Massive Attack - Mezzanine
This is one of my favorite records of all time...while "Blue Lines" changed music as we speak, Mezzanine was Massive Attack at it's peak...and the Bristol sound at it's best.
01 Angel - This is one of the best opening tracks ever in my opinion. It's starts with a slow thumping bass intro and gradually builds up with the medium-slow deformed drum beat that doesn't feel like an artificial beat. The reggea singer Horace Andy doesn't sound like a reggea singer here at all...his voice is perfectly in disguise. I love it when the song whips into the guitar melody. 4.5/5
02 Risingson - This is one of the coolest tracks ever. The intro starts with the sounds of whales, immediately attacked by a bassline and some crazy slithering sound effects, then you hear some haunting overdubbed voice builds up until the beat starts. Amazing! A really cool sound effect kicks off 3D's dark vocals. Midway through his verse the overdubbed voices build up again, which is ****ing awesome. After the verse the voices say "Dream On". I love the part when the beat stops for a moment and that deformed guitar riff comes in. This track flows really well, and it's a great listen overall. 5/5
03 Teardrop - This is probably the most well known song on this record. It's a very relaxing fuzzy song built around a simplistic piano riff and layered keys. Eliza Frasers input here is amazing since her unique vocal style fits this track like a glove. A classic. 4.5/5
04 Inertia Creeps - This another great listen, the intro starts very tranquil and lullabyish...but is attacked by a menacing sample that changes the mood. The song is very dark and 3D's vocals work really well. The man has flow and can write some good lyrics too. The guitars are there, but they are more background complementary melody. 4.5/5
05 Exchange - This is a pretty repetitive little instrumental, very layback and tranquil...it's kind of an intermission more than a track. 2/5
06 Dissolved Girl - This song has another bass intro and the vocals are again dropped by Eliza Fraser. This song is much heavier and darker than "Teardrop" though. It has a similair vibe as "Angel". 3.5/5
07 Man Next Door - The vocals by Horace Andy take awhile to get used to here, but this is definately a nice listen. The beat is very heavy and there are some cool electronic samples and keyboard touched. 4/5
08 Black Milk - This song is driven by a hip-hopish beat and nice little piano touches. The female vocalist is really good. Another very relaxing track. 4/5
09 Mezzanine - Be careful with your speakers, because the bass is simply gut wrenching here. Another very dark track...lots of crazy samples. It sounds great on headphones. 4.5/5
10 Group Four - Another really good one, the female vocalist is really hypnotizing and eerie. It has strange ethnic percussion...it's very loungy. Then when the beat stops you have this crazy marching percussion building up. When the beat starts again a guitar riff comes in and when the female vocalist comes in again, the riff changes. This part is really sucks you in. Very subtlely the beat speeds up then after a few bars it slows down again, and when the song stops it's like "what the ****..where was I?" 5/5
11 (Exchange) - The second Exchange is basically the same as the first...but this time Horace Andy sings on it. That's basically it. 2.5/5
This is a great cd, great for a spin when you are having a party or just on headphones, or on your way to school. This is music you shouldn't really analyze...just absorb it for what it is. That's the only way you will appreciate what Massive Attack are trying to do.
