Esteemed Bristol trip-hop trio Massive Attack descended upon Glasgow, Scotland to deliver the first live performance of their extended 20th anniversary tour, an effort that pays homage to the group’s cerebral LP, Mezzanine. Although Massive Attack’s Mezzanine-focused 2019 tour is inherently rear-view facing, as the live initiative commemorates the impact of the seminal production, Massive Attack’s first stop of the tour evidences the Mezzanine tour to be a tasteful amalgamation of the classic sound of the album and modern technical touches.

Falling under the umbrella of the technological updates that the tour will mesh with time-honored Mezzanine sound is a novel audiovisual production from Adam Curtis. Well known for his past documentarian work, Curtis describes the visual component as a representation “of the strange journey” that Curtis and the members of Massive Attack experienced in the time following Mezzanine’s release. “The show tells the story of…how we have moved into a strange backward-looking world, enclosed by machines that read our data and predict our every move, haunted by ghosts from the past,” Curtis said of his creative contribution.

The sonic aspect of the Mezzanine tour proves to be a tasteful throwback to some momentous musical collaborations and individual album cuts. Liz Fraser of Cocteau Twins notably appeared alongside Massive Attack during their introductory Glasgow show to perform “Black Milk,” “Teardrop,” and “Group Four.” With the mentality of “the more the merrier,” Massive Attack additionally invited reggae vocalist Horace Andy to join the Bristol outfit on stage for “Man Next Door” and “Angel,” as well as one of Andy’s originals, “See a Man’s Face.” Andy and Massive Attack’s live rendition of “See a Man’s Face” marked the first performance of the song since 1998. Massive Attack also pleased crowd members with “Exchange” and “Dissolved,” two of the group’s less common set inclusions. Massive Attack lent their own magic to other musicians’ work as they delivered covers of The Velvet Underground’s “I Found a Reason,” Pete Seeger’s “Where Have All the Flowers Gone,” and The Cure’s “10:15 Saturday Night.”

Fan-recorded footage from the opening tour date only further illustrates the strength of Massive Attack’s first live impression on the Mezzanine tour, which will grow in potency with each ensuing date of the tour, spanning Europe and North America.

H/T: Consequence of Sound

Tags: 10:15 Saturday Night, cocteau twins, Horace Andy, I Found a Reason, liz fraser, Massive Attack, mezzanine, Pete Seeger, The Cure, The Velvet Underground, Where Have All the Flowers Gone

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