The first masterpiece of what was only termed
trip-hop
much later,
Blue Lines
filtered
American hip-hop
through the lens of British club culture, a stylish, nocturnal sense of scene that encompassed music from
rare groove
to
dub
dance
. The album balances dark, diva-led
club
jams along the lines of
Soul II Soul
with some of the best
British rap
(vocals and production) heard up to that point, occasionally on the same track. The opener
"Safe from Harm"
is the best example, with diva vocalist
Shara Nelson
trading off lines with the group's own monotone (yet effective) rapping. Even more than
hip-hop
or
, however,
is the big touchstone on
. Most of the productions aren't quite as earthy as you'd expect, but the influence is palpable in the atmospherics of the songs, like the faraway electric piano on
"One Love"
(with beautiful vocals from the near-legendary
Horace Andy
). One track,
"Five Man Army,"
makes the
inspiration explicit, with a clattering percussion line, moderate reverb on the guitar and drums, and
Andy
's exquisite falsetto flitting over the chorus.
isn't all darkness, either --
"Be Thankful for What You've Got"
is quite close to the
smooth soul
tune conjured by its title, and
"Unfinished Sympathy"
-- the group's first classic production -- is a tremendously moving fusion of up-tempo
and dancefloor jam with slow-moving, syrupy strings. Flaunting both their range and their tremendously evocative productions,
Massive Attack
recorded one of the best
albums of all time. ~ John Bush