Massive Attack

Among the greatest manipulators of electronic sound in the world, Massive Attack take the stage in front of an unexpectedly large crowd at the Roma Rock Festival, held at the Capannelle racecourse.

Their absence from the scene, with no new album in over three years (aside from the soundtrack to "Danny The Dog" and the greatest hits collection "Collected", both released in 2005), has done nothing to cool interest in the band that, at the dawn of the last decade, blazed a trail toward new musical horizons, blending dub, soul, rock and dance into a slow-motion kaleidoscope, where bass and drums pulse like a heartbeat, becoming the cornerstone of the trip-hop movement.

Of the ever-shifting Bristol collective, only Robert "3 D" Del Naja and Grant "Daddy G" Marshall remain, today backed not only by a solid band but also by a few exceptional guest stars, chief among them the wildly acclaimed Elizabeth Fraser, the extraordinary voice of the Cocteau Twins, who takes the lead on three songs in the setlist.

The soundtrack to "Danny The Dog" is completely absent, while "100th Window" is represented only by "Future Proof" — as if to say that, all things considered, Massive Attack somewhat disown their most recent work and continue to favor the albums of the past, especially "Mezzanine", the most represented record of the night.

After a riveting DJ set lasting about half an hour, and the time needed to set up the stage, the band takes the stage to the strains of "False Flags", the only unreleased track included on the recent retrospective compilation.

The choice of songs in the setlist is dictated by which vocalists are present, so the excellent tracks featuring Sinead O'Connor and Tracey Thorn are left out, in favor of the three performances by Fraser and the pairing of "Safe From Harm"/"Unfinished Sympathy", taken from the debut "Blue Lines" and still among the most eagerly awaited and applauded songs, here masterfully performed by Shara Nelson.

The show unfolds as a constant procession of entrances and exits, with Del Naja happily stepping aside to make room for whoever is taking the lead, confirming just how much the name Massive Attack stands for a thoroughly open, ever-shifting situation.

In the first part of the show, the crowd goes wild especially for the intense rendition of "Teardrop" and for the physicality that "Angel" takes on in a live setting, with a truly explosive guitar. Horace Andy's performance on "Hymn Of The Big Wheel", another track from the debut "Blue Lines", draws huge applause.

Live, the vaguely dark drum & bass approach is partly softened by guitar incursions bordering on the noise-sonic, which, blended with skillful electronic inlays, give rise to a thoroughly original sonic magma.

The pace of the show is slow, and more than a few fans can be spotted wearing t-shirts bearing the names of iconic figures from the dark scene, such as Joy Division and Siouxsie & The Banshees.

During "Safe From Harm", the screen behind the band displays staggering figures related to the shameful war still raging in Iraq.

There are more relaxed moments too, like when Del Naja greets Fabio Cannavaro as the words "Italy Campione del Mondo" scroll across the screen.

Just a couple of minutes' break, and the encore opens with a beautifully sung version of “Heat Miser”, followed by an incisive “Inertia Creeps”.

After the floor-filling “Unfinished Sympathy”, it's left to the excellent “Group Four” to send everyone off to bed, with an ending that seems (pardon the pun) infinite, in a swirling sonic crescendo.

Ten thousand people leave the Capannelle racecourse knowing that no one has ever made electronic music so warm and human.

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