massive attack

DVD RELEASE

November 12th 2001 sees the release of all eleven Massive Attack videos on DVD. These include MTV award winners 'Protection' and 'Teardrop' plus the previously unreleased 'Angel'. The disc will come in a text< free, clear plastic package although some images will be available to download from this site for use as artwork. The DVDs full tracklisting is as follows with each directors name in brackets:

Daydreaming (Baillie Walsh) Unfinished Sympathy (Baillie Walsh) Safe from Harm (Baillie Walsh) Be Thankful For What Youve Got (Baillie Walsh) Sly (Stephane Sedanoui) Protection (Michel Gondry) Karmacoma (Jonathan Glazer) Risingson (Walter Stern) Teardrop (Walter Stern) Angel (Walter Stern) Inertia Creeps (Wiz)

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Watch some of them here (in QuickTime):

Daydreaming: S  M  XL
Protection: S  M  XL
Teardrop: S  M  XL

It'll just be the eleven videos with no extras or out After the four videos with Baillie, we floundered a little bit with Sly. I was never too keen on it because its a bit of a mess and too ambitious. But we came back with Protection which won an MTV Award. Michel Gondry is one of the best directors out there. Then we met up with Jonathan Glazer who was doing ads at the time and Karmacoma was his first venture into doing promo videos. Obviously hes directing movies like Sexy Beast and Radiohead videos now.

We did Risingson with Walter Stern who had also done stuff for the Prodigy. Then there was Teardrop which was another MTV Award winner and then we did Angel. We never put it out at the time because we felt it didnt represent what we were trying to put across. It was a good piece of film but it didnt achieve what we felt the song had in it, the song had drama to it and so did the video but the video didnt really represent the song. But looking back on it, its still a good piece of work. It needs to be in for historical reasons, just for the time line. Finally we did Inertia creeps with Wiz. Again, that was quite a minimal, dark video which was also fun to do.

Picking out a favourite is hard. When we first saw Unfinished Sympathy in the editing suite we were really unhappy because the things we knew were supposed to happen didnt happen. It was one steadycam shot and the cameraman got tired throughout the day and missed quite a few things. We were disappointed initially but in retrospect I think that was a great video. The Verves video for Bittersweet Symphony was a pastiche of that video and Walter Stern made it so when we started working with him, there was plenty of banter going round!

The Protection video was one of the most memorable because it was one ofthe most difficult. It was an amazing idea and, for Michel Gondry, to pull it off was just the most amazing feat. The two days of rehearsal and shooting in Paris were just so hard. Everyone was suspended in an upside down position and shot from above in a flattened building which was meant to look like it was upright. It was one shot from a moving camera in a crane and she used pulleys and projection screens to give the effect of things moving.

Michel was interesting because most directors we met showed us storyboards and plans but she showed us a proper 3D plan of the set in with Lego characters and everything. We sat in the pub with her and we were completely sold on the idea. It deserved to win the MTV Award because it might not have been the most visually stunning video ever made, but everyone in the industry knew how much effort had gone into making it.

The reason why were doing this release is partly because theyre great videos but also to close the chapter on ten years and start something new. To be honest, part of me is also thinking, what is the point of releasing singles and what is the point of making videos and spending all that money? The single format is quite redundant nowadays for people who arent in the pop or dance field so the video is pretty much a waste of time.

There is a possibility that we might never make another video; we might make a film or work with an animator or do something over the internet. This might be the end of an era; the era of wasting all your money on promo videos. And weve certainly wasted enough money on them as youll see when you look through these eleven.

ALBUM UPDATE

At the moment, were trying to give the thing some focus. Theres about tento fifteen tracks which are working properly. Im finishing lyrics for a couple of tracks, G and Horace have also done some vocals and Id like to see most of the vocals recorded over September and October. I want to do the string arrangements in November along with some other instrumental pieces and we might even boldly mix some of the tracks in December. But theres no such thing as a final mix with us.

The thing about our band is that things always happen for a reason; coincidences, bumping into people, people moving into our sphere and orbit. If you try and rush things, youre inevitably going to fuck it all up. When its right, its right and you just have to accept that with Massive Attack. Once youve done an album you can say this is our reason for not giving a fuck. Were not going to give ourselves a schedule; I know it sounds selfish but thats just the way it is.

