Tricky
Nearly God

I'm not afraid of the dark, yet every time I listen to this album, I get fierce shivers that leave me no escape nor breath.

I can never just listen to one piece without having savored the other nine. It's incredible, but this happens every time, and it happens because this album has captured my heart and shattered it to pieces.

Coming off the beautiful debut "Maxinquaye," Tricky, still in full and joyful creativity, recorded these tracks with big names from alternative female music (Björk, Alison Moyet, Neneh Cherry, Martina Topley-Bird), during the summer of 1996. And he put his soul into it too, you can hear it: each track has its own power, its own gift, its own virtue.

The first chords of the Siouxie And The Banshees cover "Tattoo" are enough to fall into the void: Tricky whispers and chills, surrounding everything with slow-moving twilight sounds that create tension. I'm already breathless.

"Poems" is a true stroke of genius: one of the musician's most successful songs, where on a poignant trip hop rhythm, the shadowy and dark voices of Tricky and Terry Hall unravel alongside Martina Topley-Bird's sweet and innocent childlike voice, proving her comfort with the most dark and seductive pieces.

"Together Now" with Neneh Cherry is a clean cut, branching into a wild rhythm, where a soul of dark pop kidnapped by black ghosts emerges. Dense and intense experimentation in just under three minutes. Neneh sings like a mad goddess.

Each piece is an absurd change of course, where sounds and colors mix like a Rubik's cube. Originality, soul, and inspiration mingle in songs with a broad scope, as in "Keep Your Mouth Shut", a shadowy hip hop remix of Björk's splendid song "You've Been Flirting Again".

"I Be The Prophet" opens with an irresistible string ostinato that slowly suffocates the listener. Martina sings feverishly and sensually. One of Tricky's absolute peaks, culminating in the irresistible soul of "Make A Change".

Martina turns into a siren and dominates the scene in the poignant "Black Coffee", where a watercolor of sounds sets the background to a subdued dark prayer.
"Bubbles" and "I Sing For You" flirt with hip hop, but they captivate and invite multiple listens.

Tricky's schizoid soul is encapsulated in the gem "Yoga", a poignant murder ballad with a never-before-so-dark Björk whispering like a winking angel. The sky splits in two, and a vortex of never-before-so-extreme beauty invades everything, with unsurpassed poetry and dynamics.

It was supposed to be almost a transitional album, a game, but in reality, "Nearly God" proves to be the worthy successor to "Maxinquaye" and is a lineup of splendid songs born from the most glorious and inspired period of the Bristol musician. He will never repeat at this level again.