Not my normal style, but amazing anyway.

Portishead is very much outside the realm of music that I usually listen to. I’m mostly into the rockier, metallic-while-being-melancholic brand of metal, along with some pop-rock and other random stuff. While I do have a very eclectic music taste, I don’t consider Portishead to be within the realm of something that I would listen to. Ever. There’s just something that draws me to this band; after hearing My Dying Bride’s spectacular cover of Roads on Meisterwerk II, I found out who the original artist of the song was, and promptly downloaded the whole album from iTunes before going on vacation the day after. I was not disappointed. Slinky, sexy beats, sparse instrumentation, and the beautiful, shuddering vocals of the band’s greatest asset, siren Beth Gibbons (who, amazingly enough, manages to sound completely different in each and every song), drive the amazing down-tempo grooves of Portishead’s masterful Dummy.

A minor key guitar arpeggio kicks off the album’s opener Mysterons. A series of nicely executed snare rolls keeps this song’s irresistible, minimalist groove in its place, along with very nice, atmospheric guitar work and very unsettling chord progressions. Beth Gibbons shows some true talent in this track: her voice, while powerful, sounds always on the verge of tears. Mysterons is a great opener. The album’s unexpected hit Sour Times is next on the bill: a faster, livelier number, this is more optimistic sounding then Mysterons, and yet retains the logical dark tone present throughout the album. Gibbons wails “’Cause nobody loves me, it’s true… not like you do”, still on the verge of tears, but with a more vicious tone in this one, rather than mournful. This one is just groovy.

A very nice sax opens one of my absolute favorites, Strangers. The groove is almost trance-like: once you start, you just can’t stop. After a brief instrumental opening, the song smoothly segues into an amazing lo-fi, smoky-jazz-lounge saxophone/vocalist piece, which is what makes this song so great: in between the segments of the electronic beat, there are dreamy, jazzy instrumental sections that continuously add to the atmosphere of this amazing piece. Another personal favorite, It Could Be Sweet, takes a much more minimalist approach: a ground-rattling, groovy bass beat kicks off this one full of gentle synthesizers and Gibbons’ voice taking a much more ethereal approach. This song is full of contrasts to the rest of the album: the tone is much more soothing, and also more minimal, and the synths gently coax the listener into an amazing slow beat. This is a masterpiece.

The next two tracks just don’t do much for me. Wandering Star begins with another very unsettling synth riff, taking a chromatic step up and down. Gibbons’ vocals on this song, however, are at their very best: she’s taken a pleading tone, and it perfectly fits the absolutely incredible beat of the song. As a whole, the song has a lot of ideas, and none of them really blend in that way that makes these songs click. It’s a Fire almost feels like a gospel piece at first: a gentle string intro leads into that traditional organ, and Gibbons’ ethereal vocals once again grace the very uplifting sound. This one actually reminds me of The Great Gig in the Sky by psychedelic rock giants Pink Floyd: it has that very familiar, comforting mellotron sound in the background, and Gibbons sings these very nice gospel lyrics. Once again, many ideas, and yet very little tying in.

The album picks up again with lead-off single Numb. A shaky mellotron line leads into a hollow-sounding drum beat and some very, very strange synth noises. Of note in this song is, once again, another unique Gibbons vocal style: this time, it’s very nasal, and also very forward, making her tone very persecuting and degrading. This song has a very nice chorus, as well. Portishead’s absolute perfect song, however, comes in the form of the amazing standout centerpiece Roads. An absolutely gorgeous, heartbreaking synth line kicks this amazingly haunting song off in style. A gentle drum beat drive the song forward, but Gibbons’ vocals, once again, are the highlight of the track: the emotion given through the lyrical delivery outmatches every band I’ve ever heard, except for the amazing style of Katatonia’s Jonas Renkse (but that’s an entirely different story). Also of note in this song is the string ensemble that enters after the very first verse: the tense, flowing chords of the strings gently drive this haunting masterpiece of despair.

The album once again takes an angrier note with the heavy-in-feeling-but-not-in-sound Pedestal. Another backbeat groove takes center stage in the opening moments of the song, and Gibbons’ vocals once again sound persecuting, with some very eerie synths and turntable scratches drive this particularly dark number. Biscuit is the third song on the album that fails to ensnare me: perhaps it’s the unnecessarily slow beat, perhaps it’s the erratic use of synths, or perhaps it’s just the “weirdness” of this song, but I just can’t get into it. The only skippable track on the album.

The album closes with sensational second-smash Glory Box. A smoky-lounge feeling returns on this song, with very gently played lines on each instrument, and, of course, Gibbons’ signature wailing, this time vindictive, closing the album in perfect Portishead style.

In all, this album is a trip into a film noir: dark, dank, filled with down-tempo grooves, along with a beautiful songstress leading this band into a trip filled with movement. I honestly can’t find anything wrong with this album sound-wise, save weak tracks Wandering Star, It’s a Fire, and Biscuit, and those are, if necessary, avoidable. In all, this one is just… abnormal, yet masterful. Long live Portishead.