Tricky | ||
| Allmusic Biography : Originally, Tricky was a member of the Wild Bunch, a Bristol-based rap troupe that eventually metamorphosed into Massive Attack during the early 90s. Tricky provided pivotal raps on Massive Attacks groundbreaking 1992 album, Blue Lines. The following year, he released his debut single, "Aftermath." Before he recorded "Aftermath," he met a teenage vocalist named Martina, who would become his full-time musical collaborator; all albums released under Trickys name feature her contributions. Tricky signed a contract with 4th & Broadway in 1994. The contract contained a clause that allowed him to release side projects under different names, in addition to regular Tricky releases. "Ponderosa" and "Overcome" were released over the course of 1994; that same year, he made a cameo on Massive Attacks second album, Protection. Trickys debut album, Maxinquaye, appeared in the spring of 1995. Not only did the album receive overwhelmingly positive reviews when it was released, but it entered the U.K. charts at number two, despite the total lack of daytime radio airplay. Throughout 1995, Tricky was omnipresent in the U.K., collaborating with and remixing for a wide variety of artists, including Björk, Luscious Jackson, and Whale. In the fall of 1995, he released Tricky vs. the Gravediggaz, a collaboration with the American hardcore rap group, as well as a single called "I Be the Prophet," which was released under the name Starving Souls. At the end of the year, Maxinquaye topped many year-end polls in Britain, including Melody Maker and NME. In February of 1996, Nearly God -- an album featuring Trickys collaborations with artists as diverse as Terry Hall, Björk, Alison Moyet, and Neneh Cherry -- was released, again to strong reviews; the album was released in the U.S. six months later. After completing the second full-fledged Tricky album, in early 1996 he relocated to New York City, where he began working with underground rappers. An EP called Grassroots was released in the U.S. in September. Two months later, Trickys official second album, Pre-Millennium Tension, was released. Again, Tricky received positive reviews, though there were a few dissenting opinions. In addition to his three releases of 1996, he remixed artists as diverse as Elvis Costello, Garbage, Yoko Ono, and Bush. Trickys next full-length solo effort, Angels with Dirty Faces, appeared in 1998, followed a year later by Juxtapose, a collaboration with Cypress Hills DJ Muggs and DMXs Grease. In 2001, Tricky returned with the Mission Accomplished EP, which was released by the Epitaph subsidiary label Anti. Blowback, his first for Hollywood Records, appeared later that June and included various collaborations with Hawkman, Lives Ed Kowalczyk, and Red Hot Chili Peppers Anthony Kiedis and John Frusciante. Increasingly aware of his brooding persona in the media and annoyed that popular music magazines had started labeling him "the Dark Prince," he made Vulnerable in 2003 as an attempt to expose himself as a more accessible artist. The same year, the Back to Mine label released an album of remixes that he compiled, before he took a five-year hiatus from recording new material. Knowle West Boy, his most critically acclaimed recording since Pre-Millennium Tension, marked a strong return by the trip-hop pioneer in 2008, and Tricky toured for a solid year behind it. In August of 2010 he emerged with the single "Murder Weapon," a reworking of Echo Minotts 90s-era dancehall hit that obsessed him. Following in the tradition of his infamous read of Public Enemys "Black Steel" with backing vocalist Martina Topley-Bird, "Murder Weapon," like its precursor, also featured a female voice, in this case, Irish-Italian singer Franky Riley, one of his backing vocalists on the road. Tricky followed the single with the album Mixed Race later that fall. Unhappy with Domino Records, he started his own False Idols label for the release of his ninth solo album, also named False Idols. After a couple of years of touring and festival appearances, he announced details of his tenth album, Adrian Thaws. Titled after his birth name, the 2014 release was another creative rebirth from the ever-evolving artist. Like 1996s Nearly God, his 2016 release Skilled Mechanics fell somewhere between a proper album and a side project, with Tricky joined by guests like Oh Land as well as artists from the False Idols imprint. He was back in 2017 with ununiform, which found him returning to his sonic roots with the help of frequent collaborators Topley-Bird and Francesca Belmonte, along with newcomers to his circle like Kazakh rapper Scriptonite and California vocalist Avalon Lurks, who sang on a cover of Holes "Doll Parts." | ||
 | Album: 1 of 23 Title: Maxinquaye Released: 1995-02-20 Tracks: 16 Duration: 1:16:13 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Overcome (04:30) 2 Ponderosa (03:30) 3 Black Steel (05:40) 4 Hell Is Round the Corner (03:47) 5 Pumpkin (04:30) 6 Aftermath (07:38) 7 Abbaon Fat Tracks (04:26) 8 Brand New You’re Retro (02:54) 9 Suffocated Love (04:53) 10 You Don’t (04:39) 11 Strugglin’ (06:38) 12 Feed Me (04:03) 1 Pumpkin (edit) (04:07) 2 Moody Broody Buddhist Camp (05:18) 3 Brand New Youre Retro (Alex Reece remix) (04:51) 4 Pumpkin (ambient) (04:44) |
