Third by Portishead

My first thought the other day when I heard Portishead had a new album was "why didn't anybody tell me there was a new Portishead album," my second thought was "well, that didn't take very long to download, technology is great," and my third thought was "Holy fuck, this was worth an eleven year wait." This is an amazing album in every way - if it was more trip hop beats with a piano and orchestra, well, who would care? But this is a much more minimalistic album that builds its tension and emotional direness using collage and sharp, sudden changes in tone. It's fucking fantastic, and (although I can't tell yet because I've only had it for a day and a half) probably better than any other Portishead album. I know I'm always saying this like all the time, but you will be doing yourself a huge favor if you pick it up, and if you don't then at least check out these tracks first.

RATING: 94%