March 20th - Entertainment Centre, Adelaide, Australia
The cosmic joker is at work again, dropping Bristol’s Massive
Attack in Adelaide on the very day that Operation Iraqi Freedom begins. During
the 1991 Gulf War, the band was forced to cut their name to 'Massive' to ensure
continued Radio play!
The more things change the more they stay the same. Exactly 12 years after that
conflict, Massive Attack is once again embroiled in events transpiring in Iraq,
although Robert ‘3D’ Del Naja’s heightened celebrity position
ensures that no such passivity reoccurs and this time his opposition to the
US invasion is publicised more formidably. Shrugging of the drug and child pornography
busts that he has endured over the past two weeks, Del Naja emerges at the Adelaide
Entertainment Centre tonight with one thing predominantly on his mind...
Taking to the stage with the lights down low and a blue hue cast across his
face, 3D links hands with his nine fellow performers and states, “As you
know, the invasion of Iraq began today. We’d like to take a minute of
your time to think about the civilians caught up in this war.” After offering
a dignified minute of silence, the 4000 strong crowd is applauded by 3D and
the music arrives with new album 100th Window’s opening blast, 'Future
Proof'. A deceptively simple digital screen of binary codes flash behind 3D
before intensifying to a wave of colours and patterns as the song reaches its
peak.
While the rotating roster of Massive Attack collaborators Mushroom, Madonna,
Tricky, Shara Nelson, Tracey Thorn and Liz Fraser are all absent tonight, mainstay
Horace Andy makes a welcome appearance as he swaggers to the front of the stage
and delivers his trademark vibrato on 'Everywhen'. Although his performance
is sadly not as perfectly crisp as in the studio, the crowd cheer him warmly
as gentle giant Grant ‘Daddy G’ Marshall and 3D emerge from the
wings. To drown media speculation that internal rifts caused Marshall to be
excluded from the making of 100th Window, a grinning 3D hugs big Daddy and exclaims,
“The best of friends!” before the undulating Risingson commences.
Scottish singer/songwriter
Dot Allison, formerly of similar dub-pop act One Dove, asserts her place in
the Massive Attack live collective by delicately projecting her voice over the
strains of 'Black Milk'. Looking like a blonde pixie in front of the sparkling
digital backdrop, only the cheeky grin she gives when she drops her guitar pick
betrays Allison’s pokerfaced delivery.
With the 10 metre screen exploding with virus names, chemical symbols and lists
of South Australian towns and postcodes during each song, it is hardly surprising
that only a cluster of dates into the World Tour, 3D himself is still enjoying
watching the images flicker behind him between vocal obligations. Offerings
such as 'Special Cases' and 'Butterfly Caught' stand out as exceptional visual
and aural displays, however Dot Allison fails to capture the fragile ethereal
lilt of Liz Fraser on Mezzanine’s 'Teardrop'.
Shara Nelson’s substitute, Debra, a leather clad diva who is never fully
introduced to the crowd, proves to be a better surrogate performer. Having first
appeared alongside Horace Andy on 'Hymn Of The Big Wheel', she masterfully tackles
'Safe From Harm' while a relaxed looking 3D draws on his cigarette and watches
military finance statistics flash across the backdrop. After the rousing 'Inertia
Creeps' and 'Antistar' during the initial encore, Debbie returns for an immense
version of 'Unfinished Sympathy'.
While much of tonight’s show is obviously based on DAT recordings –
including much of the rumbling bass that represents a core element of the Massive
Attack sound – the final encore shows that the musicians backing tonight’s
performers are all experts. 3D takes to the stage and exclaims, “I should
be a proper gentleman and introduce Dot Allison properly” before both
commence volleying lyrics back and forth on 100th Window’s 'Group Four'.
While the swarming sounds of the lengthy rocky jam that conclude tonight’s
show reverberate around the room, all ten performers return to the stage to
bask in the cheers from the responsive crowd. Giving a final peace sign to the
roaring fans, 3D and his troops leave the stage, knowing that tonight’s
concert has triumphed in the face of intensifying global conflict.
1 Future Proof
2 Everywhen
3 Risingson
4 Black Milk
5 Angel
6 Special Cases
7 Butterfly Caught
8 Name Taken
9 Teardrop
10 Mezzanine
11 Big Wheel
12 Safe From Harm
13 Inertia Creeps
14 Antistar
15 Unfinished Sympathy
16 Group Four
by Scott McLennan
photos by Mazzie