| Maxinquaye : Allmusic album Review : Trickys debut, Maxinquaye, is an album of stunning sustained vision and imagination, a record that sounds like it has no precedent as it boldly predicts a new future. Of course, neither sentiment is true. Much of the music on Maxinquaye has its roots in the trip-hop pioneered by Massive Attack, which once featured Tricky, and after the success of this record, trip-hop became fashionable, turning into safe, comfortable music to be played at upscale dinner parties thrown by hip twenty and thirtysomethings. Both of these sentiments are true, yet Maxinquaye still manages to retain its power; years later, it can still sound haunting, disturbing, and surprising after countless spins. Its an album that exists outside of time and outside of trends, a record whose clanking rhythms, tape haze, murmured vocals, shards of noise, reversed gender roles, alt-rock asides, and soul samplings create a ghostly netherworld fused with seductive menace and paranoia. It also shimmers with mystery, coming not just from Tricky -- whose voice isnt even heard until the second song on the record -- but his vocalist, Martine, whose smoky singing lures listeners into the unrelenting darkness of the record. Once theyre there, Maxinquaye offers untold treasures. There is the sheer pleasure of coasting by on the sound of the record, how it makes greater use of noise and experimental music than anything since the Bomb Squad and Public Enemy. Then, theres the tip of the hat to PE with a surreal cover of "Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos," sung by Martine and never sounding like a postmodernist in-joke. Other references and samples register subconsciously -- while Isaac Hayes "Ikes Rap II" flows through "Hell Is Around the Corner" and the Smashing Pumpkins are even referenced in the title of "Pumpkin," Shakespears Sister and the Chantels slip by, while Michael Jacksons "Bad" thrillingly bleeds into "Expressway to Your Heart" on "Brand New Youre Retro." Lyrics flow in and out of consciousness, with lingering, whispered promises suddenly undercut by veiled threats and bursts of violence. Then, theres how music that initially may seem like mood pieces slowly reveal their ingenious structure and arrangement and register as full-blown songs, or how the alternately languid and chaotic rhythms finally compliment each other, turning this into a bracing sonic adventure that gains richness and resonance with each listen. After all, theres so much going on here -- within the production, the songs, the words -- it remains fascinating even after all of its many paths have been explored (which certainly cant be said of the trip-hop that followed, including records by Tricky). And that air of mystery that can be impenetrable upon the first listen certainly is something that keeps Maxinquaye tantalizing after its become familiar, particularly because, like all good mysteries, theres no getting to the bottom of it, no matter how hard you try. | ||
 | Album: 2 of 23 Title: The Hell E.P. Released: 1995-07-24 Tracks: 4 Duration: 19:31 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% AlbumCover | 1 Hell Is Round the Corner (03:47) 2 Hell Is Round the Corner (The Hell & Water mix) (04:22) 3 Psychosis (06:36) 4 Tonite Is a Special Nite (Kaos Mass Confusion mix) (04:44) |
 | Album: 3 of 23 Title: Grassroots Released: 1996 Tracks: 5 Duration: 21:12 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% AlbumCover | 1 Heaven, Youth Hell (03:42) 2 Tricky Kid (05:35) 3 Devils Helper (04:29) 4 Live W/ Yo Self (03:37) 5 Grass Roots (03:49) |
 | Album: 4 of 23 Title: Nearly God Released: 1996-04-22 Tracks: 12 Duration: 1:00:54 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Tattoo (05:30) 2 Poems (06:54) 3 Together Now (03:09) 4 Keep Your Mouth Shut (06:01) 5 I Be the Prophet (04:55) 6 Make a Change (06:00) 7 Black Coffee (04:50) 8 Bubbles (03:25) 9 I Sing for You (06:21) 10 Yoga (04:32) 11 Judas (04:22) 12 Childrens Story (04:51) |
| Nearly God : Allmusic album Review : Nearly God is Trickys unofficial second album -- he calls it a collection of brilliant, incomplete demos. When Tricky signed his contract with Island, it allowed him to release an album a year under a different name and Nearly God is the first of these efforts. Tricky recorded the record with a diverse cast of collaborators -- in addition to his partner Martina, theres Terry Hall, Björk, Neneh Cherry, Cath Coffey, Dedi Madden, and Alison Moyet (Damon Albarn pulled his track just before the albums release). Building on the ghostly, dark soundscapes of Trickys debut, Maxinquaye, Nearly God narrows the focus of his first record by making the music slower, hazier, and more distubing. Its not as coherent as Maxinquaye, but thats part of its appeal. Nearly God is a haunting, fractured, surreal nightmare that doesnt always make sense, but never fails to make an impact. Certain collaborators work better than others -- Tricky understands the eeriness of Terry Halls voice, but he does nothing to tame Alison Moyets inappropriate bluesy shrieking -- but the overall effect of the album is quietly devastating. It gets under your skin and stays there. Its a brilliantly evocative nightmare. | ||
 | Album: 5 of 23 Title: Pre-Millennium Tension Released: 1996-10-28 Tracks: 11 Duration: 45:35 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Vent (03:04) 2 Christiansands (03:53) 3 Tricky Kid (04:11) 4 Bad Dreams (04:12) 5 Makes Me Wanna Die (04:01) 6 Ghetto Youth (05:37) 7 Sex Drive (03:49) 8 Bad Things (05:11) 9 Lyrics of Fury (03:20) 10 My Evil Is Strong (03:59) 11 Piano (04:13) |
| Pre-Millennium Tension : Allmusic album Review : Maxinquaye was an unexpected hit in England, launching a wave of similar-sounding artists, who incorporated Trickys innovations into safer pop territory. Tricky responded by travelling to Jamaica to record Pre-Millennium Tension, a nervy, claustrophobic record that thrives in its own paranoia. Scaling back the clattering hooks of Maxinquaye and slowing the beat down, Tricky has created a hallucinatory soundscape, where the rhythms, samples, and guitars intertwine into a crawling procession of menacing sounds and disembodied lyrical threats. Its tone is set by the backward guitar loops of "Vent," and continued through the shifting "Christiansands," and the tense, lyrically dense "Tricky Kid," easily Trickys best straight rap to date. Occasionally, the gloom is broken, such as when the shimmering piano chords of "Makes Me Want to Die" ring out, but nearly as often, it becomes bogged down in its own murk, as in the long ragga rant "Ghetto Youth." While the lyrics are often quite effective in conveying dope-addled paranoia, what ties the album together is its layered rhythms and soundscapes. Though it might not sound that way immediately, Pre-Millennium Tension is as much Tricky reaching back to his hardcore rap roots as it is a sonic exploration. As such, it stands as a transition record for Tricky, but its overall effect is only slightly less powerful than Maxinquaye or Nearly God. | ||
