Even though
Morcheeba were one of the later, straggling entries in the trip-hop phenomenon, their previous albums succeed because of the interplay between
Skye Edwards' sweetly sensual, airy voice and the band's correspondingly mellow grooves. Their third album,
Fragments of Freedom, scraps most of their signature sound for experiments in R&B, acid jazz, and hip-hop. It's certainly understandable that the group would want to move away from the dead-and-buried trip-hop sound that defined them originally, and now
Morcheeba are using bands like
Brand New Heavies and
M People as sonic templates instead of
Tricky and
Portishead. The opening track, "World Looking In," ranks among their finest, and the steel drum instrumental "A Well Deserved Break" is pretty and refreshing. "Shallow End" boasts a lilting, seductive melody that showcases
Edwards' voice instead of fighting against it, and the title track is a pleasant enough piece of trip-hop pastiche. ~ Heather Phares