Massive Attack are about to release their fifth studio album, Heligoland, and as part of a world tour, they will play a single New Zealand show at Auckland’s Vector Arena on March 25. This is the UK band’s first visit to NZ for quite some time, they were supposed to come in 2003, but cancelled after original member 3-D was arrested on drugs charges. The last time I saw them play live was in Wellington in the early 1990s at one of the infamous Shed parties. And man, that was quite the gig. My strongest memories of the night are 1. Hearing their warm-up DJ Nick Warren play Future Sound of London’s ‘Papua New Guinea’ on the biggest sound system I’d ever seen… and, 2. Following the live show, Mushroom DJed an incredible set of dub, soul and instrumental hip-hop, building up a monster groove that just wouldn’t quit, again on that sound system… At the risk of sounding old, trust me, today’s watered-down Vector Arena style shows are nothing compared to what used to go down. Not that that should stop you from going. < we used to dance > Boom.