 | Album: 6 of 23 Title: Angels With Dirty Faces Released: 1998-05-25 Tracks: 12 Duration: 50:42 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Money Greedy (05:29) 2 Mellow (03:33) 3 Singing the Blues (03:27) 4 Broken Homes (03:33) 5 6 Minutes (04:46) 6 Analyze Me (04:00) 7 The Moment I Feared (04:03) 8 Talk to Me (Angels With Dirty Faces) (04:28) 9 Carriage for Two (04:44) 10 Demise (03:48) 11 Tear Out My Eyes (04:25) 12 Record Companies (04:22) |
| Angels With Dirty Faces : Allmusic album Review : Perhaps Maxinquaye was such a startling, focused, brilliant debut that Trickys subsequent albums would have paled in comparison, regardless of their quality. Nevertheless, his desire to distance himself from the coffeehouse trip-hop that appeared after Maxinquaye forced him into a dark, paranoid corner. Determined to strip away all of his fair-weather fans, he delivered the claustrophobic Pre-Millennium Tension, a paranoid record that its follow-up, Angels With Dirty Faces, mirrors. Since it builds upon Pre-Millennium instead of breaking new ground, Angels may strike some listeners as merely a retread, but it gradually reveals new layers upon repeated listens. Tricky has been redefining his rhythms, adding skittering jungle loops and hardcore hip-hop beats to his trademark dub-warped trip-hop. On top of that, hes expanding his sonic palette, adding cheap synthesizers and avant-garde guitarists to create a nightmarish junk-pile of hip-hop, dub, electronica, rock, and gospel. Again, Martina is on board and her stylish croon adds moments of relief to the enveloping dread, as does Polly Harvey on the odd gospel-tinged "Broken Homes." Specific tracks work well individually -- "Mellow," "Singing the Blues," "Angels With Dirty Faces," and the absurd, bile-ridden "Record Companies," in particular -- but on the whole Angels With Dirty Faces is less than the sum of its parts. By being slightly different but essentially the same as Pre-Millennium Tension, Angels With Dirty Faces demands that listeners meet it on its own terms. Whether theyll want to is another matter entirely. | ||
 | Album: 7 of 23 Title: Juxtapose Released: 1999-08-16 Tracks: 12 Duration: 44:29 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 For Real (03:30) 2 Bom Bom Diggy (04:06) 3 Contradictive (03:04) 4 She Said (03:30) 5 I Like the Girls (02:57) 6 Hot Like a Sauna (04:19) 7 Call Me (03:35) 8 Wash My Soul (03:51) 9 Hot Like a Sauna (Metal mix) (03:35) 10 Scrappy Love (03:14) 11 Who (03:29) 12 Bombing Bastards (05:15) |
| Juxtapose : Allmusic album Review : Trickys potential once seemed boundless, but by the time of his fifth album, Juxtapose, he hadnt expanded his trademark sound: a creeping, menacing blend of hip-hop, alternative rock, and ragga, all delivered with stoned paranoia. Perhaps Tricky realized that its rewards were smaller with each subsequent album, since he designed Juxtapose to be his most ambitious, eclectic album since Maxinquaye, and the one that finally broke him to the mainstream American hip-hop audience. So, he teamed with DJ Muggs (the architect of Cypress Hills sound, a clear precedent for Trickys) and DMXs producer, Grease. The end result is hardly a collaboration -- in fact, it feels truncated, weighing in at a mere 35 minutes -- but it works in other ways, since Tricky often seems revitalized. That much is evident on the stellar opening cut, "For Real"; the music is spaced-out, sexy, melodic, and appealing, even when it gets foreboding. Its a terrific beginning, suggesting that this will be the first album to offer significant variations on Trickys signature sound. And it does, but it may not go far enough for some tastes, since a good portion of this brief album is devoted to retreads, which reveal his weaknesses all too well. Tricky remains unduly infatuated with ragga, letting British toaster Mad Dog run wild; his frenetic delivery single-handedly breaks the spell of each track hes featured on. But elsewhere, Tricky pushes forward in inventive ways that add weight to Juxtapose -- "Contradictive" is his best pop move to date, blessed by Spanish guitars and elongated strings; the paranoid drums of "She Said" successfully deepen the menace; and "Scrappy Love" is a haunting blend of soul and trip-hop, with eerie piano reminiscent of DJ Shadow. Juxtapose is a qualified success, but it is a success since the moments that work are his best in years. | ||
 | Album: 8 of 23 Title: Mission Accomplished Released: 2000-10-23 Tracks: 4 Duration: 16:28 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify AlbumCover | 1 Mission Accomplished (03:13) 2 Crazy Claws (04:22) 3 Tricky versus Lynx (live) (02:45) 4 Divine Comedy (06:07) |
 | Album: 9 of 23 Title: Remixed Released: 2001 Tracks: 9 Duration: 54:48 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Grandmaster (Durban Poison mix) (feat. John Tonks) (06:35) 2 Marbles (Why You Say Yes...) (remix by Tricky) (04:45) 3 Distorted Angel (remix by Tricky) (05:34) 4 Where Do We Go From Here (Tricky remix) (05:04) 5 Summer Nights (remix) (06:52) 6 Natsu No Hi (Tricky remix) (04:31) 7 Agolo (Hows Tricks mix) (09:36) 8 In a Lonely Place (Tricky mix) (07:32) 9 Milk (The Tricky mix) (04:19) |
