Artist

Portishead

1991-present·Bristol

Geoff Barrow had already put in studio time as a tape operator on Massive Attack's Blue Lines before meeting Beth Gibbons on a Bristol job-training course, a genuinely unglamorous origin for a band that would go on to define a genre's mood. They formed Portishead in 1991, and the contrast with Massive Attack's method was immediate and deliberate: where Massive Attack built outward through a rotating crew of collaborators, Portishead, with guitarist Adrian Utley, built inward, toward something closer to film noir scored with hip-hop drum breaks, tape hiss and Gibbons' unresolved, aching voice.

The full story is in Bristol Trip Hop.

At a glance

Active
1991–present
From
Bristol, England
Records in the issues
3 (1994–2008), 1 of them a Start here pick
Original labels
Go! Beat and Mercury Records
Listening guide track
“Glory Box”

Listen

In the Bristol Trip Hop listening guide: “Glory Box”

In the issues

  • Bristol Trip Hop
    Principal · 1983-1998 · Members

    Bristol Trip Hop is a music scene from Bristol, England, 1983–1998. Its principal artists include Massive Attack, Portishead, Tricky and The Wild Bunch. This issue covers 9 essential albums and 11 dated events.

Records