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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Junkmedia.org Review - For the willing, May 26, 2003
Whispers surrounding Matt Elliott's new album suggested that the break from his Third Eye Foundation persona also marked a new creative direction, a move away from the bleak, sometimes heavy-handed aesthetic of his TEF recordings. The signs were present on "Goddamnit You've Got to be Kind," the closing track of TEF's last chapter, Little Lost Soul; the trademark moans are overcome by ascendant strings and breakbeats. This was a promising hint at what Elliott might offer in his next incarnation.The rumors of a new, hopeful sound, if The Mess We Made is any indication, were wrong. Elliott's first effort under his own name, though it breaks stylistically from the drum 'n' bass-heavy production of TEF, is even more harrowing than even the darkest Foundation moments. And, given the cohesion of Mess, it's hard to argue with the man for playing to his strengths. Elliott has crafted a spare, haunting long-player that should please fans of his previous work. Though the dark tone becomes oppressive at times, The Mess We Made does come with some surprises. "Also Ran," one of the standout tracks, incorporates a staccato dance rhythm midway through a mix of backward vocals and lamenting keys, only to break back into the melancholy minimalism that runs through the entire record. Elliott conducts a choir of drunks in a round of barroom fatalism on "The Sinking Ship Song," and the finale, "Forty Days," has Elliott grafting a mariachi-like guitar performance to his signature atmospherics. Even a last gasp of TEF-style jungle cuts through the title track, almost directly at the album's midpoint (hopefully, Elliott will continue to use d 'n' b breaks throughout his career -- the man knows how to drop a beat). The abject despair of The Mess We Made can become tedious, and, more than most artists, Elliott depends on a listener who is willing to forgive him his lack of subtlety. The depressive tone is unrelenting, but that is what was captivating about the Third Eye Foundation, and what provides Elliott's first eponymous recording with its emotional backbone. Robert Albanese
Junkmedia.org Review
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by Matt Elliott 
