Re: Madonna, Portishead + Marvin Gaye

Erik Gaderlund
Tue, 17 Mar 1998 01:57:12 -0800

>At 07:30 PM 3/15/98 -0500, James Baker wrote:
>>
>> Has anyone heard the new Madonna album? I caught about thirty seconds worth
>> in a record shop today, and was left thinking 'Madonna's been listening to
>> Portishead'. I'm not sure whether this means there is hope for the music
>> world or whether I've simply lost my senses.
>>
>
>Elson:
>I've heard several tracks; I don't quite think it sounds like Portishead at
>all; Portishead is more sample-based, while "Ray of Light" has a lot of those
>filtered synth bleeps all over the place; of course, it's a William Orbit
>production. It's more trancey than trip-hop. It's not a bad album, it's not
>what I expected, but that's probably a good thing. Though it may sound good,
>for her to do a full-on, say, Goldie-esque jungle or Portishead-esque trip-hop
>thing, it wouldn't really sit well with many people - both fans of Madonna as
>well as the jungle & trip-hop crowd would kinda be turned off by it. Nothing
>on the album is *truly* exciting, but I give her all props for at least
>creating a sound that is electronic dance music yet still is uniquely Madonna,
>rather than trying to sound like someone else (God knows how many other
>trip-hop groups out there sound like Portishead!) I do like Portishead, and I
>even like a lot of their 'clones', but I say there should be a moratorium on
>groups coming out that sound like Portishead. There's more to trip-hop than
>Portishead.

Well, to bring two threads together I remember seeing a Marvin Gaye tribute
on MTV/VH-1 where massive attack did a cover with Madonna singing lead.
Maybe if she has worked with one side of the Bristol sound she can work on
the other?

And, anyone seen the Vicoria's Secret ad? It has the massive's 'Safe From
Harm' in the background.

Now Playing,
the black dog "Spanners"

later,
erik g