 | Album: 10 of 23 Title: Blowback Released: 2001-06-20 Tracks: 20 Duration: 1:19:38 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Excess (04:46) 2 Evolution Revolution Love (04:14) 3 Over Me (02:59) 4 Girls (04:23) 5 You Dont Wanna (05:28) 6 #1 Da Woman (02:42) 7 Your Name (03:39) 8 Diss Never (Dig Up We History) (02:52) 9 Bury the Evidence (04:55) 10 Something in the Way (03:27) 11 Five Days (04:22) 12 Give It to Em (03:07) 13 A Song for Yukiko (04:10) 1 Excess (radio edit) (03:46) 2 My Head (03:24) 3 Five Days (instrumental) (04:20) 4 Suffocating (demo) (04:07) 5 Divine Comedy (06:07) 6 Your Name (instrumental) (03:37) 7 Unofficial (03:06) |
| Blowback : Allmusic album Review : First, the bad news. There are no new tricks on BlowBack, the star-studded 2001 comeback by Tricky, the pioneering trip-hopper that wandered his way into the wilderness. He wandered so far that nobody really cared anymore if he had anything to say -- particularly because he wound up saying the same thing, slightly differently, over and over again. He doesnt escape from this problem here, yet hes found a map -- and that map is craft. He knew this before, since the best moments of Angels With Dirty Faces and Juxtapose were when he knew how to spin his signatures just right, so they jelled into something brilliant. He has the same gift here, and he extends it throughout the record, so this is the first record that really plays smoothly from start to finish since Pre-Millennium Tension. That, of course, isnt the same thing as being as good, since he has ceased to innovate, and he has a couple of annoying flaws, including his tendency to create one mood and sustain it without developing it, plus his love of dancehall toasting. The thing is, for all of his genius, Tricky doesnt really have the greatest taste in the world. Yes, hes worked with Björk and PJ Harvey, but hes also brought Bush into the studio, and here Lives Ed Kowalczyk, three members of the Red Hot Chili Peppers, and Cyndi Lauper all contribute sonic coloring. The genius of Tricky is, he knows how to pull out the best in such unlikely collaborators, making it sound like a natural extension of his work. Then again, it could just be that John Frusciante and Flea know "Brand New Youre Retro" so well, its easy to turn it out again on "Wonder Woman." So, its a mixed bag, but it plays sharper than his albums of late. Yes, there are some astonishing slips -- the backing track of "Something in the Way" sounds great, but Hawkman, the ragga bane of this album, castrates it of its power -- but, at this point, thats a given with Tricky. Once you get past that, once you stop expecting genius -- or at least something that matches Maxinquaye (or even Tension) -- its much easier to enjoy BlowBack. | ||
 | Album: 11 of 23 Title: A Ruff Guide Released: 2002-05-27 Tracks: 17 Duration: 1:06:38 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Aftermath (Version One) (05:04) 2 Poems (edit) (04:16) 3 For Real (03:31) 4 Black Steel (radio edit) (03:42) 5 Pumpkin (edit) (04:08) 6 Broken Homes (03:36) 7 Wash My Soul (03:54) 8 I Be the Prophet (with Drums) (04:56) 9 Makes Me Wanna Die (04:05) 10 Tricky Kid (04:13) 11 Scrappy Love (03:14) 12 Ponderosa (original 7" edit) (03:33) 13 Christiansands (03:54) 14 Hell Is Around the Corner (03:48) 15 Singing the Blues (03:30) 16 Bubbles (03:29) 17 Overcome (03:45) |
| A Ruff Guide : Allmusic album Review : Trickys debut, Maxinquaye, is an album of stunning sustained vision and imagination, a record that sounds like it has no precedent as it boldly predicts a new future. Of course, neither sentiment is true. Much of the music on Maxinquaye has its roots in the trip-hop pioneered by Massive Attack, which once featured Tricky, and after the success of this record, trip-hop became fashionable, turning into safe, comfortable music to be played at upscale dinner parties thrown by hip twenty and thirtysomethings. Both of these sentiments are true, yet Maxinquaye still manages to retain its power; years later, it can still sound haunting, disturbing, and surprising after countless spins. Its an album that exists outside of time and outside of trends, a record whose clanking rhythms, tape haze, murmured vocals, shards of noise, reversed gender roles, alt-rock asides, and soul samplings create a ghostly netherworld fused with seductive menace and paranoia. It also shimmers with mystery, coming not just from Tricky -- whose voice isnt even heard until the second song on the record -- but his vocalist, Martine, whose smoky singing lures listeners into the unrelenting darkness of the record. Once theyre there, Maxinquaye offers untold treasures. There is the sheer pleasure of coasting by on the sound of the record, how it makes greater use of noise and experimental music than anything since the Bomb Squad and Public Enemy. Then, theres the tip of the hat to PE with a surreal cover of "Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos," sung by Martine and never sounding like a postmodernist in-joke. Other references and samples register subconsciously -- while Isaac Hayes "Ikes Rap II" flows through "Hell Is Around the Corner" and the Smashing Pumpkins are even referenced in the title of "Pumpkin," Shakespears Sister and the Chantels slip by, while Michael Jacksons "Bad" thrillingly bleeds into "Expressway to Your Heart" on "Brand New Youre Retro." Lyrics flow in and out of consciousness, with lingering, whispered promises suddenly undercut by veiled threats and bursts of violence. Then, theres how music that initially may seem like mood pieces slowly reveal their ingenious structure and arrangement and register as full-blown songs, or how the alternately languid and chaotic rhythms finally compliment each other, turning this into a bracing sonic adventure that gains richness and resonance with each listen. After all, theres so much going on here -- within the production, the songs, the words -- it remains fascinating even after all of its many paths have been explored (which certainly cant be said of the trip-hop that followed, including records by Tricky). And that air of mystery that can be impenetrable upon the first listen certainly is something that keeps Maxinquaye tantalizing after its become familiar, particularly because, like all good mysteries, theres no getting to the bottom of it, no matter how hard you try. | ||
