Ritual Spirit

Ritual Spirit is an EP by British trip hop trio Massive Attack, released on 28 January 2016.[1] It features trip hop artist Tricky for the first time since the release of Protection in 1994, and also features Scottish hip-hop group Young Fathers, London rapper Roots Manuva and singer Azekel.[2]

Ritual Spirit
EP by
Massive Attack
Released28 January 2016 (2016-01-28)
GenreTrip hop, electronica
Length17:13
LabelVirgin
ProducerRobert Del Naja, Adrian Thaws, Grant Marshall, Euan Dickinson
Massive Attack chronology
Heligoland
(2010)		 Ritual Spirit
(2016)		 Eutopia
(2020)

Background

A week before the release of the EP, the group released an iPhone application called "The Fantom", which remixed songs using heartbeat, location and time of day. The app contained snippets of the songs featured on the EP, and promised full functionality "soon".[3]

Critical reception
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic81/100[4]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[5]
Drowned in Sound9/10[6]
Pitchfork Media7.0/10[7]
PopMatters[8]
Pretty Much AmazingB+[9]
Renowned for Sound[10]

Ritual Spirit received widespread critical acclaim from contemporary music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 81, based on 4 reviews, which indicates "universal acclaim".[4]

John Garratt of PopMatters praised the EP, stating, "Pretty much everything that helped the band make a name for itself is on display for these four songs—the simmering tension of title track, the sample-happy soundtrack for urban decay on the opener 'Dead Editors', the hot and steady boil of 'Voodoo in My Blood', and the morose single 'Take It There' featuring the return of Tricky."[8] Katherine St. Asaph of Pitchfork Media gave the EP a favorable review, stating, "Massive Attack were always equally as good producers as they were curators; it's promising that, as much of their old sound as they've retained, they've kept this as well."[7]

Track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Dead Editors" (featuring Roots Manuva)Euan Dickinson, Robert Del Naja, Rodney Hylton Smith, Herbie Hancock4:46
2."Ritual Spirit" (featuring Azekel)Euan Dickinson, Del Naja, Azekel Adesuyi3:55
3."Voodoo in My Blood" (featuring Young Fathers)Euan Dickinson, Del Naja, Young Fathers4:01
4."Take It There" (featuring Tricky)Euan Dickinson, Del Naja, Adrian Thaws4:31
Total length:17:13

Notes

Personnel

Massive Attack

Additional musicians

  • Euan Dickinson – sound engineer, programming, keyboard, guitar, arranging, mixing, producer
  • Neil Davidge – keyboard, piano, drums, guitar, bass guitar, backing vocals, programming, mixing
  • Young Fathers
    • Kayus Bankole
    • 'G' Hastings
    • Alloysious Massaquoi
  • Roots Manuva – vocals (1)
  • Azekel – vocals (2)
  • Jeff Wootton – Guitar [11]

Charts
Chart (2016) Peak
position
Belgium (Ultratip Bubbling Under Wallonia)[12] 34
France (SNEP)[13] 30
Germany (Official German Charts)[14] 96
Italian Vinyl Records (FIMI)[15] 5
US Top Dance/Electronic Albums (Billboard)[16] 4

References
  1. "Massive Attack unveil Ritual Spirit EP featuring Tricky, Roots Manuva". Fact. 28 January 2016. Retrieved 28 January 2016.
  2. Young, Alex (28 January 2016). "Stream: Massive Attack's new EP Ritual Spirit". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved 28 January 2016.
  3. Cox, Jamieson (21 January 2016). "Massive Attack's new music is hidden inside a spooky iPhone app". The Verge. Retrieved 28 January 2016.
  4. "Ritual Spirit [EP] – Massive Attack". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved April 6, 2016.
  5. Kellman, Andy (28 January 2016). "Ritual Spirit - Massive Attack". AllMusic. Retrieved 6 May 2016.
  6. Adcock, Lee (4 February 2016). "Ep Review: Massive Attack - Ritual Spirit". Drowned in Sound. Silentway. Archived from the original on 5 February 2016. Retrieved 5 February 2016.
  7. St. Asaph, Katherine (5 February 2016). "Massive Attack: Ritual Spirit EP". Pitchfork Media. Retrieved 5 February 2016.
  8. Garratt, John (24 February 2016). "Massive Attack: Ritual Spirit". PopMatters. Retrieved 24 November 2022.
  9. Tabb, Brian (18 March 2016). "Reviews: Macklemore, Massive Attack, Pinegrove, Hinds]". Pretty Much Amazing. Retrieved 6 April 2016.
  10. Benfield, Haydon (4 February 2016). "EP Review: Massive Attack - Ritual Spirit". Renowned For Sound. Retrieved 6 February 2016.
  11. "Massive Attack - Ritual Spirit". audiokat.com. 28 January 2016. Retrieved 31 January 2016.
  12. "Massive Attack & Azekel – Ritual Spirit" (in French). Ultratip. Retrieved March 14, 2016.
  13. "Massive Attack & Azekel – Ritual Spirit" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved March 14, 2016.
  14. "Massive Attack & Azekel – Ritual Spirit" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved March 14, 2016.
  15. "Vinili - Classifica settimanale WK 10 (dal 2016-03-04 al 2016-03-10)" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved March 14, 2016.
  16. "Massive Attack Chart History (Top Dance/Electronic Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved March 14, 2016.
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