Trupa a intrat intr-un con de umbra din anul 1998, a aparut la un concert de caritate in anul 2005 si in cadrul unui gig secret in 2007, dar in 2008 revin cu 11 piese noi si cu un turneu european de promovare pentru noul album; acest turneu include festivalul Coachelle, unde onorariul de participare este mai mare decat cel pe care-l primeste Kraftwerk [!!!], dar si festivalul Primavera Sound din Barcelona.
Deocamdata nu s-a aflat nimic despre stilul abordat de cei 3, dar cum povestea "trip – hopp-ului" este irelevanta in anul 2008….se asteapta ceva schimbari. 
Tracklist
01 Silence
02 Hunter
03 Nylon Smile
04 The Rip
05 Plastic
06 We Carry On
07 Deep Water
08 Machine Gun
09 Small
10 Magic Doors
11 Threads
Portishead live dates 
Mar 26 – Coliseum, Porto
Mar 27 – Coliseum, Lisbon
Mar 30 Alcatraz, Milan
Mar 31 Sashall, Florence
Apr 2 Tonhalle, Munich
April 3 Colombia Halle, Berlin
Apr 4 – KB Halle, Copenhagen
Apr 6 – Palladium, Cologne
April 7 HMH, Amsterdam
Apr 9 – Apollo, Manchester
Apr 10 – Hammersmith Apollo, London
Apr 11 – Corn Exchange, Edinburgh
April 13 Wolverhampton Civic Hall, Wolverhampton
April 17 Brixton Academy, London
April 26 Coachella Festival, Indio, California
May 5 Zenith, Paris
May 29-31 Primavera Sound Festival, Barcelona
Album "Third" semnat Portishead va fi lansat cu Island Records, pe 28 aprilie 2008.
video: Portishead – "Glory Box"
http://youtu.be/imrfo-uRjcE