Customer Reviews

Protection

5 star:		(52)
4 star:		(20)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

This album is often derided as the only misstep in the distinguished career of Massive Attack. True, it is not as immediate as "Blue Lines" or as coherent as "Mezzanine", but "Protection" has an allure all its own. That the songs don't seem to fit together is part of the album's charm and appeal. Tracy Thorn kicks off the festivities with the epic title track, giving voice to one of the most poignant and evocative love (or is it anti-love) songs ever recorded. As is always the case with MA, the production is stellar and a harbinger of things to come (Thorn also turns up on the pleasant, but bland "Better Things"). 3-D and a pre-solo career Tricky share rapping duties on the harrowing "Karmacoma", a stark, head nodding blend of rap and reggae. Billie Holliday sound alike, Nicolette takes over vocals on "Three", seamlessly navigating the song's watery groove. Scottish composer/producer Craig Armstrong makes the first of three appearances on this album with "Weather Storm". It's not MA's strongest track, but it succeeds in creating a late night, quiet storm vibe. Elsewhere, Armstrong, conducts the strings on the amazing "Sly" (a Jungian tale sung with appropriate mysticism and mystery by Nicolette); and tickles the ivories on the new agish "Heat Miser". Tricky and 3-D return to the mic on the sleek, city song "Eurochild". MA regular Horace Andy appears on the sinewy "Spying Glass" (a reworking of his own tune "Spy Glass"), and the album closing live cover of the Doors' "Light My Fire". In both instances, his vocal stylings are a perfect compliment to MA's reggae-oriented dance jams. Following up a masterpiece like "Blue Lines" was always going to be tricky (no pun intended); but with the all-over-the-map "Protection", MA managed to move forward without sacrificing any of their originality or spirit.

Massive Attack corral together assorted vocalists and guest artists to form their 1994 effort Protection, and the mix of styles makes this album really shine. The CD starts off with the noted single "Protection," featuring the rich voice of Tracey Thorn. Other songs incorporate the vocals of Tricky, Nicolette, and Horace Andy (as well as Massive's own 3-d). While the vocalists' differing styles lend themselves to different types of songs, a laid-back tempo and strong bass - guaranteed to satisfy the rhythm lover in you - unify the 10 songs on Protection. The two instrumental pieces, the jazzy "Weather Storm" and the mysterious "Heat Miser," reinforce this theme. Bottom line: Protection is a solid, powerful, aptly titled release. Curl up on a winter's night and let this album warm you.

I love Massive Attack. Their music is dark and foreboding. "Blue Lines" introduced the world to Tricky as well as established itself as a timeless classic. "Mezzanine" really brought trip hop to the forefront on the US music scene. In between "Blue Lines" and "Mezzanine" is "Protection". "Protection" is an underlooked and underrated album filled with some of my personal favorite songs from the talented UK trip hop group. I loved the title track from the moment I first saw the music video for the song on MTV pre-TRL. "Protection" is simply classic Tracey Thorn. Her vocals just makes me melt. There is something about her voice that I find comforting and reassuring. She does an outstanding job on this song. I immediately fell in love with "Karmacoma" within a matter of seconds. I love hearing the group's reggae influences ring out through the entire song. "Weather Storm" is a gorgeous instrumental. I could hear Craig Armstrong's influence throughout the entire track. Just a beautiful song that will haunt me for years to come. The production of this album is as raw as "Blue Lines" and "Mezzanine", maybe even more so (in my opinion). Their cover of The Door's "Light My Fire" is quite compelling and unique. Is it better than the original? I diddn't think so but it is just as good. After listening to "Protection", I have to say this album has to be my personal favorite of the three Massive Attack albums that I own (at least until the new album comes out).

wow. Wow. WOW.

i totally loved 'blue lines'. i've been a huge fan of everything but the girl since the mid 80s. and by adding tracey thorn's vocals into an already potent mix that created 'blue lines', this album was on constant repeat in my cd player.

though strengthened by thorn and collaborator ben watt's contribution on the title track and 'better things', this sophomore effort is lyrically weaker than the debut. but the hypnotic beats from 'blue lines' carried over into this one. even alanis morisette said that 'protection' was incredibly soothing and strangely uplifting when she heard it at the vma after party.

the great thing about this album is it starts by grabbing you and doesn't let go until the second last track.

'protection' wraps thorn's vocals around you, feeling strong yet vulnerable at the same time. the beat elevates your senses and you feel lightened somehow.

'karmacoma' hits you from the first beat, tricky and 3d hypnotises you with their 'rapping' (for want a better word); 'three' breaks this stupor, with vocalist nicolette tip-toeing playfully around 'her favourite number'. orgasmic!

