The summer of '97 was a heady time in my life. I was 13, and besides going to Bar Mitzvahs, trying to cover up zits and talk to girls, I had one other thing on my mind; being dark. Luckily, Radiohead had just released the now decade old masterpiece that is OK Computer. I vividly remember selling 10 CD's back to the record store, so I could afford OK Computer the day it came out. A seemingly dyslexic July 1st release date (OK Computer isn't exactly a summer record, if ya get my drift) didn't curb my enthusiasm, in fact it only heightened my interest in the emerging post-Brit pop, electro influenced rock scene.
It was around the same time that I rediscovered Portishead. Yeah, rediscovered. I was ten when Dummy was released but that didn't stop me from falling in love with "Sour Times", an MTV staple in the Kennedy, John Sencio, Daisy Fuentes era. (Remember Alternative Nation? 120 Minutes? Those were the days.) At the tail end of the summer of '97, Portishead released the self-titled follow up to Dummy and "Only You" alone sent me into a trip-hop coma. After seeing them on SNL (anybody remember that?), I had fallen, hard. Beth Gibbons had become my obsession, my first crush on an ethereal chanteuse. I spent hours at the computer trying to sample the scratching sequences on "Glory Box", failing miserably time after time. Regardless, Portishead made a lasting impression on my impressionable mind, and turned me on to the dark side of electronic music (Odelay had already gotten me primed on the whack'd out junkyard funk side of the electro scene).
Of course, this is all relevant because on April 29th Portishead will issue the appropriately titled Third. Below is an honest to god, make the hair on the back of your neck stand up performance of "Glory Box" from the memorable PNYC. Nothing better than Portishead with a an orchestra. Now lets all cross our fingers and hope they announce a NYC area date.
"Glory Box" Live at Roseland, NYC 1997
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