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CRITIC REVIEWS
100
Better than any album before it, Dummy merged the pinpoint-precise productions of the dance world with pop hallmarks like great songwriting and excellent vocal performances.
100
Dummy, an album which undoubtedly conjures the thought of a person, place or sour time for its every listener, sounds just as groundbreaking today as it did eight years ago.
91
Beth Gibbons’ disembodied vocals float over Geoff Barrow’s lush production to create a debut that is as musically compelling as it is emotionally chilly.
90
This is, without question, a sublime debut album. But so very, very sad. These are avant garde ambient moonscapes of a ferociously experimental nature. In other words, seriously spooky shit.
80
This album comes thoroughly recommended to any fans of hip-hop (that's hip-hop music, not rap vocals), female soul vocalists, or anybody unfamiliar with trip-hop and who wants to experiment. It's not the best trip-hop album ever, but it's as good an introduction as any.
80
Assertive rhythms and quirky production ... save Portishead from languishing in any coy retro groove. Instead they manage yet another — very smart — rebirth of cool.
I remember my uncle giving me a 32GB USB stick full of albums for my thirteenth birthday and this album being a highlight for me. Even to this day I love this band to death. One of these days I'm going to find this on vinyl and play it start to finish at 2 in the morning. "Mysterons" is a fat mood for me.
If it wasn't for this album, there will be no stronghold for the Trip-Hop Genre. The timing of the album is right, the sound is as fresh as grass, and the whole album itself is flawless and from another world. Henceforth, "Dummy" is a Trip-Hop Masterpiece!
The landmark debut album from Portishead provides some of most lovely and perfectly textured trip hop songs of all time. Pioneering the way for the genre, "Dummy" blossoms more with every unique instrumental, and every angelic vocal note that Beth Gibbons hits. Your nightly "Lo-fi hip hop beats" on YouTube could never.
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Track List
- Mysterons
- Sour Times
- Strangers
- It Could Be Sweet
- Wandering Star
- It's A Fire
- Numb
- Roads
- Pedestal
- Biscuit
- Glory Box
In Library (111)
stereogum.com
Video: Portishead – “SOS” (Abba Cover) videopress.com
Listen: Portishead – SOS /ABBA cover/ 
