bristol, england's Massive Attack--previously known in their uber-dub days as the Wild Bunch--have been given critical accolade for Mezzanine and Protection for good reason. my original fear of buying (or listening to) Blue Lines was that it would be too antiquated to enjoy. after all, i felt that Protection didn't maintain the same vigor toward the end. but i was thoroughly pleased with Blue Lines because it showcases the group's superb sense of sampling, instrumentation, and style. in 1991 the first of the trip-hop armada (sneaker pimps, portishead, tricky, everything but the girl and others) landed with a collected aura.

the album features more rhyming from del naja, marshall, and andy than the two works to follow and one would think their outmoded style would come off as tacky but it fits perfectly into Blue Lines. they bring, with Tricky guest appearing, a kind of avant-garde jazz to it all as songs like "safe from harm," "daydreaming," and "heat miser" portray this cool, composed flow. the singers pre-date elizabeth fraser and tracy thorne, but this is a good thing since your listening to them isn't colored by other projects they were involved with. this is an album you listen to after your frantic night of clubbing or a wicked house party: it's chilled and ready to serve.