Its been circa 7 years since we last heard original work by these trip-hop pioneers and we're quite glad they came back.
This time around they have arrived with an incredible cast of vocalists, which includes TV on the Radio's Tunde Adebimpe and Blur/Gorillaz's Damon Albarn.
The whole album holds the consistent elements known to Massive Attack such scattered beats, a late-night feel, and heavy bass riffs, but for some odd reason they feel more composed and consistent than before...or maybe I'm just scarred from their last effort, 100th Window.
Heligoland starts with 'Pray for Rain', which covers your aura with a gloomy dark cloud, yet it doesn't bring you down. Tunde Adebimpe's vocals blend in perfectly with the droopy bass, and then suddenly a nice ray of light comes in via a sweet instrumental moment. Just like that instrumental part brings light to 'Pray for Rain', 'Paradise Circus' brings light to the whole album. Hands down one of Massive Attack's best songs to date, oddly enough this song makes the whole album come together although it is much lighter than the heavy weighing sounds of the rest of the album. Hope Sandoval provides vocals for Paradise, and if I had her voice I would have no need to talk, I would just simply communicate by way of song. 'Saturday Come Slow' is ok. Yop, pretty much. It features Damon Albarn and has an early Bowie feel, but it doesn't really touch you the way the prior songs do. Wrapping everything up is 'Atlas Air'. All the beats smoothly layer in one after another topped off by vocals throughout the 7 minutes, but you don't feel the longetivity of it. That's a very good thing.
Lasting a little less than an hour, Heligoland is the kind of album that total headphone dedication is recommend for proper auditory immersion. It will suck you in, but it will not spit you out.
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