www.list.co.uklmusic
‘IN THIS CASE LESS IS DEFINITELY MORE'
"r?"
All in the head
Ten years out of the spotlight has only added to the mystique surrounding Portishead. On the eve of a rare live show Mark Robertson explores their appeal
it today's staek ‘em liigll. sell “em eheap. tll'tip ‘em eyen quieker musie industry where the write— reeord—release-tour hamster wheel is king. the return of Bristolian trio l’ortishead baek into our liy'es is a eause for eelebration for some and relief for others. ('elebration for those who haye been waiting just oyer a decade for more music. and relief for the band. in that they ean still do it. l’ortishead's numbers are impressiye. 'l'heir new album. the numerieally aware 'I’liinl. arriyes ten years
after their last release. eoneert album Ix’ost'lum/ .\")’(‘
Lire. The I l songs on their new reeord brings their total reeorded sttidio output to around 34 songs. 'l‘liat works out at roughly two a year sinee their formation in I‘Nl. In this ease. less is definitely more.
Time however. has not diminished their appeal. \Vhat initially faseinated about Portishead eontinues to intrigue. They make something so desperately sad sound aehingly beautiful. Beth (‘iibbons~ yoiee sounds so ineomprehensibly fragile and (ieoff Barrow and Adrian l'tley‘s musie taps into niggling. beatifie grooyes and beats btit still sounds einematie and otherworldly. It is sparse. at times painfully simple. but enormously affeeting.
Beth (iibbon‘s ayersion to the press means that. onee again. Messrs Barrow and l'tley hay e been
eliarged with the responsibility of explaining their
extended hiatus. What they‘ve said so far intimates that a long drawn out series of personal and musieal dead ends at the root eause: both l'tley and Barrow got diyoreed and started families in the interim while Beth (iibbons squee/ed out an autumnal solo album
in 2003. Subsequently. the trio endured sundry stymied writing and t'eeoi'ding sessions.
The band eurating All 'l‘omorrow”s l’arties festiy'al late last year was a first ehanee to hear new material but also an indication of where their eolleetiye heads were at. musieally. Barrow has said already that he and (iibbons had reeonneeted not oy'er hip hop like they did back in l‘Nl btit oy‘er experimental drone
roekers like liarth and Sunn ()lll. ’l‘here are touelies of
this kind of influenee on Third: it is l’ortishead grow n-up. the familiar struetures giyen life by surprising new timbres and tones. Barrow has also elaimed eleetroniea as a defining influenee. an assertion that's borne out in the judder of lead single ‘.\laehine (iun‘. lt informs the reeord just as hip hop did their debut. They still rumble with the same funereal paee. btit musieally. 'I‘lu'n/ is inflised with a deeade‘s worth of influenees.
The band‘s slothly work rate. infrequent liy'e shows. distaste for interyiews and general trueulenee only adds to l’ortishead‘s appeal. We‘ye beeome aeeustomed to knowing eyerything from inside leg
measurements to the iee-eream llayour preference of
our roek stars. so it is refreshing just how little we know about this trio. Aside from (ieoff Barrow's intermittent blog entries . whieli eoneerned themselyes more with his naseent fury at terrible teleyision shows than any real musieal insights —- they’y e giy en as little to go on. But when you hear the songs. you won‘t eare: the musie is enough.
Corn Exchange, Edinburgh, Sat 12 Apr.
1151'
>l<
THE BEST ROCK, POP. JAZZ & FOLK
.' ll 'llfi'l "ill 2 it‘- iiiLiIi M"
.l'
Radar Bros. Languid Californian outfit signed to Chemikal Underground inspire thoughts of Lauren Canyon and Beach Boys harmoniousness. Yum. Barfly, Glasgow, Tue 75 Apr. (Rock 8 Pop) Portishead See preview. left. Corn Exchange, Edinburgh, Sat 72 Apr. (Rock 8 Pop) Whitehouse A grand finale from the legendary industrialists who are hanging up their murderous synth barrage after almost three decades of beating audiences into mushy pulp. They will be missed. The Hive, Edinburgh, Sat 7 2 Apr. (Rock 8 Pop) =i< Paul Halg Reclusive indie demi-god and one-time Josef K head honcho breaks out into the open for his first gigs in a decade with a chance to hear songs from Go Out Tonight, his first full band album in 15 years. See preview. page 64. Voodoo Rooms, Edinburgh, Sun 73 Apr. (Rock 8 Pop) >l< Edwyn Collins Another veteran of the Postcard Records scene makes a welcome return to the stage. See Five Reasons, page 7?. Queen's Hall, Edinburgh, Mon 27 Apr; Oran Mor, Glasgow, Tue 22 Apr. (Rock 8 Pop) >i< Karine Polwart She's got one of those amazing voices that could sing your shopping list and sound entrancing, Polwart is a singular talent as new record This Earthly Spell is as good as you'll hear all year. See preview, page 64. Queen ’3 Hall, Edinburgh, Sun 73 Apr; Fruitmarket, Glasgow, Thu 77 Apr; Tolbooth, Stirling, Fri 78 Apr. (Rock 8 Pop) 3: Make Model Jaunty electro indie with big, fat choruses aplenty from this kinetic sextet from Glasgow whose debut album arrives with us in May. King Tut '3, Glasgow, Sat 72 Apr; Cabaret Voltaire, Edinburgh, Sun 73 Apr. (Rock 8 Pop)
7.03/3 Apr 2008 THE LIST 63