1999-2001 LOOKING BACK

We were still touring in 1999 but our split with Mushroom was a heavy and major issue which really changed the shape of our lives, not just as a band. It was a strange year because we were touring with something that was part of our past. In that year we did the biggest gigs wed ever done but they felt strange because we knew the band was in a different shape and in a bit of a mess as well. Mushroom had left us and wasnt touring with us so the band had moved into a new shape but we were playing all the old songs.

A lot of the things we recorded at the end of 1999 and beginning of 2000 still sound good but they probably belong to another band. A lot of the things we did with Lupine Howl sound post< Mezzanine now. You grow out of things quickly and you want to go off somewhere else. 2000 started with all these tracks but by the end of the year, I was sick of all of them. So this years almost been like starting again.

Its been a big year, a busy year and I think everyone has been saying what a difficult year its been. We opened this bar called nocturne and thats taken up a lot of energy. I love the place and Im really proud of what we did with it but its been a major responsibility, a bit of headache and a big distraction. In hindsight, it was probably not the right time to be doing that sort of thing but thats life eh?

THE FIRST TEN YEARS OF MASSIVE ATTACK

I was 23 when Blue Lines came out and im a good deal older than that now. We always envisaged longevity for the band but we never imagined how it would happen in practise. You always think this is great, this is going to last forever but sometimes it feels like a childhood which is going to come to an end. We might not have survived the split with Mushroom; we might not have survived a lot of things. But there is still a lot of creativity in both camps which has enabled us all to go onwards which is a great achievement.

Weve never been the type of band which has needed to create its own profile and be talked about in the music press or in tabloid gossip columns. Thats always been our strength; the fact that weve kept away from all that. We can disappear and then present ourselves via the music. If its good, then weve done ourselves a service by being honest and being creative and if the music isnt any good then weve fucked it anyway. Regardless of what kind of marketing that goes alongside it, if we put out an album that is isnt up to scratch, theres nowhere to hide for us.

MEMORYANDDREAMSTORAGE

The response section of this site will shortly incorporate a link to hyperlink http://www.madstorage.com this site allows respondents to leave notes about their dreams, thoughts or memories that can then either be cross 'We wanted to do something a bit more interesting than just putting a noticeboard up on the site. Its more of an exploratory thing where people can talk about the things they want to talk about like their thoughts, dreams and ideas. And then people can access all that via subject matter. When you look at the MADS site, youll come up with a list of references. If youre interested in the things people have written and you like their ideas, then you can click on their name and find everything else theyve written. Its just a little bit more creative than a straight noticeboard. Rather than posting a short message and getting a short response, its a more creative way to get involved. And its not just about us all the time but people are talking about themselves and their ideas. It goes way beyond us; were just the route inwards.

MELANKOLIC RECORDS UPDATE

2002 is set to be a busy year for Melankolic Records with three albums pencilled in for release in January and February and two more to come later in the year. Enigmatic hip hop artist Lewis Parker releases his second album for Melankolic in January 2002 entitled Its All Happening Now.

Craig Armstrong follows his scores for Moulin Rouge and the forthcoming Bridget Fonda and Jet Lee film, Kiss of the Dragon with a new album for Melankolic. He releases the follow up to The Space Between Us in February. Entitled As If To Nothing, it features a number of collaborations including one with Bono and the Edge. They have recorded an acoustic version of Stay (Far Away, So Close) from U2s Zooropa album. Craig had previously arranged the strings for U2s soundtrack work on the Batman film. Other guest vocalists on As If To Nothing include Evan Dando, who recorded a track entitled Wake Up In New York. David Macalmont contributed vocals on Snow and Antye from the german band Laub added her talents to a song entitled Waltz.

Also pencilled in for a February 2002 release is the second Day One album. As yet untitled, it was partly recorded in LA with one In the old days, a band might start off with a ten-year plan but now theyve got one album and thats it. So, to create a label where its all about evolution and creativity is almost an irony. Its difficult to keep peoples interests because there is so much for them to be distracted by. In europe, theres been a lot more real interest in the label. I think people are a lot more patient with the whole thing. Its very difficult to claim attention for any experimental music. Weve tried to create a label for all the people weve met who are creative and give them a place to be creative in a commercial space with the backing of a company who are real.

Go to www.massiveattack.co.uk.

Massive fans should also check out the releases on their own record label MELANKOLIC. There's Horace Andy's latest album Living In The Flood, the debut album (and remixes) from the brilliantly laid back Alpha and another from long-time collaborator Craig Armstrong.