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LP
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GB 028LP
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2015 release. 180-gram vinyl. Gatefold sleeve. One of the most revered dub and reggae producers, Dennis Bovell has been leaving his mark on contemporary music for over 40 years. Born in Barbados, Bovell moved to south London at the age of 12 and by his late teens had started a musical trajectory that profoundly influenced Britain's emerging roots, lovers rock, soundsystem, and dub cultures. As a musician, songwriter, and producer, Bovell collaborated with Linton Kwesi Johnson and Matumbi and was notably involved in the late-'70s UK punk/post-punk scene as the producer for The Slits, The Pop Group, and Orange Juice. Bovell has also worked with Marvin Gaye, Ryuichi Sakamoto, Fela Kuti, and Joss Stone. Both under his own name and the moniker Blackbeard, Bovell has created a striking oeuvre of dub albums (I Wah Dub (1980), Strictly Dub Wize (1978), LKJ in Dub (1980)) and has been involved with countless dub mixes and dubwise collaborations. In 2012, he released the acclaimed dub collection Mek It Run. Dub 4 Daze is an album that deeply mines Bovell's inspired catalog of rhythms and sounds. Dennis describes the material as "a collection of different dub mixes I found buried in my archive, and a few newly mixed cuts, done after re-exploring some earlier recorded material. I baked some 2" masters, transferred them to digital and mixed them using an analogue desk." Dub 4 Daze is a richly animated sonic journey that slips and slides between soulful roots ("Eye Water"), down-tempo brass ("Top Level Dub"), 3D mysticism ("Jah Man Dub"), and space echo abstractions ("Physics of Dub"). The album shows Bovell in full command of his craft. "For me, dub means the absolute freedom to express how well an engineer knows his equipment and the piece that's being subjected to the treatment. Just like how the guests at Greek weddings smash the crockery. . . it's fun to be demolishing, but re-building the track all at once, carving a different masterpiece from the same material. . . . a must do in order to maintain my sanity level." The album showcases a plethora of top-flight reggae musicians including guitarist John Kpiaye (Matumbi, LKJ), drummer Jah Bunny (LKJ, Jah Shaka, Augustus Pablo), and vocalist Errol Campbell. Throughout, Bovell reveals the prowess of his own musicianship; on several tracks he both sings and plays most of the instruments himself. Classic dub. Classic reggae. Classic Dennis Bovell.
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12"
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OMD 008EP
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Dennis Bovell presents Heaven. From Bovell's 1981 album Brain Damage is the magnificent "Heaven", a disco dub afro-sound dance floor bomb that somehow manages to sound more current today than it did 35 years ago. Also included is a slightly edited version that removes some of the vocals to focus on the groove a little more. The legendary "Escape Goat Dub" from 1981 sees Dennis outputting a crazy dub track with Garland Jeffreys to work on his new album. "Smouche" is another track from Brain Damage; three minutes of dub, funk-inflected Moogy summery joy.
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