Massive Attack are set to tour Australia for the first time in 16 years. The influential British trip-hop group, consisting of Robert "3D" Del Naja and Grant "Daddy G" Marshall, will perform in Brisbane, Melbourne and Sydney in August. This will be the band's fourth visit to Australia and their first shows there since 2010.
New Music and Legacy
Massive Attack recently released their first new music in six years, a collaboration with Tom Waits titled Boots on the Ground. The Guardian's music critic Alexis Petridis awarded it four stars, describing the track as "dark, disturbing, ominous, with a distinct streak of WTF? running through it … music perfectly fitting for the times."
Formed in Bristol in 1988, Massive Attack are pioneers of the trip-hop genre, characterized by dark hip-hop rhythms, soul samples, dub bass and atmospheric electronics. Their 1991 debut Blue Lines was a landmark album, among the most influential of its era. Their biggest hits include Unfinished Sympathy and Teardrop. The band has sold over 13 million copies of their five albums: Blue Lines (1991), Protection (1994), Mezzanine (1998), 100th Window (2003) and Heligoland (2010).
Past Controversies
In 2003, the band was briefly prevented from entering Australia after their visas were cancelled. This followed Del Naja's arrest in a UK police crackdown on child sexual abuse images. He was never charged and the investigation was dropped due to lack of evidence. Del Naja claimed a British tabloid contacted the Australian embassy about the allegations, forcing the band to postpone their tour. Though their visas were eventually reinstated, Del Naja later told the Guardian that the Australian tour was "the hardest time in my life. I had to go on tour with those allegations in the air, which was horrendous."
Some internet sleuths have speculated that Del Naja is secretly the Bristolian street artist Banksy, a theory fueled by overlaps between Massive Attack's tour dates and the appearance of Banksy murals worldwide, including in Melbourne in 2003. Another theory, from a recent Reuters investigation, suggests Del Naja acts as Banksy's location scout.
Political Activism
In recent years, Massive Attack have made headlines for their political activism rather than new music. In April, Robert Del Naja was among 500 people arrested in London on suspicion of supporting a proscribed organisation after attending a protest against the ban on Palestine Action.
In September, Massive Attack became the first major-label act to pull their catalogue from Spotify, protesting founder Daniel Ek's €600m investment in the military AI company Helsing. The band, which has boycotted performing in Israel since 1999, also joined the No Music for Genocide initiative, where over 400 artists and labels blocked their music from streaming services in Israel.
In 2024, the band staged a one-day festival in Bristol powered entirely by renewable energy, titled Act 1.5, referencing the 2015 UN climate treaty's goal to limit global heating to under 1.5°C.
Tour Details
Presale for their Australian shows begins 4 June, with general sale starting on 5 June. Fans can expect a mix of classic hits and new material from the pioneering group.
