RPGG Ep. 18 - Trip Hop Floating 'Round

What happened to Trip Hop? The drum and bass oriented genre found its footing in the southwest port city of Bristol, England, in the early 1990s. A mix of hip hop and electronica, it developed from down tempo dub used in soundsystem street party scenes; synths were layered under treated vocals, often female, singing melancholic, post-punk lyrics with a psychedelic twist. It flourished for a while, but then seemed to dissolve into the ether.

But did it go away? We try to answer that in this episode. Or did this mixed genre continue to blend and cross lines with other styles? Perhaps Trip Hop became less a distinct thing by itself and more an inspirational jumping off point for adventurous musicians. The show’s title borrows “Floating ’Round” from Kirsty MacColl’s song “Angel,” featured in the show. “There’s an angel floating ’round this house”, she sings. I find this to be a poetic and apt description for what “happened” to Trip Hop, as it moved from Portishead to Beck and onward.

SHOW NOTES

RPGG Ep. 18 – Trip Hop Floating ‘Round

The KMG Show

Portishead on YouTube, posted Mar 9, 2015: Glory Box

Portishead Site

Massive Attack on YouTube, posted Mar 6, 2009: Teardrop

New York Post, Mar 16, 2026: Massive Attack’s Robert Del Naja’s true link to Banksy revealed in exposé

Trickyofficial on YouTube, posted Oct 21, 2013: Overcome

Tricky – Maxinquaye (full album playlist)

Wikipedia: Karmacoma

IMVDb: Karmacoma by Massive Attack featuring Tricky, video director Jonathan Glazer

Gorillaz on YouTube, posted Jun 28, 2016: Clint Eastwood