After my first attempt of an honest music review, I managed to get my hands on Knowle West Boy today before tomorrow’s release date to check out the new sound from Tricky. If anyone knows me, you know I’m a giant Massive Attack fan and have had thousands of track plays logged on iLike and Last.fm, so I was hoping for the best on this first listen. Tricky ran with Massive for a few years in the early 90s after their brief run known as The Wild Bunch, contributing to Blue Lines and one of my personal favorite albums, Protection. Since the mid 90s he’s been on his own, breaking out with his solo debut Maxinquaye in 95 and collaborating with an array of lesser-known talented vocalists.
On first listen through, its overall sound is a bit lacking and the attitude appears to be a bit trite, reserving any integrity I hoped it would deliver. Puppy Toy kicks off the record with a more groovy Puscifer REV 22:20 styled track, offering what would appear to be a taste of Bristol’s, Knowle West (and no, that’s not Bristol Palin’s future baby’s name; however, to be fair, I’m putting $20 on it).
This record didn’t hit me as hard (sonically) as I would’ve liked, similar to a bland dinner plate that looks like it would taste off the hook immediately but ultimately leaves you going “aww man” after you take one bite. Extremely diverse in styles, I would’ve liked to have heard more fast tracks like Tricky’s newest single, Council Estate. While Council Estate walked through the door, smelling like it had been sleeping with Outkast, it contained less polish and more gritty realism, which I liked, but at a total track time of 2:41 left me feeling unsated and wanting to be excused from the table.
I decided to stick around and see what else was on the menu.
The next track down the list that grabbed me was Coalition. While it reminded me of Lo Fi Allstars’ Battleflag, it never really hit hard like I was hoping it would. I really hope someone will remix it. The lyrics and lines on this track are probably the best and most upfront strikes on the record, sampling, “The revolution will be televised in Iran, And the Holy Koran, You can go on to the internet, log in to your local war. You can read your paper. Receive a mental scar. Gets your happy meal in your happy car”. Again, I had the feeling like it was just missing the bullseye.. or target.. or donkey ass.
The last track, School Gates, has amazing lyrics and a great rebel cowboy feel. In 3/4 with a great guitar pluck line, crisp acoustic guitar sound, slide guitar, alternate female vocals, this is possibly the best song that was put together on the record for its length at 3:47. Along with the haunting feel of melodramatic lyrics, it really set the tone for the 12 previous tracks for me as an undeserving feeling of melancholy sadness.
I expect mixed reviews from consumers and semi-moderate praise from critics. Knowle West Boy hits a nerve that never really wanted to be hit. While the female cameos on the record are beautiful and somewhat moving, it’s not enough to distract me from the subpar song writing, uninventive production, and lack of anything hard-hitting. After one listen, it was enough to make me want to blast some Rage so I could get a dose of drops and slamming choruses I so sorely needed.
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