A review of Stephen Marley’s Revelation (Pt. 1 The Root of Life)’ (2011) Voice-wise, Stephen Marley is definitely his father’s son, more so than his brothers Ziggy or Damian. He cut his musical teeth in Ziggy’s Melody Makers, then chose … [read more]
A review of UB40’s Twentyfourseven (2008) An elegant, slightly dark and dubby swansong, Twentyfourseven affirms for the last time what a strong and intelligent reggae band UB40 was. Forging its own path on the periphery of reggae, and – at … [read more]
Reggae from Germany. Why not? Is it surprising that Germans can get their groove on and sound indistinguishable from Jamaicans? Francophone Europe has a long tradition of embracing reggae, particularly reggae from Africa (Alpha Blondy, Lucky Dube, etc.). Germany has, … [read more]
This is a really great little compilation that neatly summarizes an era and a particular sound. Compass Point was Island Records’ founder Chris Blackwell’s studio in Nassau in the Bahamas. It was a very popular recording studio in the early … [read more]
Bedouin Soundclash’s third album, Street Gospels, is a varied and interesting affair – definitely worth buying and listening to. I like it for its variety, scenic detours and also for its commitment to trying things other bands wouldn’t.
Always experimental and always an outsider musician as far as a general sort of listenership would be concerned, Bill Laswell’s contribution to popular music has nevertheless been a fantastic journey of the offbeat and powerful. I’m familiar with Laswell’s work … [read more]
My sister introduced me to this a few years ago. She lived in New Zealand then, as do Fat Freddys Drop, a live dub band. This is basically dubby roots reggae played by a (very good) live band. It loses … [read more]