Beth Gibbons voice is creeping emotion sputtering out those secrets in the twisted cabaret in my head. The mood is dark, the atmosphere thick with betrayal and yearning, strangers with glassy eyes litter the joint while their own desperate desires join the din of bereavement. All flesh is cold to the touch and no one speaks above a raspy whisper. Whiskey is the drink of choice and everyone is melting into their chairs.

While trying to escape the drunk, I stumble over someone who falls out of his chair. Another liquor-soaked refugee from planet Earth, I think, but no - it turns out to be a mannequin. Ahhh, that explains so much - those lifeless eyes, the cold skin, yet it still whispers, it whispers to me: "where is Albert?"


I actually give it four and a half...   February 28, 1999
 12 out of 14 found this review helpful

But I can't quite give it five becaue I know what this band is capable of. In my mind, perhaps the most original and influential band of the 90's, Portishead comes out with another great album. If it weren't for the absolute brilliance of their first album and the expectation that it caused for me, I would give this five stars. "Mourning Air" is a masterpiece, and "Western Eyes" is a beautiful touch. I still am absolutely in love with Beth Gibbons, even though there are a few points in this CD when her singing gets a bit loud and unbearable. Do not worry if you do not like other things you have heard labeled "trip hop", Portishead transcends this label, and most other categories. Dummy took a while to grow on me, and perhaps all this CD needs is a few more weeks of deep listening before it joins my list of all time classics, but for right now I have to keep it just slightly behind Dummy, if for nothing else because Dummy came Four years ago and truly revolutionized the music scene.


Not Essential   December 17, 2005
 12 out of 18 found this review helpful

This is a much more challenging listen that "Dummy" but ultimately nowhere near as satisfying. The main problem is the mix - the sound on this is bone dry and Beth sounds like she's singing in another room. It's a pretty unique sound but very alienating and it hurts the songs. The other problem is that you just can't listen to this after having heard the "Roseland NYC Live" CD. The versions on that CD of the songs from this album are so superior to the versions here that it's not even funny. I heard NYC Live before I heard this and I think that's a big reason why I have never been able to get into this album. All in all, I agree with the other reviewer who said that "Dummy" and "Roseland NYC Live" complete the Portishead picture and this is really unnecessary if you have those two albums. Actually, NYC Live is probably their best release. I would recommend that to newcomers as ALL of the performances on that are improvements on their studio counterparts and it contains all of their best songs with the exception of "Numb".


I feel so cold...   April 12, 2006
 10 out of 10 found this review helpful

There's nothing like Portishead and nothing like their 2nd album. Its darker, creepier, and more haunting than the first. The entire album has an overal similar sound which makes for a more themed and theatrical sonic experience. I like this better than the first album which had the obvious singles and dabblings in various spectrums of trip-hop which now resembles everyone from tricky to morcheeba. However on this 2nd release, Portishead holds their own, establishing their own trademarked sound: an eerie, slow-paced death-orchestra led by a sultry singer with a heart of black-gold. This music will get into your brain and eat away like bad acid. Exquisite production and smart use of turntables. From the intro of eerie high pitched twinklings over a heartbeat that lead into twangy strums of electric guitar and record scratching, to the last song which ends with the sampled vocals of an old bluesman pining about hookers and gin, this is a masterpiece recording. Goes well with a late-night martini and captures the dreary mood of a cool, misty morning in Autumn just after it has rained and the fog is still hanging in the air...