British band Portishead have reunited to record a new performance of their haunting song Roads and it’s all in aid of a benefit for Palestine.
The track features of the band’s iconic 1994 debut album Dummy. The new performance was created to be played at Brian Eno’s Together for Palestine concert that was held in London on 17th September.
Portishead couldn’t make the date, but instead the reunited, brought in a string quartet and recorded a new version of one of their most loved songs.
Vocalist Beth Gibbons reunited with bandmates Adrian Utley and Geoff Barrow. The video was filmed in black and white at Bristol’s Cube Microplex venue.
“We can’t be there in the day but we desperately wanted to be involved to put our voice to help end the Ongoing Genocide that is taking place right now,” Barrow wrote in an Instagram post ahead of the concert.
“We are incredibly honoured to stand in solidarity with Palestine and be part of this crucial event. The genocide must stop.” they said.
The live concert saw performances from Damon Albarn, Paul Weller, Cat Burns, Bastille and others. There was also a host of celebrities as presenters including Benedict Cumberbatch, Nicola Coughlan, Richard Gere and Florence Pugh.
Portishead formed in Bristol in the early 90s and were part of the scene that was labeled trip-hop, with Massive Attack and Tricky as the other main players. They followed up their acclaimed debut with a live album and then 1997’s Portishead. Their third album, appropriately titled Third, didn’t arrive until 2008.
Since then the band has only released one additional single, and made occasional live appearances. Geoff Barrow went on to create the band Beak and score films, while Utley went on to work with a diverse range of musicians.
Gibbons recorded one album as Rustin Man alongside Paul Douglas Webb, before he continued the venture as a solo project. She teamed up with the Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra in 2019 to record Gorecki’s Symphony No. 3, and released her debut solo album Lives Outgrown to great acclaim in 2024.
