the bitter, elitist assfucker in me scorns reggae for its lack of musical complexity and lackadaisical attitude towards productivity. but the stressed-out 21st century american male in me seriously digs these laid back grooves!
something about this particular album didn't seem so stereotypically reggae to me, which i think was why i felt free to enjoy it as i genuinely did. it came across as more musical and almost folkish.
also: there's a scene in Grosse Point Blank where john cusack shows up at minnie driver's place and she says "yah cyan't com een!" and i never understood the reference. but track 6! is there any doubt?
glad your snobbery didn't preclude you from enjoying this. i'm not the biggest reggae fan, but everything outside of marley or tosh usually sounds the same to me.
this, however, was some exquisite stuff. the lead singer has the range of a CASTRATO!!! especially on those later tracks, his voice just soars.
i also felt the music was far better than typical reggae, and it made me realize something about GOOD reggae; the drums play the "lead guitar part" while the guitar plays the "drum part", at least in comparison to typical pop. does that make sense? here, the drums were often the star, and while the guitar was playing chords, it was just a metronome to keep time while the congas rocked and those great melodies and harmonies blasted.
in a sentence, this album was: the sounds of rejoicing from a tortured people.
also, idk if you friends of abraham caught on, but this album was 100% about jesus (or as they refer to him, ja rasta). and yet, it's not preachy, just super chill. God hasn't been this much fun since i felt up missy mcallister at bible camp in sixth grade.
i definitely caught onto the jesus vibe ... sodom and gomorrah burning to the ground and so forth.
yeah this was definitely more musical than most reggae i've heard. more laid back for the most part, with some pretty skilled instrumentalists. that said, i'm not sure why this is on PFM's list. is this especially noteworthy reggae?
i wasnt too into this one, as i'm not too into reggae in general. i really enjoy listening to early ska, which is more lo-fi, faster, happier, simpler, and generally more upbeat. i dont even mind 80s ska from england. but i'm just not too into reggae, and this album was no exception to that. its too slow, it doesnt engage me emotionally, and i have the same 'bitter elitist assfucker' attitude that the sarge has. there are some things i did like about this, though. there's probably more delay on this one album than some bands go through in an entire career. the track 'the wrong thing' i like, its really sincere and soulful, the vocal melody on the chorus is great, i just wish i could hear the words a bit better. i like the ending of 'ark of the covenant' where its nice and instrumental for a few minutes. also, i think i would appreciate this a lot more if i were to hear it on vinyl. i fear a lot is lost listening to it on mp3.
they actually never mentioned jesus. i dont think rastas are all that into the new testament. this was all sodom and gomorrah, daniel and the lion, noah and his ark type stuff. the star of david is an image used a lot on clothing/album covers and stuff, not the cross.
despite what sounds like poor production, certain strains of reggae, specifically "dub", were well-known for being production heavy. toooons of delay, reverb and flange/phaser. and although the fidelity is a bit low, you do hear a lot of that constantly on every song throughout the album. there were even 'superstar' producers/engineers in jamaica. a quick glance at wp even shows that lee 'scratch' perry produced this, a big name even i, a non-reggae fan, has heard of. i think this is on PFM's list because its supposed to be one of lee's best productions.
pitchfork's top 100 of the 70's + top 100 of the 80's, considered, scrutinized, explored, assailed, defended, appreciated and deprecated, fussed over, held up high, kicked to the curb and held back up again. education by fire and a middle finger to disdain. tea, anyone?
the bitter, elitist assfucker in me scorns reggae for its lack of musical complexity and lackadaisical attitude towards productivity. but the stressed-out 21st century american male in me seriously digs these laid back grooves!
ReplyDeletesomething about this particular album didn't seem so stereotypically reggae to me, which i think was why i felt free to enjoy it as i genuinely did. it came across as more musical and almost folkish.
also: there's a scene in Grosse Point Blank where john cusack shows up at minnie driver's place and she says "yah cyan't com een!" and i never understood the reference. but track 6! is there any doubt?
glad your snobbery didn't preclude you from enjoying this. i'm not the biggest reggae fan, but everything outside of marley or tosh usually sounds the same to me.
ReplyDeletethis, however, was some exquisite stuff. the lead singer has the range of a CASTRATO!!! especially on those later tracks, his voice just soars.
i also felt the music was far better than typical reggae, and it made me realize something about GOOD reggae; the drums play the "lead guitar part" while the guitar plays the "drum part", at least in comparison to typical pop. does that make sense? here, the drums were often the star, and while the guitar was playing chords, it was just a metronome to keep time while the congas rocked and those great melodies and harmonies blasted.
in a sentence, this album was: the sounds of rejoicing from a tortured people.
real fucking soul in there.
also, idk if you friends of abraham caught on, but this album was 100% about jesus (or as they refer to him, ja rasta). and yet, it's not preachy, just super chill. God hasn't been this much fun since i felt up missy mcallister at bible camp in sixth grade.
ReplyDeletei definitely caught onto the jesus vibe ... sodom and gomorrah burning to the ground and so forth.
ReplyDeleteyeah this was definitely more musical than most reggae i've heard. more laid back for the most part, with some pretty skilled instrumentalists. that said, i'm not sure why this is on PFM's list. is this especially noteworthy reggae?
i wasnt too into this one, as i'm not too into reggae in general. i really enjoy listening to early ska, which is more lo-fi, faster, happier, simpler, and generally more upbeat. i dont even mind 80s ska from england. but i'm just not too into reggae, and this album was no exception to that. its too slow, it doesnt engage me emotionally, and i have the same 'bitter elitist assfucker' attitude that the sarge has.
ReplyDeletethere are some things i did like about this, though. there's probably more delay on this one album than some bands go through in an entire career. the track 'the wrong thing' i like, its really sincere and soulful, the vocal melody on the chorus is great, i just wish i could hear the words a bit better. i like the ending of 'ark of the covenant' where its nice and instrumental for a few minutes. also, i think i would appreciate this a lot more if i were to hear it on vinyl. i fear a lot is lost listening to it on mp3.
they actually never mentioned jesus. i dont think rastas are all that into the new testament. this was all sodom and gomorrah, daniel and the lion, noah and his ark type stuff. the star of david is an image used a lot on clothing/album covers and stuff, not the cross.
despite what sounds like poor production, certain strains of reggae, specifically "dub", were well-known for being production heavy. toooons of delay, reverb and flange/phaser. and although the fidelity is a bit low, you do hear a lot of that constantly on every song throughout the album. there were even 'superstar' producers/engineers in jamaica. a quick glance at wp even shows that lee 'scratch' perry produced this, a big name even i, a non-reggae fan, has heard of. i think this is on PFM's list because its supposed to be one of lee's best productions.
very good observation ... the production was very clearly a cut above.
ReplyDelete