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In August 2003, I was lucky enough to see Massive Attack live in Queen's square Bristol. Criminally enough, I left it too late and hadn't bought a ticket but luckily some friends had a spare ticket. I was certainly looking forward to this gig - I liked all their albums - hell, I even had the massive attack singles 90-98 box set (which I had got as a 25th bithday present ) and that new album '100th window' sounded all right although I had only heard it a few times.
I met my friends at their house on the day of the gig and as we sat in the garden it was suggested that we put '100th window' on the stereo. It was clear that this album had more to it than I had thought - I found myself drawn by various elements - Horace Andy's 'aaah aaah aaah' on 'Everywhen' and the opening of 'what your soul sings'. It was clear that after the gig, I would have to investigate the album further. After strong support by the streets, Massive Attack's set opened with the beginning of 'What your soul sings' held in stasis with some warm drones. The chemical brothers used to open gigs with a very long ambient introduction too before bringing in hard beats. But in this case the drones segued into the 2-note square wave introduction to 'Future Proof'. To say that the atmosphere was electric would be a cliche and an understatement. What struck me about the rest of this gig was how comfortably tracks from '100th Window' sat among all the old favourites such as 'Karmacoma', 'Inertia Creeps', 'Angel', 'Safe From Harm' etc. All too often, you see a band who have been around a while and thoroughly enjoy the 'greatest hits' but think 'oh bloody hell' when they play new material. But that was not the case here - and when 'Everywhen' came on - - hmmmm. So after the gig I dug out my copy of 100th window. And it sounded better than ever. That opening to 'Future Proof' - so simple yet so effective. From the driving through a city late at night sound of 'Safe from Harm' through to the warm treacly darkness of 'Angel', Massive Attack have always had strong album openers. 'What your soul sings' is a strong track - and the first of Sinead O'Connor's contributions. For me though, the best track is 'Everywhen', with an amazing vocal performance from Horace Andy. He has always been a strong fixture on all Massive Attack albums, but he just sounds so new on this song. On this track, the intense emotional blueprint for the rest of the record is laid. This album at times manage to touch you in the way that Global Communication did with 76:14 all those years ago. 'Butterfly Caught' was a single, but don't let that fool you - it has many very unusual features. The opening is incredible with the way that Del Naja's heavily processed voice segues into a really nice TIGHT beat. This track also has a very unusual violin figure - it is as if the 'dance macabre' has been updated for the 21st century. The next track 'A Prayer for England' is Sinead O'Connor's third track on this album and it is very strong- but not my personal favourite. Maybe this is because it is such an unsettling piece with its lyrics about child murrder. Very very good, but just a little too unsettling for me. But I think this track did what it set out to do. By comparison, the introduction to 'Small time shot away' seems like a bright light being switched on - then Del Naja says 'It's wartime everytime'. Compared to the sinister growl of 'cheap beer filled with crocodile tears' off Mezzanine's 'Risingson', this is a homesick whisper - but that possibly makes it all the more arresting. Del Naja has said on this site how he likes the fragile feeling of a hangover and that comes over in this song. Like many of Del Naja's vocals on this album, this recalls the intimacy of former bandmate Tricky's 'Poems'. A more familiar Horace Andy returns for 'Name Taken', but this is still welcome. The album closer 'Antistar' moves forward slowly but it seems that there is a desire to temporarily maintain some stasis - to allow you to digest the incredible range and intensity you have been exposed to over the last hour or so. What hooks you into this album are not big choruses or riffs- it is small things such as Horace Andy's 'aaah aah aaah' on Everywhen, the sparse starkness of the album's first four notes, the 'real' strings, Sinead O'Connor's intensity and Del Naja's fragile vocals. Did I mention also that you should play it loud and listen to it all in one sitting?
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