 | Album: 12 of 23 Title: Vulnerable Released: 2003-05-19 Tracks: 13 Duration: 44:31 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Stay (03:48) 2 Antimatter (02:59) 3 Ice Pick (03:08) 4 Car Crash (03:42) 5 Dear God (03:47) 6 How High (03:12) 7 What Is Wrong (03:32) 8 Hollow (04:10) 9 Moody (03:20) 10 Wait for God (04:02) 11 Where Im From (02:48) 12 The Love Cats (02:52) 13 Search, Search, Survive (03:06) |
| Vulnerable : Allmusic album Review : Previously the darling of the alternative dance scene following his groundbreaking 1995 trip-hop debut Maxinquaye, Adrian Thaws, aka Tricky, has spent the subsequent eight years almost destroying his visionary status thanks to a worrying God complex and a series of increasingly erratic albums, none of which have come close to matching the aforementioneds inventively sinister soundscapes and contrasting blends of sweet-sung melodies and claustrophobic lyrics. Two years after the star-studded BlowBack, the former Massive Attack cohort returns with his seventh studio album in eight years, Vulnerable which, as its title suggests, has been described as his most honest and open record to date. While its 13 tracks are unlikely to capture the zeitgeist in the same manner of his most celebrated record, its unarguably his most accessible offering since, thanks to a newfound, sunnier disposition, perhaps inspired by his relocation to Los Angeles, and the presence of Italian vocalist Costanza Francavilla, a fan who attracted Trickys attention after giving his drummer one of her demos following a gig in Rome. She may not possess the beguiling sultry qualities of his former muse, Martina Topley Bird, but her delicately fragile and honeyed tones provide a welcome companion to his trademark mumbling growls, particularly on the playful boy/girl melodies of opening track "Stay" and the indie-funk rhythms of the Madchester-esque "Antimatter." Elsewhere, "Car Crash" is a gorgeously languid slice of dream pop reminiscent of the acoustic chillout of Zero 7, likewise "Hollow," a blissful fusion of skittering beats, trippy guitars, and enchanting choral voices, while "Lovecats" is an inspired, dub-heavy reworking of the Cures 1983 classic hit single. Unfortunately, the nu-metal leanings that dogged his last album are still very much evident, such as on the doom-laden and plodding thrash-out "How High," and the Rage Against the Machine pastiche production of "Moody," while his unapologetic diatribe against the editor of The Face magazine on "Search, Search, Survive" is a rather unpleasant way to close a predominantly optimistic effort, which shows that Tricky is still prone to the occasional paranoid rambling every now and then. Eight years on from Maxinquaye, its seeming increasingly unlikely that Tricky will ever properly fulfill his huge promise. But while Vulnerable undeniably lacks the unpredictability and genuine innovation of his early days, its a solid and surprisingly melodic affair which is a huge improvement on his often unlistenable last few efforts. | ||
 | Album: 13 of 23 Title: Back to Mine: Tricky Released: 2003-09-15 Tracks: 16 Duration: 53:38 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Lullaby (04:15) 2 How We Ride (03:23) 3 My Melody (05:39) 4 Mirror in the Bathroom (02:28) 5 Loop Garoo (04:29) 6 Receive Us (03:04) 7 Potion (02:00) 8 You Tear Me Up (02:23) 9 Much Finer (02:55) 10 Night Nurse (03:33) 11 Symphony for Irony (04:05) 12 Eat the Music (04:47) 13 Desire (03:52) 14 My Funny Valentine (02:19) 15 Just a Little Bit (02:16) 16 Days Like This (02:01) |
| Back to Mine: Tricky : Allmusic album Review : Predictably unpredictable and unnerving as all get-out to sit through, Trickys contribution to the Back to Mine series still manages to be an absorbing listen, despite all of the slammed-together transitions and wild stylistic jumps from track to track. Trickys picks continually flit from old favorites of his to new discoveries and projects -- several of which are given their first official airings. The disc begins as solidly and smartly as any other edition of Back to Mine, with smooth transitions within the first four disparate tracks. The Cures eerie, string-laden "Lullaby" is successfully blended into the queasy sway of Radannas "How We Wide," a street-oriented downtempo/gangsta hybrid featuring the compiler on the mike. This abruptly shifts into Eric B. & Rakims "My Melody," which carries the melody from its predecessor for nearly two minutes. From there, the disc derails and gets back on track a number of times. Unsurprising appearances from Kate Bush ("Eat the Music"), Buzzcocks ("You Tear Me Up"), and Chet Baker ("My Funny Valentine") are broken up with more of Trickys own projects and interests, including a pair of tracks from artists (Kat Cross, Costanza) who are at least partly molded in his image. After the initial third of the disc, theres little sense of continuity; the odds are pretty good that youll have to make sure at least once that you havent accidentally hit the shuffle button. (This has been a constant issue with the Back to Mine series; ideal batches of songs are put together without considering whether or not theyll work well together.) Even more perplexing are the observations made in the liner notes. Some of the things listeners learn: Tricky had sex with a half-Jamaican/half-Spanish girl to Gregory Isaacs "Night Nurse"; you cant hear Kate Bushs parents in her voice; the Streets Mike Skinner samples "crap"; "Maxwell is as soulful as a plate of fish and chips." | ||
