Portishead

Product Details

Artist : Portishead
Binding : Audio CD
EAN : 0731453918924
Label : Universal Music Group
Number of Discs : 1
Product Group : Music
Release Date : 1997-09-30
UPC : 731453918924

ASIN : B000003TSP

Track Listings for

Disc-1
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

Customers who bought this goods also bought.

Editorial Reviews

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

Customer Reviews

Trip hop noir (2007-03-30)

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.

Secrets too Tortuous to Endure (2004-06-07)

I turn on the CD player and I am wearing a slinky black dress, my mouth rouged with blood red lipstick, a trail of cigarette smoke wafts in the stale air, and I'm shadowed by a sinister figure down a seedy alleyway. I'm cornered in some dive but it's just some swaying, slobbering lush wanting to know where Albert is. As if I knew...as if I cared. My secrets are too tortuous to endure much longer.

Beth Gibbons voice is creeping emotion sputtering out those secrets in the twisted cabaret in my head. The mood is dark, the atmosphere thick with betrayal and yearning, strangers with glassy eyes litter the joint while their own desperate desires join the din of bereavement. All flesh is cold to the touch and no one speaks above a raspy whisper. Whiskey is the drink of choice and everyone is melting into their chairs.

While trying to escape the drunk, I stumble over someone who falls out of his chair. Another liquor-soaked refugee from planet Earth, I think, but no - it turns out to be a mannequin. Ahhh, that explains so much - those lifeless eyes, the cold skin, yet it still whispers, it whispers to me: "where is Albert?"

Second album (2004-04-06)

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.

It's a trip. (2004-03-09)

All I can say is welcome to the "Twilight Zone". Most anyone who knows their previous album "Dummy", can pretty much expect the same thing on "Portishead". This is a bit darker, and there's no obvious stand-out tracks, but as a whole it's still very strong, and sets a nice mood. This is actually one of my favorites of the genre, along with "Mezzanine". "Beth Gibbons" continues to do an excellent job, and her voice really is a perfect match to the music. Overall, I'm not sure if I'd call it as good as "Dummy", but it's the next best thing.

mind melt (2004-02-17)

melancholic, spooky, dreamy tunes into which the mind gently melts.

Less accessible than some would expect but more enduring if you give it a chance.

Look for similar items by category

• Styles > Alternative Rock
• Styles > Dance & DJ
• Styles > Pop
• Styles > Pop > Vocal Pop
• Styles > Rock

Related Link