User Score
Universal acclaim- based on 198 Ratings
User score distribution:
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Positive: 166 out of 198
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Mixed: 18 out of 198
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Negative: 14 out of 198
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- Most helpful
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AlexA.Apr 30, 2008Their best and most emotional effort yet.
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michaele.May 3, 2008Not one of these lame combacks, but a brilliant return to form and class with disturbingly fresh sounds. Beth Gibbons' voice has found new territories to move along!
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DecepticonPomMay 5, 2008A satisfying challenge of a listen. Too early to compare to the first two - ask me again in a year.
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AlanO.May 8, 2008
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marcgApr 29, 2008Good but not great.
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giannym.Apr 30, 2008Brilliant and great!
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JoolsH.Apr 30, 2008The Masterpiece of the century.
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PeterX.May 22, 2008Classical rock enviroment, dense & brutal. Kraftwerk/Pan Sonic meets the Pink Floyd. Albert Ayler laughs at the corner.
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SimonV.May 2, 2008Superb Album. Elements of radiohead/björk in places. Nice to see them still being 'Portishead' but moving things on and not riding the orchestra/strings coat tails of the past. A perfect soundtrack to a movie. Still got the haunting thing down to a tee...
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JesseShortMay 4, 2008Just keep listening to it. It's not always easy, but what is worthwhile never is.
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MarkR.May 8, 2008exceptional, truly exceptional, i would implore anyone who cannot immediately get to grips with it to persevere. it is dark and unsettling in a way that will annoy the coffee table fans of their previous work, which is also a bonus : ). a pretty good litmus test for those that have real taste in music and those that just think they do ; )
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leirisJul 28, 2008Excellent - as good as anything they've released.
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DanielSOct 19, 2008
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SamBApr 29, 2008much 'cooler' than their others. melodrama is a little more weighted in inventive melodies and recordings
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WillApr 29, 2008
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AlexZApr 29, 2008This is their best effort yet. They're not coming up with a new sound but they have taken their trip hop sound to a level of perfection.
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SeanApr 30, 2008Even though I agree with their score, I absolutely do not agree with what The Onion actually says in their review. This album is NOTHING like coffee-shop music. What kind of coffee shops does that critic frequent? This is highly experimental, challenging electronica right here.
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AJPMay 1, 2008Stunning beyond what words can only describe. A triumphant comeback exceeding previous albums by 1000-fold.
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ChrisS.May 22, 2008It's their best album so far. It's no easy-listening, and it takes some time, but it's definetely worth the effort. I LOVE IT!
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awMay 30, 2008Amazing. After repeated listens, it grows on you like a weed.
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DwongK.May 4, 2008Easily one of the best albums of the year.
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JasonMay 4, 2008ALBUM OF THE YEAR!!!!
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DommiR.May 6, 2008Orgasmic.
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AlbertoU.May 7, 2008Why bothering about people who find this album difficult? This is the best album of the year, none other.
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JodieL.May 8, 2008
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ArtoS.Jul 29, 2008The most haunting albums of Portishead...brilliantly complicated and emotional...the combination alt-rock+electronic music has never sounded so fresh like "Third" does...
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AniruddhaBApr 13, 2009The best thing by portishead... and one of my favourite albums of all time.
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RayApr 29, 2008Wow. Anyone labelling this album as "difficult" or "unmelodic" is hardly worth paying attention to. Such a fine atmospheric delight.
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DiegoL.Apr 29, 2008What's wrong with Blender?? Third is one of the best albums of 2008. It's obscurely extraordinary.
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JeremyFApr 29, 2008Some really amazing tracks ("The Rip", "We Carry On", "Machine Gun", and "Small") but the rest just kind of don't impress much. While there isn't any BAD tracks here, I would much rather go listen to Dummy ten times over.
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mattvApr 29, 2008Simply amazing, stunning work. I've had it since this afternoon and listened to it 4 times. I haven't had this kind of first day experience with an album in a very long time. It's breathtakingly good. And the people at Blender need a brain exam.
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JimmyH.Apr 30, 2008Has some of their best songs (The Rip, Plastic) and also their worst (nylon smile). But being the worst Portishead song is like being the slowest ferrari. A solid effort overall.
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Patches.May 10, 2008Brilliant!
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JoshuaG.May 1, 2008A wartime masterpiece. This is the sound of now.