 | Album: 14 of 23 Title: Knowle West Boy Released: 2008-07-07 Tracks: 13 Duration: 45:53 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Puppy Toy (03:34) 2 Bacative (03:51) 3 Joseph (02:28) 4 Veronika (02:59) 5 Cmon Baby (03:03) 6 Council Estate (02:39) 7 Past Mistake (05:07) 8 Coalition (03:58) 9 Cross to Bear (03:45) 10 Slow (03:22) 11 Baligaga (03:42) 12 Far Away (03:38) 13 School Gates (03:47) |
| Knowle West Boy : Allmusic album Review : Is the year 2008 a Bristol revival? First theres a new Portishead recording (Third), their first in over a decade, then Massive Attack finishes a new album (Weather Underground) and curates the Meltdown festival, and finally, Trickys released his finest record since Pre-Millennium Tension. Knowle West Boy is named for the Council Estates housing project neighborhood Tricky grew up in. This set is not shrouded in mystery: its autobiographical. Its the first album of well-crafted songs hes come up with since Maxinquaye (but doesnt sound a thing like it). As has been his wont since early on, Tricky also employs a host of other vocalists here for the sake of expressing more complex emotions, and also toward spinning a more complete -- if sometimes complex -- narrative. Rage and paranoia havent been replaced so much as theyve been extrapolated upon and expanded by humor, joy, bravado, and an authentic vulnerability and sense that the personal is political, as this set deals straight on with issues of race and class without even remotely preaching. That said, its a down and dirty musical beat collision that combines punk, reggae, funk, pop, and hip-hop and hard rock in a wicked brew that is focused and in your face. The set begins with a lounge-blues soundscape that evokes the late-night feel of Barry Adamson at his sleaziest. It explodes about a minute in, strutting its scrappy big band against Fripp-ian guitars, a cracking distorted snare, and cymbal thuggery. The cool thing is in its humor. Tricky plays a lounge lizard boasting about himself to a young woman (Alex Mills) who hands it back to him on a funhouse mirror. The first single, "Council Estate," is a furious punk anthem created as a football-style chant set to a post-punk bassline, with big menacing kick drums, staggered reverb vocals, and Tricky letting the pride in his upbringing come to the fore. Its a breathless two-and-a-half minutes, but its the best thing here. "Past Mistake" is reminiscent of the torch song duet balladry of Nearly Gods "Poems," a tune Tricky performed with Terry Hall and Martina Topley-Bird. "Bacative" employs a ragged punk-charged ragga, and features toaster Rodigan (a New Yorker of West Indian origin). He begins his toast to a plucked cello, drum loops, snares, tambourines, and a set of hi-hat cymbals that shimmer above the bassline. "Joseph" is titled for a young man who does the vocals. The use of harp, hand drums, vibes, and a synthed bassline is strangely atmospheric and haunting. "Veronika" features vocals by French-Moroccan vocalist Lubua; it commences with a slew of distorted beats and tom-tom loops that feel like a military march; her voice is anything but, however. She expresses hurt, heartbreak, and anger brought about by the absent subject. She is also present on the haunting ballad "School Gates" that closes the set; a haunting ballad about a teen pregnancy told from both male and female points of view. "CMon Baby" is a rockist thumper that evokes AC/DC with beats! There is also a cover here of Kylie Minogues "Slow." Whereas the original is all sleek, sensual, and inviting, Tricky inverts the songs meaning by becoming a sleazy, macho Lothario narrating. Knowle West Boy is not another Maxinquaye (it doesnt try, either) but it is a very strong, accessible set that puts his renewed creativity on display in a blur of sound and color. It not only re-establishes him as a pioneer, but as an engaging personae who isnt hiding behind his sonic palette anymore; his music is all the better for it. | ||
 | Album: 15 of 23 Title: Tricky Meets South Rakkas Crew Released: 2009-11-30 Tracks: 10 Duration: 43:24 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Bacative (04:18) 2 Joseph (04:38) 3 Cmon Baby (03:58) 4 Coalition (03:55) 5 Cross to Bear (04:12) 6 Slow (04:07) 7 Baligaga (03:52) 8 Numb (06:09) 9 Far Away (04:55) 10 Baligaga (dub) (03:20) |
 | Album: 16 of 23 Title: Mixed Race Released: 2010-09-27 Tracks: 10 Duration: 29:23 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Every Day (02:25) 2 UK Jamaican (02:43) 3 Early Bird (03:29) 4 Ghetto Stars (03:27) 5 Hakim (02:44) 6 Come to Me (03:55) 7 Murder Weapon (02:58) 8 Time to Dance (02:24) 9 Really Real (02:47) 10 Bristol to London (02:25) |
| Mixed Race : Allmusic album Review : When Tricky returned from his five-year recording hiatus with the autobiographical Knowle West Boy in 2008, he proffered a hard-hitting set of songs and soundscapes comprised of originals and covers that roared with confrontational brownpunk energy. Two years on, Mixed Race is as direct as its predecessor, but sparser, more spacious, mostly low-key, and very brief (under half an hour). While its sound is still in-your-face, its remarkable how little murk there is -- despite the layers of backing tracks. Lyrically its autobiographical, but its also a gangster album. The sound of guns being cocked and loaded is almost ubiquitous. The signpost is the single, a revisioned take on Echo Minotts 90s dancehall hit "Murder Weapon." The lyric (delivered by Trickys brother Marlon Thaws), full of references to guns and shoot-em-up street battles, is juxtaposed with Henry Mancinis "Peter Gunn Theme" and a sampled blues harmonica riff. Its sound