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Perhaps Maxinquaye was such a startling, focused, brilliant debut that Tricky's subsequent albums would have paled in comparison, regardless of their quality. Nevertheless, his desire to distance himself from the coffeehouse trip-hop that appeared after Maxinquaye forced him into a dark, paranoid corner. Determined to strip away all of his fair-weather fans, he delivered the claustrophobic Pre-Millennium Tension, a paranoid record that its follow-up, Angels With Dirty Faces, mirrors. Since it builds upon Pre-Millennium instead of breaking new ground, Angels may strike some listeners as merely a retread, but it gradually reveals new layers upon repeated listens. Tricky has been redefining his rhythms, adding skittering jungle loops and hardcore hip-hop beats to his trademark dub-warped trip-hop. On top of that, he's expanding his sonic palette, adding cheap synthesizers and avant-garde guitarists to create a nightmarish junk-pile of hip-hop, dub, electronica, rock, and gospel. Again, Martina is on board and her stylish croon adds moments of relief to the enveloping dread, as does Polly Harvey on the odd gospel-tinged "Broken Homes." Specific tracks work well individually -- "Mellow," "Singing the Blues," "Angels With Dirty Faces," and the absurd, bile-ridden "Record Companies," in particular -- but on the whole Angels With Dirty Faces is less than the sum of its parts. By being slightly different but essentially the same as Pre-Millennium Tension, Angels With Dirty Faces demands that listeners meet it on its own terms. Whether they'll want to is another matter entirely.
© Stephen Thomas Erlewine /TiVo
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Carlton Ridenhour, ComposerLyricist - ANDY WALLACE, Mixer, StudioPersonnel - Tricky, Producer, MainArtist, ComposerLyricist - James Henry Boxley III, ComposerLyricist - Martina Topley-Bird, MainArtist
℗ 1998 Island Records, a division of Universal Music Operations Limited
SUSAN ROGERS, Mixer, StudioPersonnel - Tricky, Producer, Mixer, MainArtist, StudioPersonnel, ComposerLyricist - Renée Scroggins, ComposerLyricist - Martina Topley-Bird, MainArtist
℗ 1998 Island Records, a division of Universal Music Operations Limited
SUSAN ROGERS, Mixer, StudioPersonnel - Tricky, Producer, Mixer, Keyboards, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, StudioPersonnel - Serge "Sergical" Tsai, Asst. Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Mary McCreary, ComposerLyricist - Martina Topley-Bird, Vocals, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Calvin Weston, Drums, AssociatedPerformer - Oswald "Wiz" Bowe, Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Patrice serapiglia, Guitar, AssociatedPerformer
℗ 1998 Universal Music Operations Limited
Jules Bartholomew, Background Vocalist, AssociatedPerformer - Marc Ribot, Acoustic Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Flood, Mixer, StudioPersonnel - JACK HERSCA, Additional Mixer, StudioPersonnel - Alison Goldfrapp, ComposerLyricist - Tricky, Producer, Mixer, Keyboards, Vocals, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer, StudioPersonnel - Serge "Sergical" Tsai, Asst. Recording Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Ethan Allen, Engineer, StudioPersonnel - PJ Harvey, Vocals, FeaturedArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Steve Musters, Engineer, StudioPersonnel - Martina Topley-Bird, Vocalist, MainArtist, AssociatedPerformer - Patrice serapiglia, Acoustic Guitar, AssociatedPerformer - Sisters-N-Brothers Choir, Vocals, AssociatedPerformer - Adrian Nicholas Matthews Thaws, ComposerLyricist
℗ 1998 Universal Music Operations Limited
SUSAN ROGERS, Mixer, StudioPersonnel - Tricky, Producer, Mixer, MainArtist, StudioPersonnel, ComposerLyricist - Martina Topley-Bird, MainArtist