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MitchellZ.May 1, 2008
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GuyHMay 12, 2008
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ZachMay 16, 2008It's acoustic despair, but brilliant.
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DaveMay 3, 2008
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DMoneyMay 6, 2008Fitfully brilliant music, iffy vocals. Not much hip-hop, no sex to speak of. A job well done by Mr. Barrow and Mr. Utley. Beth Gibbons, get over yourself.
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JackT.May 7, 2008
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DanC.Jun 5, 2008Really great, has improved with repeat listenings immensely..thoroughly recommended.
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ChrisC.Jan 18, 2009Portishead proves once again that they are true artists. They are still a haunting band of depth that goes against the grain without sounding pretentious.
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JoseY.May 28, 2009
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TimCMay 29, 2009Simply superb.
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RicardoCJul 25, 2009I can't really understand how Blender found this album difficult, the album is amazing. If you listen to it carefully and loud, its even better. One of my favourite.
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ClifNov 3, 2008
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MattW.Dec 22, 2008Hands down, the best thing Portishead have ever done.
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dodomoApr 28, 2008Re-invented and perfect!
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BrandonS.Apr 29, 2008Self titled sucked. This one's fresh.
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FernandoS.May 16, 2008No esta al nivel de sus dos primeras obras, pero Portishead logra reinventarse , entregado un disco sorprendente, y muy por encima de la media.
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TaffyP.May 18, 2008Smply outstanding, easily one of,if not, the best comeback albums of all time.
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RobertoJun 13, 2008A very challenging album, but it is Portishead at its best: dark, sometimes claustrophobic and oppressive; but at the same time the sound has an organic quality that makes it unique. A modern masterpiece.
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JamesB.Jul 22, 2008Outstanding comeback album by Portishead! It's beautifully and darkly sublime. I'm not the least put off by the changes in their "trip hop" sound. And Beth's vocals are, of course, amazing and indelibly haunting. "Third" is easily one of the best albums in 2008!
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JoeMay 24, 2009A nice album. I have never heard any of their earlier work but this is a very nice album.
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PaulRNov 27, 2008Going from the reviews on here, it's obviously an album you either get or you don't. But if you do get it, the rewards are there to be reaped. This is easily their best album and all the more astonishing is the fact it's been released after a hiatus of 11 years. This and Seventh Tree by Goldfrapp are my two favourite albums of 2008.
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Aug 30, 2010This review contains spoilers, click expand to view.
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Mar 27, 2011
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Mar 11, 2011
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Oct 2, 2011This is not my favorite album (though it probably is my favorite portishead record), but for some reason I always want to hear it again, and I keep coming back to it. It is so jarring and abrasive at times, but it is also so original and forward thinking, that my initial reaction is always forgotten and I end up giving it another spin.
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Dec 20, 2017
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Oct 25, 2017Great album. Dark, emotional and full of despair, this is Portishead's most experimental and arguably their strongest work to date. Particular favorites include 'Machine Gun', 'Small' and 'Plastic'.
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Apr 24, 2015
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Oct 7, 2015Overwhelming, completely. Melancholic and out of control. Like broken long ago and pasted randomly with expired glue. No doubt It's a new yet old Portishead right there.
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May 16, 2021A mi parecer, Third es el álbum más experimental e introspectivo de Portishead a la vez de que es el mejor que han sacado a la fecha, ojalá vuelvan a estrenar música algún día.
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May 20, 2022methods are hardly frozen in time. And that evolution is what makes these elaborately layered tracks such a knotty, mesmerizing listen.
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Jul 13, 2021We've been waiting, and it didn't disappoint. Amazing body of work, obscure, mysterious, confusing in the most beautiful possible way!
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May 22, 2023Absolutely incredible, there's nothing else like it even 15 years later. Flows together like an album should and keeps being surprising.
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Aug 22, 2022The essence of Portishead still present on this album. Still relevant to this day and every time that you listen to it, you'll find new things. As we are used to from Portishead from the previous album. So good and different
Awards & Rankings
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It's groove-deprived and difficult, and not in a particularly inventive way. [May 2008, p.78]
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Both ancient and futuristic, a mildewed signal from a more advanced culture that failed to survive the ice age, Third doesn’t make you pay attention to its desolate contours, but rather stare out of the window, creeping panic causing your mind to dart in a million dark directions at once.
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Long awaited comeback from Bristol trip-hop outfit proves worth the wait.