looks to the past for inspiration while looking only at itself as a map reference. "Bristol to London" rips on the old-school styles of Brit-hop with a furious synth up front and three staggered rhythms. The wiry funk in "UK Jamaican," with singer Terry Lynn, defines the plight of immigrants who think (or are forced to think) with "Kingston logic." "Ghetto Stars," one of numerous tracks to feature Trickys excellent touring vocalist Franky Riley, comments on the reality of gangster life in public housing projects with dramatic string samples, slow, menacing loping beats, and metallic guitars. She also shines on the spooky, sinister, drone-blues opener, "Every Day." "Hakim" uses a North African motif, handclaps, and both vocal and lute from Hakim Hamadouche (Rachid Taha), along with a shuffling rhythm track. "Early Bird," with its slow chunky guitars, shimmering cymbals, muted trumpet, and a knotty little single-string blues guitar riff, is dark and imposing. "Come to Me" is a (literally) finger-popping jump jazz love song, slowed down to cough syrup flow. "Time to Dance," the closest Tricky claims he will "ever get to disco," is synthed-out minimalism, dry and deadpan. "Really Real," a collaboration with Primal Screams Bobby Gillespie, is a spaced-out, aimless dronescape, with guitars and rhythm tracks crisscrossing in a repetitive mantra-like manner. Ultimately, Mixed Race, with its simmering tension, is a worthy follow-up to Knowle West Boy, and a fine entry in Trickys catalog overall. | ||
 | Album: 17 of 23 Title: Matter of Time Released: 2013-03 Tracks: 4 Duration: 13:14 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% AlbumCover | 1 Matter of Time (02:50) 2 I Could (02:57) 3 Forget (03:46) 4 Frenglish (03:39) |
 | Album: 18 of 23 Title: False Idols Released: 2013-05-24 Tracks: 15 Duration: 44:59 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Somebody’s Sins (02:39) 2 Nothing Matters (03:18) 3 Valentine (03:16) 4 Bonnie & Clyde (03:04) 5 Parenthesis (02:57) 6 Nothing’s Changed (03:19) 7 If Only I Knew (03:14) 8 Is That Your Life (02:45) 9 Tribal Drums (03:35) 10 We Don’t Die (03:11) 11 Chinese Interlude (02:15) 12 Does It (02:58) 13 I’m Ready (02:36) 14 Hey Love (03:08) 15 Passion of the Christ (02:44) |
| False Idols : Allmusic album Review : Finished with his recording obligations with Domino, Tricky sounds refreshingly relaxed and grounded for his 2013 release False Idols. Two decades after the release of his breakout release, Maxinquaye, an album that skyrocketed the ripe 18-year-old into the limelight and the public eye, he takes issue with the concept of celebrity. Being that trip-hop has fallen in and out of fashion, Trickys musical (and acting) career has seen extreme ups and downs, so he has first-hand experience with the trappings of fame. Former L.A. connections led to some misguided, obligatory team-ups, like working with the Red Hot Chili Peppers or Lives Ed Kowalczyk, for instance, so its a relief to see him on a musical path where he is paired with artists who are cut from the same cloth. The most high-profile guest appearance involves the Antlers Peter Silberman on a reworking of his indie bands song "Parenthesis," which updates the original by transforming the lush Radiohead soundscape into a stark beat and a Yeah Yeah Yeahs-styled guitar riff. It arguably improves on the original. However, the best songs on False Idols involve new vocal collaborators Francesca Belmonte, Fifi Rong, and Nneka Egbuna. Their seductive voices are reminiscent of Trickys earlier work with Martine or Elizabeth Fraser, and when paired with beats that feel fresh in 2013, but are also based in the expected 90s Bristol dubby atmospherics and trip-hop beats, songs like "Is That Your Life," "If Only I Knew," and "Tribal Drums" stand up with his career highs. Occasionally parts of the album get bogged down with spirituality ("Passion of the Christ" and Van Morrisons "Somebodys Sins") -- which isnt surprising, because conceptually, Tricky seems to be doing some soul-searching -- but the running time is long, and at least three quarters of the album is top-shelf. | ||
 | Album: 19 of 23 Title: Adrian Thaws Released: 2014-09-05 Tracks: 14 Duration: 41:05 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Wikipedia Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Sun Down (03:40) 2 Lonnie Listen (03:15) 3 Something in the Way (03:24) 4 Keep Me in Your Shake (03:27) 5 The Unloved (skit) (01:09) 6 Nicotine Love (03:06) 7 Gangster Chronicle (02:59) 8 I Had a Dream (02:38) 9 My Palestine Girl (03:32) 10 Why Dont You (03:32) 11 Silly Games (03:36) 12 Right Here (02:58) 13 When You Go (00:47) 14 ESP (02:53) |
| Adrian Thaws : Allmusic album Review : As the calendar turned to 2014, rapper, producer, and trip-hop icon Tricky had spent a couple years decrying his classic 1995 debut Maxinquaye, calling it a directionless "coffee-table album," as if it were up to him. Like 2013s False Idols, Adrian Thaws (Trickys real name) is further proof that the mans ideas about whats good for his future are inversely proportional to his awareness of whats good from his past. This grooving, shifting, murky mix of menace and darkness borrows from the current landscape of pop as few earlier albums do, and borrows with love and admiration, as the bubbling techno of "Nicotine Love" and the A$AP Mob-style beats of key cut "Lonnie Listen" ("I work out everyday and Im still not fit/My kids are hungry and I aint got shit") feel all the way live and vital. On the other hand, "I Had a Dream" with Francesca Belmonte is elegant, reserved, and a traditional type of beautiful, slinking across some downtown loft with looped-piano riffs and gruff whispers making it identifiably Tricky. Other songs are identifiably him because of their lazy sway, and yet the Deluxe Editions closing cut, "Different People," pops with a light funk beat, while the cover of the reggae favorite "Silly Games" -- featuring the albums sweet secret weapon, singer Tirzah -- aint reggae, but ska, just at an acceptable trip-hop tempo. Lyrically, disgust and disgrace are always close at hand, with sentimental and wistful bits pulling things toward the positive, and if ever there seemed a Tricky album designed for variety night, its this one, as the second half embraces indie, funk, R&B, and various strains of electronic dance. If False Idols was the return, Adrian Thaws is the great diversification, and if being disappointed with your universally accepted classic inspires greatness like this, then Maxinquaye be damned (but only in Trickys presence). | ||
