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Massive attack, or even the trip hop in general has never been the type of band or genre to grab your attention immediately. The droning, slow pace of Massive Attack makes them great for losing yourself; a band that generally takes multiple listens to fully appreciate. Their latest release Heligoland has the sort of unfortunate task of following some of the most memorable albums in the genre, including what may be one of the best trip-hop albums of all time, their 1998 release Mezzanine. Heligoland, for being their first new album (ish) in seven years, is simply a little underwhelming; even with the return of Daddy G.
Beautifully layered, provocatively creepy, and infinitely chill, the new album implements all of the elements that makes Massive Attack good at what they do, but lacks some of the tenseness that their previous releases had. From the first ominous hook in “Pray for Rain” you know you’re going to be in for a deep experience, but perhaps not the one you were expecting. By the time you get to the third track “Splitting the Atom”, it’s clear that this album is going to be a grower, a slow moving, narrowly scoped album that is flat out depressing.
Different from their edgier releases, the constantly present uneasiness of Massive Attack’s earlier work has somewhat faded. What used to be aggressive and more guitar driven music has become a series of haunting and multi-layered dirges where the missing the drama that personified Massive Attack’s music. The instrumentals offer some interesting bells and whistles that leave the listener with their head cocked in interest, but the drama is somewhat lacking. The vocals are pretty impressive especially in the tracks “Psyche” which gives the listener a well illustrated piece of introspection and “Paradise Circus”, a biting piece of reflection upon the world. With definite bright spots in the album the overall aura lacks the zeal and mystery of their earlier releases.
Fans of Massive Attack will likely find the album enjoyable after a few listens, and the hopelessness of it all will be something that many can relate to. It’s simply depressing, a slow dance with little to bring you up from the abyss. The lyrics are dark and well put together but don’t do a whole lot to overcome the droning progression of the album. In the track “Flat of the Blade” the album simply lets you know that it’s not going to get any brighter; the lyrics of the song including “I’m not good in a crowd. I got skills I can’t speak of. Things I have seen will chase me to the grave” has an emotional impact; the kind that makes you want to lock the door and go back to bed.
It would be unfair to say that Heligoland isn’t brilliant in its expressiveness and attempt to communicate directly with the listener; it just might be too heavy. It’s a journey through a dark place, one that stays pitch black up until the conclusion of the album. If you’re a huge fan of Massive Attack, it’s worth picking up as there are some incredible things happening. For those who aren’t huge Massive Attack or trip hop fans, you might want to avoid this unless you feel as though your spirits have been to high recently.
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well done. I would love to hear of some other albums/artists within the trip hop genre, haven’t heard much really beyond Portishead.