Portishead : Dummy Album Review

In 1994 an English three piece band by the name of Portishead ( appropriately named after the North Somerset seaside town  where the band originated from )  released a stunning debut album  that went on to win the 1995 Mercury prize the U.K's finest music award , that album was Dummy.  Dummy  has been  known to be the   primal  source of creating the sub genre  Trip Hop ( a mixture of hip-hop, soul, R&B and alternative ) along with Massive Attack's 1991 album  Blue Lines . The  atmosphere in this album  is memorable its  a rather interesting musical backdrop with superb-thick, lumbering beats with deep, dark bass and sparse scratching with samples not to mention the ghostly echoing vocals , Beth Gibbons  can  transfer the negative emotion into a beat like i have never heard  before, So it is with great honor that i get to  review a genre changing album  in  Dummy

1. "Mysterons" –                     5:02
2. "Sour Times" –                    4:11
3. "Strangers" –                       3:55
4. "It Could Be Sweet" –          4:16
5. "Wandering Star" –              4:51
6. "Numb" –                            3:54
7. "Roads" –                           5:02
8. "Pedestal" –                        3:39
9. "Biscuit" –                           5:01
10. "Glory Box" –                      5:06 

 1- Mysterons : The  sound effects makes you think you are in a haunted mansion this  opens with a chilly, ghostly atmosphere ,  lots of turntable scratching and drum machine beats , A beautiful opener and sets the tone for the rest of the album Gibbons voice sounds  very sombre.

2- Sour Times : How could anyone not like this song  it  has  this  James bond bass sound to it , the  vocals  are intense and  the  chorus is  riveting you can feel her pain when Beth wails Nobody loves meeeeeee, it's true.  One of the big hits from the album commercially, a good one to play during a break up or after one.

3- Strangers : Nice  beat  almost a hand clapping sound with  sax at the start  you would swear  her voice is  coming out a megaphone then  the   style  changes and  her voice becomes clear  with a driving beat and synth tones  

4- It Could Be Sweet : A rather unforgettable song, "You don't get something for nothing ".Piano can be heard in this track  i think its probably her most upbeat  song lyrically  she doesn't sound  so depressed the song feels  jazzy and soulful  in some parts nice down tempo song

5- Wandering Star : Some more awesome samples  going on in the background Gibbons  Voice  seems  to be semi  depressed again  the  singing is sublime  there's a few well timed record scratches  and   pops which just adds to the atmosphere and beauty. The mixing is incredible

6- It's A Fire :  Nice organ   sound intro  It's really gospel and bluesy sounding ,I swear the  sadder the song is the more  Beth sings  better

7- Numb :  "Still feeling lonely, feeling so unholy" more good scratching  and  chunky bass Gibbons has a bratty kind of voice and  a strangely Jamacian sound to its beat and tempo.Its another well sampled  track ,the song is so dark and cool sounding, and Beth's voice is so great

8- Roads : Is probably the most emotionally simple and sincere song I've heard in a long time, with a muted beginning building up to a steady beat and lush orchestration, as Gibbon's reflects on alienation, loss, and passion. Towards the end as the song nears breaking emotionally, a gentle bass line brings everything back to earth. Simply awesome Beth's vocals are heartbreaking and beautiful

9- Pedestal : This song grew on me and now i rate it highly, starts  out with fat beats and record scratches it's so jazzy and subdue good relaxing song  lounge around sip your drink toke your smoke  music. The trumpet part in the middle is  a nice little addition

10- Biscuit : I am a sucker for this song the fat beats once again the record popping and scratching is awesome   it  just adds to the atmosphere  gives it a darker feel  there's some sample voice in this also , God i get the impression that  Beth  didn't let out a smile  through the whole recording process

11- Glory Box : I think Neneh Cherry has a lot to answer for  there is no shadow of a doubt that  "Woman" was inspired by this song .This song makes you think that  Gibbons is disgruntled as she pleas to her nameless lover "give me a reason to be a woman," over a bluesy beat, strings, and bass,  As the beat deconstructs the song, Gibbons wails "This is the beginning of forever and ever," , but somehow you know that it's the end. Soul destroying.. the guitar solo in the middle and the Issac Hayes sample all sound so right together a fitting end

Conclusion : I rate this album very  highly  probably  within my best three Trip Hop albums  its brilliant, unique, innovative,  and haunting  with  beautiful sound effects from Geoff Barrow and Adrian Utley , Add Beth Gibbon's gloomy brooding vocals and it makes a sombre sounding masterpiece. I actually  don't have a complaint with this album  the way Gibbon's sings is just  awesome  in a depressing achingly beautiful  way . This album pretty much took the spotlight off the grunge movement and is  possibly the epitome of it's genre  8.7 / 10