Massive Attack - Protection ft. Tracey Thorn

What this video is

Released as a single on 9 January 1995, 'Protection' was the lead single from Massive Attack's second studio album (released September 1994) and reached number 14 on the UK Singles Chart. The video arrived at the apex of the trip-hop movement's mainstream visibility, a period when Bristol-sound collectives were redefining the relationship between electronic music production and cinematic visual identity. Gondry's…

Why it matters

A landmark artefact of mid-1990s trip-hop visual culture, this video is among the most formally radical music promos of its era: a genuine single-take, real-location, non-performance film. It anticipated the long-take aesthetic that would become a prestige marker in both commercial and art cinema.…

The director

Michel Gondry (born May 8, 1963, Versailles, France) is a French film director, screenwriter, and music video director. He began directing music videos for his Paris art-school band Oui Oui, which led to a commission from Björk for 'Human Behaviour' (1993).…