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Last Active 12-09-22 12:08 am
Joined 08-22-13
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| These Aren't Your Top 10 III: Portishead
Some weird picks some conventional ones... no "Glory Box" even though it's amazing. Oh well. This list was actually rather difficult to make. | | 10 |  | Portishead
Third
"Nylon Smile"
Something about the drums really sets the mood for this song. It didn't initially stick out for me on the album, but upon further listens it become the song on the album most stuck in my head. Those backmasked sounds are absolutely gorgeous. | | 9 |  | Portishead
Dummy
"It Could Be Sweet"
Beth Gibbon's emotional vocal delivery on this song is just so sublime. The frantic percussion really blend in well with the otherwise chill and somber instrumentation. It's such a simple track, especially when compared to most of Dummy, but in a way that's what make it's a standout in a sea of greatness. | | 8 | | Portishead
Dummy
"Sour Times"
Speaking as catchy as hell songs, Portishead's biggest hit easily makes the top 10. Instrumentation that sounds like it belongs in a detective movie, an incredibly memorable bassline and a chorus to die for, the only thing to complain about this song is that it wasn't an even bigger hit. | | 7 |  | Portishead
Portishead
"Humming"
The theremin, the string section, the crackling production, it' the perfect example of why Portishead's s/t is definitely their most ominous. Plus the way Gibbon's rhymes "so long" and "so wrong" is actually cooler than words could express. | | 6 | | Portishead
Third
"We Carry On"
Portishead wears their Silver Apples influence on their sleeve on track. Easily one of their most musically hectic, this song a complete departure for their 90s style and it is one of the reasons why I believe Third is even better than their s/t. It invokes the feeling of a noisy factory which I find to be really entertaining. | | 5 | | Portishead
Portishead
"Cowboys"
I believe this is Portishead's best opener, and that's saying a lot because Portishead is great at opening their albums, hell they're just great at making music let's be honest. The politically charged lyrics, her shrill vocal style that's missing from their other 2 albums, and that sweet turntable solo make this song one hell of a monster. | | 4 | | Portishead
Third
"Machine Gun"
It'd be really difficult to argue that there's a more abrasive Portishead track than this, and it'd also be hard to argue that there's a Portishead song more unique than this (other than maybe "Deep Water" but obviously that doesn't belong on a top 10 list despite it being really cool too.) What makes Third really stand out in general is that the lyrics actually take a bit of a backseat to the music, which is really unique for Portishead and here it works perfectly. | | 3 | | Portishead
Dummy
"Biscuit"
It really took a long for me to love this as much as I see, but let's be honest, it's probably Portishead's most sensual song. I mean just listen to the words of the chorus. Plus that sample of the man at the end is strange in all of the right ways. Portishead really makes a great use of the turntables as well. Breathtaking. | | 2 | | Portishead
Portishead
"Only You"
The sample on it "move it like that..." is cool as hell, the political lyrical content easily keeps my attention, the brief break to the orchestral sounding section that soon turns into a jazzy solo is possibly my favorite musical moment of a Portishead song. To believe that there's a song that I think tops this... | | 1 | | Portishead
Dummy
"Roads"
"How can it feel, this wrong."
That lyric carries so much weight as Beth Gibbons sings it with a plethora of passion. It's depressing, yet beautiful. It's timeless. Not to mention that I haven't even brought up anything else about this song yet so here we go: the string section is easily up to par, if not even more emotional than anything else on the album, the guitar is just as sad as her voice. Hell this song just makes me want to give Beth Gibbons a hug and tell her everything will be alright. I feel like this song is about believing in something that's unpopular or even scorned in society, but feeling sure that you're the one with the moral high ground, and being depressed that few agree. A unique song topic that that somehow anyone could probably relate to in some manner... the desperation, it's palpable, and I rarely connect with songs to this extent. | |
ArsMoriendi
03.16.16 | Hope they make a 4th album. | Frippertronics
03.16.16 | idk bout you but I'm sure Cowboys is a fan favorite | StallionMang
03.16.16 | biscuit is easily top 10 | TwigTW
03.16.16 | So many great songs to choose from, but I'd still have to include Glorybox . . . The Second album was released in 1997, Third in 2008, so expect the fourth around 2017-18, right? lol, I'm not holding my breath. | Sinternet
03.16.16 | Roads is definitely my favourite good pick | ArsMoriendi
03.16.16 | Yeah it's brilliant it's crazy that Elysium and Mysterons aren't on here. They'd be my 11 and 12. | Muppelope
03.16.16 | Was just about to ask about Mystereons. I've only heard Dummy, but great picks for 1 and 3. | ArsMoriendi
03.17.16 | Check their other 2 albums for sure. |
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