Rating:
Genre:
Rap
Release Date: 02/17/2009
Run Time: 0:00
After their 2008 compilation of songs sampled by
Daft Punk and
Discovered,
Rapster has gone back to the same well for a very different album.
Protected compiles songs utilized (or covered) by
Massive Attack, and this album is as different from
Discovered as
Massive Attack is from
Daft Punk. Like
MA themselves -- well, not exactly like them --
Protected is heavy on warm, funky grooves, like
Wally Badarou's Balearic classic
"Mambo," and is big on tracks with a big sound (cf.
Al Green's
"I'm Glad You're Mine" and especially
Isaac Hayes'
"Ike's Mood," seemingly recorded in Cinemascope). There's plenty of room for dub as well, with both
John Holt's gently-skanking
"Man Next Door" alongside
"Five Man Army Dub" by
Lewin Bones Lock. The record closes with a trio of superb, late-'70s-sounding jazzy funk tracks, from the
Blackbyrds,
Pieces of a Dream, and
Rufus & Chaka Khan. This is not only an exceedingly well-sequenced compilation, it was clearly put together with a lot of love for its source material, and it sounds marvelous. Recommended not just for fans of
Massive Attack, but also those who love trainspotting dusty funk, soul, jazz, and reggae grooves.
~Thomas Inskeep, All Music Guide