The poppiest of the Massive Attack albums suffers none for its apparent desire to showcase the group's murky, dark sound to a wider audience. On this album, the three 'true' members of the group bring in a number of guest stars including long-time companion Tricky, Horace Andy, Tracy Thorn and Nicolette. This tactic paid dividened with debut album 'Blue Lines' - Shara Nelson's beautiful voice made 'Unfinished Sympathy' into a massive hit - and it paid off again in spades with this classic.
From the opening, quite beautiful title track to the last cut (a live, mega-dubby version of the Doors classic 'Light My Fire') this album is breathtaking in its impact. You'll find yourself listening to the whole album right through on more than one occasion and wondering where the hell the time went.
Perfect for relaxing to, going to sleep to or travelling to work, this album is, as stated earlier, much more commercial than the group's other work. But make no mistake, the dark undercurrent is still there. Witness the slithering bass of 'Karmacoma' - with Tricky's harsh, breathed vocals over the top. Or the dark majesty of 'Spying Glass' - guest vocals from reggae legend Horace Andy. Both are classic cuts.
But the true heights of the album are the two numbers with Nicolette providing vocals, namely 'Three' and 'Sly'. This woman has the most incredible voice - you just have to hear it to believe it. Reminiscent of a cross between Eartha Kitt, Shirley Bassey and Nina Simone, yet managing to sound completely original, her vocals are just breathtaking. Unfortunately, her solo album 'No Government' is a hit and miss affair, largely a mess of drum and bass with a smattering of good tracks. Still, the two tracks on here more than make up for the disappointment of that album.
One of those albums that should be in EVERY music fan's collection