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Portishead
OffStereo builds narrated music history shows around real records. Portishead runs through 8 of them, each one placing them inside a wider story. They appear most often alongside Massive Attack, Tricky and U2.
Shows where Portishead appears
Bristol's Dub-Infused Echoes
Bristol's sound system roots birthed Massive Attack's trip-hop, Smith & Mighty's breakbeats, and Roni Size's drum & bass, shaping UK electronic music from the 80s to dubstep.
1 of 8 tracks — Sour Times
Danube to Dissonance: Sour Times
Lalo Schifrin's cinematic suspense, heard on 1967's More Mission: Impossible, becomes the eerie foundation Portishead, Massive Attack, and Tricky sample to define Bristol's trip-hop sound.
2 of 8 tracks — Sour Times · Numb
U2, Bristol trip-hop
Brian Eno's ambient influence and Bristol's trip-hop scene, led by Massive Attack and Portishead, push U2's 90s sound from stadium rock to electronic deconstruction.
1 of 8 tracks — Glory Box
Hayes' Soul, Tricky's Shadow
Tricky's Maxinquaye transforms Isaac Hayes's 1971 soul samples into dark, gritty trip-hop, a sound that defines Bristol's mid-90s scene alongside Massive Attack and Portishead.
1 of 7 tracks — Numb
Bristol trip hop
From Massive Attack's "Safe from Harm" to Tricky's 'Maxinquaye,' Bristol's dub-infused underground forges a global sound, even as its pioneers reject the "trip-hop" label.
2 of 6 tracks — Mysterons · Glory Box
The Weeknd: From Shadows to Starboy
The Weeknd's journey from Toronto's House of Balloons to "Blinding Lights" charts a path from trip-hop's dark mood to Michael Jackson's pop, shaping artists like Bryson Tiller.
1 of 7 tracks — Glory Box
Sampled Souls: Citizen to Sympathy
From Mahavishnu Orchestra's sampled vocals to Weather Report's intricate jazz fusion, Bristol's Massive Attack and Portishead forge trip-hop's haunting atmosphere.
1 of 7 tracks — Numb