'weather storm' surprises you with a simple bass track and elegently haunting piano work by craig armstrong, raining down on your emotions after the last 3 tracks.

'spying glass' goes back to the dark playfulness of 'three', again to incredible effect.

track 6 'better things' finds thorn back on vocals, accusational and angry... blending perfectly into the instrumental confection built around her voice.

'eurochild' has 3d and tricky again talking around very textured beats.

and 'sly' is just incredible... nicolette taking us on her journey... wondering... 'heat miser' let's the beats and armstrong's piano speak to us again, though in contrast to 'weather storm', 'heat miser' spirals like the burning incense in a temple, just rises higher and higher until it just dissipates... and that would've been a perfect end to a perfect album. but they had to add a live version of 'light my fire' (yes that's jim morrison/ doors classic), which totally spoilt my experience of the album. that's the only reason it's 4 stars and not 5 :)

Few weeks ago I bought this disk, after buying Mezz, Blue Lines and 100th Window a long time ago. Why didn't I buy it sooner, you ask? For starters, I always wanted another CD first in stead of this one, I always moved it. And also because pretty much all the critici gave this album a bad review, saying the only worthly songs on it are 'Protection' and 'Karmacoma'. So with low expectations I bought this and putted in the disk-player. First there were 'Protection' and 'Karmacoma' wich I already knew they were great, so no surprises yet. So when 'Karmacoma' ended I was preparing myself hearing really crappy and lame music. But it wasn't... to be honoust it was really good, extraordinary. Near the end I knew it for sure: Protection is better than Blue Lines. Blue Lines was revolutionary and very good, but it sounds so dated and Protection is more exciting with its fascinating and sometimes even strange sound.
'Protection' and 'Karmacoma' are the best tracks on the album and 2 of MA's toppers, while 'Protection' has very soft, fragile vocals and smooth instruments, 'Karmacoma' sounds very Jamacian with its rap vocals (Normally I don't like rap but it seems to work very well on Massive Attack-tracks), I can hardly choose wich one is the best between those 2 songs. 'Three' has a really fascinating intro, and a male voice who is always repeating the same line, and beautiful female vocals, that all together makes this another stand out.
'Weather Storm' is a very nice jazzy instrumential with a playful piano and decent beats. 'Spying Glass' is by far the weirdest track on this album. A strange combination between jazzy instruments and chilling vocals makes this track very special, but not all listeners might like it. 'Better Things' has some nice jazzy bass-lines and a quit beautiful melody. Vocals are not less then amazing again.
'Euro Child' is the darkest song on here, but it doesn't lose the jazzy feel on this disk. Dark rap-vocals, with creepy jazz-sounds mixed with quit weird instruments makes this another stand out, my third favourite..
Yet another fascinating track, and a single, is 'Sly'. Again an outstanding combination between instrumentents. Vocals are mysterious and the Digiridu's add that little extra a song needs to be good. The strikers give a more classical feel to it.
Then we have another instrumential, but this one is more complex and less jazzy than 'Weather Storm'. Synths were used instead of a piano. Good, but I must say, I like 'Weather Storm' better.
After 'Heat Miser' I usually start over the album, because the next song isn't really good, it's in my opinion the only disappointement on this disk. Maybe because 'Light My Fire' is just...well...so non-Massive Attack. It has not instruments enough to be a worthy MA-track, it sounds so empty. And live-songs on an album usually don't sound very good anyway.
Nevertheless this is an incredible album, better then Blue Lines. Mezzanine is still my favourite, about half an inch ahead of Protection. I might say, Protection makes Mezzanine sound less impressive..

This is a terrific album dating from 1995. Massive Attack use many different vocalists and instrumentalists, and the overall style is slowish urban 90's music with beguiling rhythms and cool voices. It is well produced and quite sophisticated. The title track Protection is one of my all-time favourite tracks by anybody. Tracey Thorn from Everything But The Girl sings this excellent song. Other ones I like are the slow groove Heat Miser and the unusual rhythm of Karmacoma, which I grew to like . There's a live recording of Light My Fire, which proves that Massive Attack are a good live attraction as well as being great in the studio. I listen to this album frequently and I can strongly recommend it to any people who like great music.

