Customer Reviews

Angels With Dirty Faces

5 star:		(28)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(13)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

If you want cutting edge music - I mean REALLY want cutting edge music not some Rolling Stone baby boomer critic's latest pet band - then Tricky has to be on your list! Tricky is definitely not for the weak of heart, but I like him! He makes the kind of nasty hip-hop that mainstream artists only talk about doing. If you want an idea of his sound: imagine out of control turntables, techno stripped of everything but mechanical noises of rage and then merge that with his spewed vocals. The only thing keeping it from skidding out of control are the beats and basslines. Very edgy! And then he'll throw in a few somewhat conventional songs like "Broken Homes" and "Singing the Blues" to keep it sorta grounded. He does a bunch of tracks on this CD ("Money Greedy", "6 Minutes", "Record Companies", etc.) that deal with fame and the BS that goes with being in the music business. In a way, this is like a concept album, however the unplanned feel of the music and his sporadic lyrics seem to suggest Tricky wouldn't care to sit around tinkering with ideas to much - it sounds as if he just goes into a studio and explodes! I bought this CD when it came out, and I still listen to it every so often - so Tricky's got to be more than just some radical curiosity on the music scene. I never bought his first CD, but I do have PMT and Grassroots - both of which I love. AWDF has a lot more live instrumentation and, although that's really niether a plus nor a minus, it proves that Tricky is still experimenting. As long as he has something to say, Tricky will never be bad.

Don't get me wrong, I LOVE Tricky, but this CD doesn't quite live up to my expectations of his music. Maybe I should have listened to this one before Maxinquaye but I was greatly dissapointed. The rythms grow stagnant and extremely repetitive after a few listens and the vocals leave something to be desired. Still, a few tracks shine almost in spite of the rest of the album, and the rage of Tricky against "the system" gives a few of the songs an edge. Buy Maxinquaye or Nearly God for a TRUE Tricky experience.

Tricky...obviously tired of people constantly referencing his first album "Maxinquaye", distances this album from that album by stripping back on the production, raising the level of Dub-paranoia, collaborating with more female vocalists, Cranking up the tension, and using shattered broken beats, to challenge the listener...and for anyone that's a first time "Tricky" listener...Don't start with this album, start with Maxinquaye!!, and work you way up through his album releases, because if ever an album could reasonably be labelled `Grows consistently with every listen', this is it!!...as it all so richly layered and textured that every single listen unearths something new. Although that's not to say that it's completely impenetrable to first time listeners...as "Singing The Blues / Talk to Me (Angels With Dirty Faces) / 6 Minutes & especially "Broken Homes" rates as some of his best & most accessible work.....truly a album for the discerning listener.

By Tricky's already high standards, this is a difficult album with the identity crisis of trying to be Maxinquaye and Pre-Millinium Tension at the same time. Although, it doesn't really accomplish either goal, points are awarded for degree of difficulty. With time, this is an interesting listen for those that already have the aformentioned albums, but not the place to start for anyone interested in exploring the artist.

"I can't remember,I can't remember" are the mumbled lyrics Tricky introduces his incredible bonus track "Time Slippin'" on this Japanese import.The song features Prince's protege's Wendy and Lisa on keyboards and guitar. The other bonus track is "Peyote Sings" a song with a rush-drag-rush-drag feel. It's a fun song with beautiful poetry.The remainder of the album is built around a strong base of darkness."Angels With Dirty Faces" puts a curse on any listener.Tricky proves to be a truly unique artist on this album.

I have no idea why so many people dislike it for this is no doubt his best. Maxinquaye was great but maybe a bit too eclectic and it actually owed very much to Martina, Pre-millenium tension suffered from over-the-top self-indulgent lyrics and actually didn't come out very well. This is the only Tricky's album i can listen to from the beginning to the end. The sound is outstanding. It features live musicians, awesome funky beats and has a great feel of urban paranoia to it. Don't believe the bad reviews and get this right now!!!

