KSPACE.TV » massive attack

VIDEO OF THE DAY: UNKLE The Answer

Jez Smadja — Sat, 18 Sep 2010 13:00:01 +0000

There’s little doubting that Massive Attack have been a big influence on James Lavelle’s approach to the music business, whether adopting their stencil aesthetic for his Mo’ Wax label, or enlisting A-list part-time collaborators on his UNKLE albums. So it’s no surprise that this new hi-def UNKLE video, directed by John Hillcoat (The Road) and starring hard-nut actor and East Londoner Ray Winstone reminds us of none other than Massive Attack’s recent forays into video such as ‘Paradise Circus’, a mini-documentary about 70s porn star Georgia Spelvin, and ‘Saturday Come Slow’, a political piece about noise torture. In another overlap, the video for Massive Attack’s ‘Karma Coma’ was directed by Jonathan Glazier, whose big break came in 2000 with the feature film Sexy Beast about a retired robber in the Costa Del Sol, played by, you guessed it, Ray Winstone.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Track of the Day: Massive Attack Gui Boratto Remix

Matt Diehl — Wed, 17 Feb 2010 21:52:11 +0000

“Mellow but uplifting” is how tastemaker DJ Rob Da Bank introduced Gui Boratto’s remix of the new Massive Attack track “Paradise Circus” on a recent radio show, and that’s a pretty good way to put it. Brazilian DJ/producer Boratto is the most maximal of the minimal techno generation, filling his insistent grooves with stirring emotion and (gasp!) something resembling pop hooks; therefore he’s a perfect choice to remix a track off Heligoland, the latest album from the trip-hop titans.

Massive Attack are legendarily moody, and the minor chord melodies of “Paradise Circus,” along with the hushed, whispery voice of guest singer Hope Sandoval (of Mazzy Star fame), certainly go to that dark place. But Boratto brings an undercurrent of euphoria to the proceedings, with a tribal backbeat, shuffling hi-hats, and guitar/bass lines that split the difference between Ennio Morricone’s spaghetti Westerns and New Order’s blue Mondays. In Boratto’s transformation, “Paradise Circus” shimmers on simmer, staying true to the spirit of the original yet giving it new life. It’s a subtle revision, but in doing so, Boratto has created what may be one of the remixes of the year.

Collectors Item: Massive Attack – Splitting The Atom EP

Matt Diehl — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 22:40:43 +0000

So far, everything new we’ve heard/seen from Massive Attack, the Led Zeppelin of dark downtempo grooves, has been brilliant – from the amazing “Pray For Rain” featuring TV On The Radio’s Tunde Adebimpe to the waaaaaay NSFW video for the song “Paradise Circus”, which also has a great vocal from Mazzy Star chanteuse Hope Sandoval. So it’s no surprise that the limited vinyl edition of Massive Attack’s “Splitting The Atom” e.p. – its only physical would be so artistic and collectable.

Limited to 1,000 copies, individually numbered, and pressed on 180 gram vinyl (the highest possible quality for a record), this edition of “Splitting The Atom” is a class package worth whatever it will garner on eBay, certainly… What it makes the whole thing transcendent, however, is the cover art print from a painting by Massive Attack member Robert Del Naja, aka “3D.” Del Naja’s visual work resembles Francis Bacon remixed by Banksy (this is meant as a compliment), so it’s no wonder he’s been making waves on the gallery scene as well. Taken together, it just makes us long for the 2010 release of Massive Attack’s next, much-anticipated full-length album. We’ll be sure to pick that up on vinyl, too…