Protection (Massive Attack album)


Protection is the second studio album by English electronic music group Massive Attack, released on 26 September 1994 by Circa and Virgin Records.
DJ Mad Professor remixed the album in 1995 under the name No Protection.

Composition

Like most of Massive Attack's albums, the music often defies categorisation, ranging from R&B to hip hop/rap to reggae-tinged synthpop to classical-influenced electronica instrumentals. The album follows Blue Lines structurally, to the point that the font used on the cover of the album is the same, Helvetica Heavy Italic. The album cover also nods to Blue Lines, revealing a futuristic, impenetrable wall behind a mostly-burned version of this previous album's artwork- implying that the depicted "flammable gas" had been ignited.
Tricky again appeared on the album, rapping on the tracks "Karmacoma" and "Eurochild".

Reception

Paul Evans of Rolling Stone wrote, "Cool, sexy stuff, it smoothly fuses dub, club and soul, grounding its grace in sampled hip-hop beats."
In 2011, Rolling Stone ranked Protection at number 51 on its list of the "100 Best Albums of the Nineties". The album is also listed in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.
As of 2010, sales in the United States have exceeded 292,000 copies, according to Nielsen SoundScan.

Track listing

;Sample credits
Chart Peak
position

Certifications