Category: Massive Attack

Massive Attack – 100th Window (2003)

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100th Window is the fourth studio album by English electronic music group Massive Attack, released on 10 February 2003 by Virgin Records.

The album was mainly produced by lead member Robert Del Naja, as the group’s producer Andrew Vowles departed shortly after the release of their previous album Mezzanine (1998), and Grant Marshall opted out of the production of the album.
100th Window features vocals from regular guest Horace Andy, as well as newcomers Sinéad O’Connor and Damon Albarn (performing as 2D from Gorillaz).
Stylistically, it is the first album by the group to make no use of existing samples, and contains none of the hip hop or jazz fusion styles that the group were initially known for.

A new album from Massive Attack is an event, even if only one-third of the original group is present for the festivities. Just the group’s fourth album in more than a dozen years, 100th Window marked the departure of Mushroom (permanently, after artistic differences) and Daddy G (temporarily, to raise a family), leaving only one founding member, 3D (Robert del Naja), to muddle along with arranger/producer Neil Davidge (who made his Massive Attack debut on 1998’s Mezzanine). Though Del Naja is mostly successful giving the people what they want — a follow-up to Mezzanine, one of the most compulsive listens of ’90s electronica — it unfortunately comes as a sacrifice to the very thing that made Massive Attack so crucial to dance music: their never-ending progression to a radically different sound with each release.
For better or worse, 100th Window has the same crushingly oppressive productions, dark, spiralling basslines, and pile-driving beats instantly familiar to fans of Mezzanine.
Fortunately, it also has the same depth and point-perfect attention to detail, making for fascinating listening no matter whether the focus is the songs, the effects, or even the percussion lines.
Jamaican crooner Horace Andy is back for a pair of tracks (“Everywhen,” “Name Taken”) that nearly equal his features on the last record, while Sinéad O’Connor makes her debut with three vocal features.
Unlike Liz Fraser or Tracey Thorn (two Massive Attack muses from the past), O’Connor’s voice lacks resonance and doesn’t reward the close inspection that a Massive Attack production demands. Still, her songwriting is far superior and the slight quaver in her voice adds a much-needed personality to these songs.
“A Prayer for England” is a political protest that aligns itself perfectly with the group that coined its name as a satirical nod to military aggression.
Another feature for O’Connor, “What Your Soul Sings,” is the only song here that compares to the best Massive Attack has to offer, beginning with a harsh, claustrophobic atmosphere, but soon blossoming like a flower into a beautiful song led by her tremulous voice.
In comparison, the four songs for 3D are average at best, mere recyclings of the same ideas heard years earlier.

 

Track listing

  1. Future Proof (vocals: 3D) - 5:37
  2. What Your Soul Sings (vocals: Sinéad O'Connor) - 6:37
  3. Everywhen (vocals: Horace Andy) - 7:37
  4. Special Cases (vocals: Sinéad O'Connor) - 5:09
  5. Butterfly Caught (vocals: 3D) - 7:33
  6. A Prayer for England (vocals: Sinéad O'Connor) - 5:44
  7. Small Time Shot Away (vocals: 3D) - 7:57
  8. Name Taken (vocals: Horace Andy) - 7:47
  9. Antistar (vocals: 3D) - 19:40

All tracks are written by Robert Del Naja and Neil Davidge, except tracks 2, 4 and 6, written by Del Naja, Davidge and Sinéad O’Connor.

 

Musicians

  • Alex Swift – additional programming, keyboards
  • Sinéad O'Connor – vocals
  • Horace Andy – vocals
  • Robert Del Naja – vocals, string arrangement
  • Angelo Bruschini – guitar
  • Damon Reece – drums
  • Jon Harris – bass
  • Stuart Gordon – violin
  • Skaila Kanga – harp
  • Craig Pruess – string arrangement, conducting
  • Neil Davidge – string arrangement
  • Gavyn Wright – orchestra leader
  • 2-D (performed by Damon Albarn) – backing vocals on "Small Time Shot Away"

Technical

  • Robert Del Naja – production
  • Neil Davidge – production
  • Alex Swift – additional programming, keyboards
  • Lee Shephard – recording, engineering
  • Mark "Spike" Stent – mixing
  • Paul "P Dub" Walton – mixing assistance
  • David Treahearn – mixing assistance
  • Robert Haggett – mixing assistance
  • Tim Young – mastering
  • Mike Ross – recording

Artwork

  • Robert Del Naja – art direction, design
  • Tom Hingston – art direction, design
  • Nick Knight – photography

Notes
Released: 10 February 2003
Recorded: 2002 Studio Sony (London)
Genre: Electronica, downtempo, ambient dub
Length: 73:52
Producer(s): Robert Del Naja, Neil Davidge

Label – Virgin Records