℗ 1998 Island Records, a division of Universal Music Operations Limited
SUSAN ROGERS, Mixer, StudioPersonnel - Tricky, Producer, Mixer, MainArtist, StudioPersonnel, ComposerLyricist - Martina Topley-Bird, MainArtist
℗ 1998 Island Records, a division of Universal Music Operations Limited
Eric Sadler, ComposerLyricist - SUSAN ROGERS, Mixer, StudioPersonnel - Tricky, Producer, Mixer, MainArtist, StudioPersonnel - James Henry Boxley III, ComposerLyricist - Ricky M.L. Walters, ComposerLyricist - Martina Topley-Bird, MainArtist
℗ 1998 Island Records, a division of Universal Music Operations Limited
SUSAN ROGERS, Mixer, StudioPersonnel - Tricky, Producer, Mixer, MainArtist, StudioPersonnel, ComposerLyricist - Martina Topley-Bird, MainArtist
℗ 1998 Island Records, a division of Universal Music Operations Limited
SUSAN ROGERS, Mixer, StudioPersonnel - Billie Holiday, ComposerLyricist - Arthur Herzog Jr., ComposerLyricist - Tricky, Producer, Mixer, MainArtist, StudioPersonnel, ComposerLyricist - Martina Topley-Bird, MainArtist
℗ 1998 Island Records, a division of Universal Music Operations Limited
SUSAN ROGERS, Mixer, StudioPersonnel - Tricky, Producer, Mixer, MainArtist, StudioPersonnel, ComposerLyricist - Martina Topley-Bird, MainArtist
℗ 1998 Island Records, a division of Universal Music Operations Limited
SUSAN ROGERS, Mixer, StudioPersonnel - Tricky, Producer, Mixer, MainArtist, StudioPersonnel, ComposerLyricist - Martina Topley-Bird, MainArtist
℗ 1998 Island Records, a division of Universal Music Operations Limited
SUSAN ROGERS, Mixer, StudioPersonnel - Tricky, Producer, Mixer, MainArtist, StudioPersonnel, ComposerLyricist - Martina Topley-Bird, MainArtist
℗ 1998 Island Records, a division of Universal Music Operations Limited
Album review
Perhaps Maxinquaye was such a startling, focused, brilliant debut that Tricky's subsequent albums would have paled in comparison, regardless of their quality. Nevertheless, his desire to distance himself from the coffeehouse trip-hop that appeared after Maxinquaye forced him into a dark, paranoid corner. Determined to strip away all of his fair-weather fans, he delivered the claustrophobic Pre-Millennium Tension, a paranoid record that its follow-up, Angels With Dirty Faces, mirrors. Since it builds upon Pre-Millennium instead of breaking new ground, Angels may strike some listeners as merely a retread, but it gradually reveals new layers upon repeated listens. Tricky has been redefining his rhythms, adding skittering jungle loops and hardcore hip-hop beats to his trademark dub-warped trip-hop. On top of that, he's expanding his sonic palette, adding cheap synthesizers and avant-garde guitarists to create a nightmarish junk-pile of hip-hop, dub, electronica, rock, and gospel. Again, Martina is on board and her stylish croon adds moments of relief to the enveloping dread, as does Polly Harvey on the odd gospel-tinged "Broken Homes." Specific tracks work well individually -- "Mellow," "Singing the Blues," "Angels With Dirty Faces," and the absurd, bile-ridden "Record Companies," in particular -- but on the whole Angels With Dirty Faces is less than the sum of its parts. By being slightly different but essentially the same as Pre-Millennium Tension, Angels With Dirty Faces demands that listeners meet it on its own terms. Whether they'll want to is another matter entirely.
© Stephen Thomas Erlewine /TiVo
About the album
- 1 disc(s) - 12 track(s)
- Total length: 00:50:43
- Main artists: Tricky
- Composer: Various Composers
- Label: Universal-Island Records Ltd.
- Genre: Electronic Trip Hop
© 1998 Island Records, a division of Universal Music Operations Limited ℗ 1998 Island Records, a division of Universal Music Operations Limited
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