Released in 1995 and timeless in nature, Massive Attacks's second album provides a cool, hypnotic soundtrack for the late 90's. The guys from Bristol have melded an album that grows with repeated listenings and reveals new sounds and nuances every time it is played. The title song, with the divine Tracey Thorn on vocals, is jazzy, cool and hypnotic. It is physical but does not neglect the cerebral. Using vocalists such as Nicolette and Horace Andy the album weaves it's way into the subconsciousness and stays with you long after it is off the turntable. Heat Miser, Three and Karmacoma are three other stand out tracks with the only jarring inclusion being the live cover of Light My Fire. More mature than Blue Lines and a perfect transition into Mezzanine. One of the best albums you will ever here.

When you release one of the most influential and unique releases of the past 20 years, what do you do for an encore? This is the no-win situation that Massive Attack had to face with their follow-up to 1991's seminal Blue Lines debut. Whereas that album simultaneously combined smoky hip-hop, inspired soul, and laces of "rasta", this album eschews many of those hip-hop and reggae elements in favour of soft jazz ('Weather Storm', 'Better Things', 'Heat Miser') and electronic-pop (such as the title track and 'Spying Glass'). Soundwise, it's a slightly uneasy mid-point between the raw urban flavour of Blue Lines and the unsettling bleakness of Mezzanine. Overall, Protection is another high-quality release, but it falls well short of these two benchmark albums. Musically and creatively, it is solid as expected (with the exception of their grating cover of 'Light My Fire' - but I didn't like the original either so there you go). However the combined danger and sensuality that marks Blue Lines and Mezzanine is conspicuously absent on Protection. Even Nicolette's raspy voice on 'Three' and 'Sly' rings somehow hollow. The album also fails to set a consistent groove: of the 10 songs, there are 2 jazzy instrumentals (both of them superb), 2 poppier tunes sung by Tracey Thorn, 2 eclectic cuts rapped by 3D and Tricky, 2 loungy rhythm-based grooves by Nicolette and 2 disappointingly un-reggae tracks by Horace Andy. This grab bag of vocalists and styles overall simulates the disjointed feel of a compilation disc. It not only lacks the cohesive flow of Blue Lines and Mezzanine, but is a bit bumpy in terms of quality as well. The cuts by 3D/Tricky, Tracey Thorn and the instrumentals are absolutely ace, while Horace Andy's usually amazing voice grates on both 'Spying Glass' and 'Light My Fire'. Nicolette's tracks are kind of in the middle, highly listenable but not the CD's bread and butter. Overall this is not the Massive's strongest release, but mediocre Massive Attack is better than 90% of other bands at the top of their game. It's a very good album that, however unfair it may be, is forced into comparison with their near-untouchable debut. If taken on its own merits, Protection will not disappoint.

Protection was released in 1994. With Tricky already having success with his own newly made group Portishead, & with their massive hit album Dummy just around the corner, there was alot of pressure on Massive Attack. So on the album they used Everything but the girl's Tracy Thorn on lead vocals to replace Blue Line's female vocalist Shara Nelson, although she would return for the 1998 smash hit album Mezzanine.

The album begins with the lushous Protection, the groups sound has definitely changed, as it's more of a heavy beat than the first album & Tracy's vocals really work here. Karma Koma is next, this would be a very popular radio hit, and remains to this day perhaps the groups most well known song. Three is quite a dark track, again Tracy on vocals here, whilst the ellegant yet dark instrumental Weather Storm continues into the darkness. Spying Glass is a more of a hip tune, performed by Del Naja, whilst Better Things is a smooth sould tune, skillfully performed by Tracy. Euro Child is suprisingly the first rap song since Karma Koma (I say suprisingly as Blue Lines contained alot of rap tunes in it) Tracy's on vocals again for Sly, which returns kinda into the darkness, whilst if Sly was kinda returning the second instrumental of the album Heat Miser is definitely in the darkness. The album strangely ends with a live rendition of The Doors classic Light my Fire, but done in Massive style, it has to be heard to be believed!!!!

Protection is definitely different from its predecessor Blue Lines & whilst I'd definitely recommend it, I think I would advice people who are new to the group to buy Blue Lines first as Protection may be a bit too much for them to handle at first. The band would continue their direction towards darker music four years later in the smash hit release Mezzanine!!!!

Massive Attack has paved the way for all trip-hoppers and electronica artists. They masterfully out-do themselves on every album (with their best album therefore being Mezzanine) and with slow songs, gradual climaxes, and heavy beats, its irresistable to an electronica fan. There is no question that the best song on the album they put first, the title track, Protection. Its a sweet song, with tracey thorn's smooth vocals (I cant change the way you feel, but i can put my arms around you) with a great guitar riff and the classic massive attack beats, at more than 6 minutes long. No downtempo collection is complete without at least one massive attack record- and the rest of the album is pretty good- but the whole album is worth it for just that one song.