Landscapes of black and white and various shades. Things moving in slow motion. A creepy feeling of something waiting around the corner. Those are just some images and feelings I get when listening through Massive Attack’s Mezzanine. Apart from ‘(Exchange)’ and its instrumental counterpart ‘Exchange’ which are much more uplifting in tone, maybe ‘Teardrop’ too, there’s always a sense of uneasiness and tension throughout. For me, ‘Man Next Door’, which arrives just about in the middle of it all, really encapsulates the anxiety.

This is a cover of the 1968 track by The Paragons. It’s about having a noisy neighbour. In Massive Attack’s take, I feel as if the noise isn’t the major problem. There’s something very unpleasant about this neighbour, but we don’t know what it is. There’s no reason to think this because the lyrics are the same; again, it’s just the production on here. The minor chord progression remains the same, but Massive Attack stamp their own name on it by giving it a weighty soundscape led by echoing snares and a booming kick drum. The thick bassline leads the song’s melody, and it’s joined by these guitars here and there that play these sparse notes. A sample of The Cure’s song ’10:15 Saturday Night’ is buried in there too at various points. The tempo’s slowed right down, and reggae singer Horace Andy expresses his pain and annoyance with the neighbour with his wailing vocals.

Probably not a highlight for a lot of people who love this album, but when I heard the record for the first time I remember that ‘Man Next Door’ really grabbed my attention. It’s not a song that will have you jumping for joy. It’s a song that will have you listening for any suspicious sound when you’re alone in your house. You need that type of music sometimes.