 | Album: 20 of 23 Title: European Tour Bonus Tracks Released: 2015-01-13 Tracks: 3 Duration: 07:28 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% AlbumCover | 1 Nicotine Love (French Language Version feat. AJEYA) (03:05) 2 Ready (feat. AJEYA) (01:25) 3 Same Old Song (feat. AJEYA) (02:58) |
 | Album: 21 of 23 Title: Skilled Mechanics Released: 2016-01-22 Tracks: 13 Duration: 34:35 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Im Not Going (02:54) 2 Hero (02:24) 3 Dont Go (03:14) 4 Beijing to Berlin (02:53) 5 Diving Away (02:11) 6 Boy (02:55) 7 Bother (02:25) 8 Hows Your Life (03:00) 9 Here My Dear (02:39) 10 We Begin (01:37) 11 Well (02:51) 12 Necessary (03:36) 13 Unreal (01:50) |
| Skilled Mechanics : Allmusic album Review : Like his 1996 LP Nearly God, Trickys 2016 release Skilled Mechanics falls somewhere between a proper artist album and a side project. Collaborators are heavy in the mix, many of them coming from the trip-hop survivors label, False Idols, but if this LP was just meant to pimp the roster, then confessional masterpieces like "Boy" ("At 12 I met my dad, his name was "Roy"/He forget my name, he call me "Boy") wouldnt be dropped here. A wistful and indie-influenced tune with Luke Harris crooning most of it, the highlight "Hows Your Life" is another personal journey as Tricky realizes his homebody style and middle age nature mean friends slowly drift away, but in true Nearly God fashion, this is also a spiritually free album, so dont be shocked when Porno for Pyros "Diving Away" gets a two-minute, loose run-through with a thumb piano driving the melody. "Beijing to Berlin" is mostly a tribute to its guest artist, Chinese rapper and producer Ivy, as a hyped-up Tricky gets dope-boy fresh and spits "Shes amazing, Shes amazing," and then with the cold force of Dr. Dre, "Shes from Beijing." Other tracks find the MC mumbling over Luke Harris and DJ Milos indie electronica songs. Many of the cuts run somewhere in the two-minute range when they could be stretched further and yet the Massive Attack-like riffs and fantastic production ideas flow through every track. The whole thing comes off as an imaginary Tricky radio station where the DJ plays his own stuff and mixes himself into other artists tracks, so if alternate views and unclassifiable collections are desired, Skilled Mechanics isnt a lark or a side project but a necessity. | ||
 | Album: 22 of 23 Title: The Obia EP Released: 2016-09-29 Tracks: 7 Duration: 22:19 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify AlbumCover | 1 Damballah (03:58) 2 For Nothing (03:12) 3 Nenaviju Izmenu (03:13) 4 Tin Man (02:23) 5 Does It (02:41) 6 Wolves (03:35) 7 Irradiant (03:17) |
 | Album: 23 of 23 Title: Ununiform Released: 2017-09-22 Tracks: 14 Duration: 43:07 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Obia (intro) (01:57) 2 Same as It Ever Was (03:46) 3 New Stole (03:06) 4 Wait for Signal (03:05) 5 Its Your Day (02:03) 6 Blood of My Blood (03:13) 7 Dark Days (02:45) 8 The Only Way (04:51) 9 Armor (02:25) 10 Doll (03:06) 11 Bang Boogie (01:18) 12 Running Wild (03:37) 13 When We Die (03:43) 14 The Only Way (04:07) |
| Ununiform : Allmusic album Review : On the Bristol trip-hop icons 13th official studio effort, ununiform, hints of Trickys glory days and ghosts from his mid-era experiments come together in an adequately enjoyable merger. Engineered by Jay-Z, this follow-up to 2016s Skilled Mechanics contains just enough fresh ideas to warrant a listen. For longtime fans, the good news is that ununiform includes a sufficient amount of his trademark claustrophobia and paranoia to remind them of his early era, with tracks like "Obia Intro," the menacing "Its Your Day," and the lush acoustics of the Portishead-evoking "The Only Way" emerging as emotive highlights. When Tricky retreats to lurk in the dark corners of ununiform, an impressive roster of guests emerges. Frequent collaborator Francesca Belmonte appears on "New Stole," which is essentially her 2015 single reimagined with some Tricky growls. Another familiar face, early muse and ex-girlfriend Martina Topley-Bird, delivers an album-closing standout with "When We Die," a classic-sounding rumination on mortality. Elsewhere, Asia Argento whispers her way through the patient "Wait for Signal" while Rituals of Mine vocalist Terra Lopez lets loose on the highlight "Armor." While Russian rapper Smoky Mo contributes a show-stealing but all-too-brief verse on "Bang Boogie," its actually Kazakh rapper Scriptonite who is the albums secret weapon and true MVP. Appearing on almost a third of ununiform, his presence adds tension to songs like the throbbing "Same as It Ever Was" and the pensive "Blood of My Blood," a perfect foil to Trickys musings. Two decades after Maxinquaye and its difficult not to continue comparing his subsequent output to that landmark debut, however unfairly. So while this LP is yet another release that is not Maxinquaye, compared to the average Tricky album, its accessible, mostly focused, and offers a handful of moments that remind listeners of his early promise and hold attention until his next effort. | ||