I've often read how disapointed people were with this record and I have never understood why. Most artists can only aspire to re-arrange their influences in a new and sincere way. At best. Most of the time, however, we fail and only manage to produce lesser versions of what someone else has already done much more succesfully. "Angels With Dirty Faces", in my opinion, goes beyond adding a touch of sincerity and originality to other musicians' acomplishments. It is itself a fantastic example of what happens when artists let go of what they have heard or seen and reach into themselves to create something unlike anything before it. Of course nothing is created in a vacuum, and to some extent all artists build upon previous artists' works, but there are a precious few who throughout history manage to suprass their influences. Tricky is one of those aritsts, and this is his masterpiece.

Tricky's 1998 offering is one of the strongest albums from a very strong music year. Artists were trying to come up with fresh ideas and experimentation, (U2's Pop, PJ Harvey's Is This Desire, Radiohead's Ok Computer, Tori Amos's Choirgirl Hotel, Bjork's Homogenic, Madonna Ray of Light, and UNKLE to name a few) All of these artists (except radiohead and Bjork) have settled into their safety formulas. That's too bad. Music is art, and that is most evident on "Angels". This is also the last album tricky made before he began his pop & rap forays and the last with the haunting vocals of Martina Topley-Bird. The disjointed stutter beat of "Singing the Blues" is beautifully crafted. The uptempo rockers, "Money Greedy," "6 Minutes", Slick Rick cover "The Moment I Feared", and the raggae-calypso flavored "Demise" are all high quality. But the creepy madness of Tricky's production skills really prevail on "Mellow"
"Analyze Me," "Talk To Me," and Carriage For Two."
The duet with PJ Harvey on "Broken Homes," is very pretty.
The only song that doesn't really work for me is the closer "Record Companies." Tricky constantly seems obsessed with the fact that he has a deal. Hey Tricky we all know you have a record deal we bought the album, so give it a rest. It could be one of the reasons Island dropped him after the disappointing Juxtapose that clocked in at just over 30 minutes.
Maxinquaye and Premillenium Tension are also essentials if you appreciate experimental mood productions.

a powerful, driving and spirited album that takes the listener into a million interesting, pleasurable and challenging dimensions. This artist has prided himself on breaking new ground with every release. What he achieves - whether he was conscious of this at the time of creation, or not - is music that is lasting. You can dive into this auditory blissful realm years after the fact and still be perfectly blown away.

Vision, craftsmanship and great effort have sustained this miraculous artist in moving beyond, and remaining away, from any semblance of competition.

This is a classic.

Firstly, most don't realize this is the essence of his message. All the instrumentals match his message that he's trying to convey, and that's why it's so dark, seedy, and full of grime. "Ghetto traps didn't trap me, I got out." from Money Greedy is a crystal clear answer to that times' Hip-Hop community and their "trapped in the ghetto" mentality. With that verse alone, he belittles 2Pac, Master P, and other artists that claim to that the system can't be broken. Despite the money they've made, they're still trapped in the ghetto? Sure, and Tricky got out when he makes a fraction of their record sales.
Everyone goes on about how demented it sounds, and how it pushes you toward the brink of insanity. Well guess what? That's the point. This is the life he's gone through, what he's seen, and it's not pretty. Obviously enough, in contrast to his previous releases, he was waiting until he got someone's attention with more "acceptable" sounds, and naturally his true followers would be able to cut through the yellow tape and realize that there was a deeper message beneath everything. This is the album you should've been waiting for. And it came, went, and got blasted. Figures, but I wouldn't hesitate to pick this up if you want something new, urban, artistic, and a true centerpiece for the trip-hop underground.
This album and it's themes transcend country to country, and speak true of the danger in running the streets, daytime or nighttime, always being a target, where paranoia doesn't exist, it's a way of life, and the cesspool that mixes cops, drugs, women, money and your roots. It's like this where I live, and I know it is in NY, and I wouldn't be surprised if you can feel this anywhere on the globe.