Andrew McGuire
Un Essentiel amazon.fr
Avec ce deuxième album, Portishead évite l'écueil de la redite. Le groupe de Bristol peaufine ses ambiances lugubres. Le moog, le Rhodes et la voix fantomatique de Beth Gibbons règnent toujours en maîtres mais ils côtoient des cuivres, un violon et d'autres voix. Les samples sont plus discrets, les rythmiques plus chaloupées et les influences évoluent : les Portishead revendiquent même celle du groupe expérimental des années soixante The United States Of America. On peut y voir une preuve de plus de leur volonté de ne pas en rester aux lieux communs d'un genre qu'ils ont pourtant contribué à créer : le trip-hop, qui se contente trop souvent de combiner des rythmes hip-hop et des samples inquiétants. --Hubert Deshouse
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Most helpful customer reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
Perfect,
This review is from: Portishead (Vinyl) (LP Record)
One of the best albums of the 1990's on top quality vinyl, how could you go wrong? It's not a long album and it's spread across two records, so you'll be flipping sides a lot (two songs on side A), not really an issue, just saying.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Trip hop noir,
By E. A Solinas "ea_solinas" (MD USA) - See all my reviews (HALL OF FAME) (TOP 10 REVIEWER) (REAL NAME)
This review is from: Portishead (Audio CD)
Portishead created a unique sound in their debut "Dummy," combining smoky jazz and trip-hop. So an equally good follow-up was a pretty tall order. Enter the self-titled "Portishead," which ups the eerie noir feel while not abandoning the cool electronic edge. In the months before their return, it seems appropriate to revisit their older material."Did you feed us tales of deceit,/Conceal the tongues who need to speak?/Subtle lies and a soiled coin,/The truth is sold, the deal is done," Beth Gibbons intones, sounding like a slightly gleeful robot. That sets the tone for "Portishead," giving it a darker tone than its predecessor -- darker songs, darker vocals, darker music. The jazz overtones are still there, bubbling up in songs like the distant "Over" and "Seven Months," which sounds strangely like fellow trip-hop artist Emiliana Torrini. Only the downtempo "Over" and softly poppy "Western Eyes" break from this cooler sound, sounding warm and unaltered. The rest of the album is a different story. Somehow it adds to the noir atmosphere to have darker, colder sounds woven in with the jazzy trip-hop. "Humming" includes a strange background beat that sounds exactly as you would imagine a UFO. This dark, experimental edge makes it a bit harder to get into than their debut album, but when you do get into it, it's almost frighteningly intense. The jazzy percussion is one of the first things you notice about this, paired with horns and thick synth. It's surprisingly heady to listen to. Also cold and distant -- which seems appropriate, since the simple lyrics focus on loneliness, melancholy, sadness and loss ("Why should I forgive you,/After all that I've seen,/Quietly whisper,/When my heart wants to scream?"). Beth Gibbons plays around with her vocals this time around -- while Gibbons's voice is normally very pretty, in a few songs she twists it into creepy monotones. It's a bit jarring at first, compared to her usual melodic singing, but it suits the darker songs here. The filtered, eerie intonations in "Cowboys" are downright spine-chilling. Portishead, presently working on their long-awaited third album, made a triumphant second album. While not as easily accessible as their debut, it's definitely an entrancing experience.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Second album,
By Jake Z "holden84" (Canada) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Portishead (Audio CD)
After an album like DUMMY, it appears it would be difficult to follow up such a great album. It took the group three years to come up with this second album, and it was worth the wait. Released in the fall of 1997, this album still gets quite a bit of airplay in my CD player. As a whole I think this album is a lot more darker than DUMMY. The music is mystical and dark, with Beth Gibbons emoted vocals, very layered. What's even more impressive about this album is the songwriting, which is stronger than on DUMMY. This isn't an album that sinks in right away, but with repeated listenings more is revealed in the intricate production. There are so many layers. Overall, it gets better with each listen, and overall a very unique and rewarding musical experience.
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