Duff Review: The Red Stripes: "Soundclash"

Bruce Lee and Jim Kelly wanna drop some heavy dub on you.

(Review by Steve Shafer)

I had intended to review The Red Stripes' Soundclash (LP/digital, Mod Sound Records, 2021) over the summer, but since I was packing up the contents of our apartment of almost three decades and painting/prepping the new one, this album (and a few others) fell through the cracks. But this really stellar album of dub versions of tracks from The Red Stripes' first two albums--In the East (produced by Sean "Cavo" Dinsmore of The Toasters and reviewed by me here) and Made in Hong Kong (produced by King Zepha, which I reviewed here)--by various artists and producers is not to be missed or ignored. There are two magnificent, widescreen cinematic dubs of "Made in Hong Kong Dub" by Celestial and Kusch, respectively. JStar's digital dancehall "Train Wreck Dub" is fantastic for all of its spot-on King Jammy Eighties-ness, whereas King Zepha and B Dub's "His Dubness Returns" is classic roots-era dub with some offbeat sound effects in the mix. Heavensbee's remix of The Red Stripes' cover of "Theme from Rocky," rechristened "Gonna Dub Now" is particularly brilliant and inventive, and Celestial's "55 Dubs Later" reminds me of Mad Professor vs. Massive Attack's No Protection. Fans of the band will definitely want this collection, but even if you're not familiar with The Red Stripes' catalogue, Soundclash is a fantastic dub album in its own right. 

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Duff Review: Rude Boy George "Lies and Alibis"

Self-released
Digital
2020

(Review by Steve Shafer) 

[Disclaimer: I was a co-founder of this band, but left five years ago.]

Lies and Alibis marks Rude Boy George's fourth EP of ska and reggae versions of new wave hits--and it's another really fine and fun collection of tracks from this ace band of NYC-area ska veterans (Bigger Thomas, Hub City Stompers, Heavensbee). This time out, RBG focuses on early '80s synth-pop from Heaven 17, Thompson Twins, Soft Cell, and...Rod Stewart? Released in 1981 on Tonight I'm Yours, "Young Turks" was the Rod's quite successful bid at gearing some of his music to the popular new wave sounds of the day (and made it to #5 on Billboard's US pop charts). Rude Boy George's take on it is a vast improvement on the original--but, still! (Can I refer to Stewart's original as "cod new wave"?). The other choices of songs are impeccable, particularly Thompson Twins' "Lies" and Heaven 17's "Let Me Go," both of which are given a shiny pop-ska sheen.

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New Video for Heavensbee's "Bombs Away"!

Our friends in Heavensbee have just unleashed a truly excellent and funny video for their song "Bombs Away" that you should check out immediately (props to director Patricia Koo)! This reggae-pop trio (made up of members of Rude Boy George, Bigger Thomas, and Across the Aisle) recently had their debut album Soul Mates (read The Duff Guide to Ska review of it here) picked up for release on CD in the UK by Paul Willo's Specialized Records--and this video should help move some units, so to speak.

Soul Mates is available in the US through Heavensbee's Bandcamp page.

The Duff Guide to Ska's 2015 Year In Review, Part 1!

Illustration by Hunt Emerson.

(By Steve Shafer)

2015 was a challenging year at work and with family matters. Nothing terrible, mind you--I was just very busy, with lots of demands on my time that kept me from writing about so many more ska releases and shows. So, my caveat is that my year-end review is by no means comprehensive. I missed out on a lot of great releases this year, but what I did manage to write about is very much worth your attention. And should you have some money left over from all of the holiday gift-giving or gift cards you received that are burning a hole in your pocket, please consider supporting these bands/releases by purchasing their music!

This is Part 1 of The Duff Guide to Ska's 2015 Year in Review...

Dubistry: Fuel for the Fire digital album (self-released through Bandcamp) -- Dubistry are one of those terrific, hard-to-pigeonhole bands that are an awesome mash-up of many musical styles--in this case, a sophisticated blend of ska/reggae, jazz, 70s rock and R and B, and more. Early 90s ska fans will take notice that lead singer Dunia Best was in Agent 99 with Agent Jay (as well as an early version of The Slackers) and will want to begin their exploration of Dubistry with one of the more straight-up reggae/dub tracks on the album, the almost apocalyptic, call to rise up and take action of "Tomorrow" ("You have to be fuel for the fire/Before you get burned/Because you never know/Which way the road will turn..."). Then check out the sweet, lovers rock of "Give It To Me One More Time"; a great roots reggae cover of Joni Mitchell's "Blue"; and the wonderful, stripped down (acoustic guitar and percussion), campfire ska of "Roll Away." The more musically omnivorous will love the excellent Steely Dan meets Stevie Wonder-ish earworm that is "Butterfly" and the gorgeously lush and romantic "All Through the Night" (that manages to be a great "Quiet Storm"-like soft-rock/soulful reggae hybrid). Don't miss out on this release--it's so good and essential!

Eastern Standard Time: "The Dragon" b/w "Miles and Miles" 7" (self-released) -- Read The Duff Guide to Ska review here.

Flying Vipers: The Green Tape cassette (Music A.D.D.) -- Read The Duff Guide to Ska review here.

The Frightnrs: "Sharon" b/w "Admiration" 7" (Mad Decent/The Full Hundred) -- Read The Duff Guide to Ska review here.

Heavensbee: Soul Mates digital album (Trilby Records) -- Read The Duff Guide to Ska review here.

H.R. and The Scotch Bonnets: Quest EP CD (Morphius Records) -- Read The Duff Guide to Ska review here.

The Lions: Soul Riot CD/2xLP (Stones Throw) -- This is the one release that I never got around to reviewing this year because I was afraid of not being able to do it justice. I am in awe of this record. Like Fishbone's Truth and Soul or Marvin Gaye's What's Going On, The Lions' absolutely phenomenal Soul Riot is full of songs of defiance, despair, anger, and pure joy (where love and lust are concerned) that reflect the black American experience--as the nation's horrific legacy of slavery continues to play out in so many devastating ways (in particular, see "When It Rains," "At a Loss," and "Going Nowhere"). And like Fishbone's aforementioned marketer-confounding album, Soul Riot incorporates bits of many other musical genres into its heady roots reggae mix, including R and B, funk, De La Soul-like hip hop, and dancehall. With vocal duties shared by Deston Berry, Alex Desert (both of Hepcat), Malik Moore (The Bullets, Ocean 11), Black Shakespeare (cousin of Robbie), and even Angelo Moore of Fishbone (on the awesome "Rhythm Rock") and a band full of LA ska and reggae all-star musicians, the songs of social consciousness and protest have rarely sounded this good and compelling. (Did I mention their deadly cool cover of The Clash's "Magnificent Seven" recorded for the essential The Clash Goes Jamaican comp?) As far as I'm concerned, this is the album of the year.

Mento Buru: A Bailar con Mento Buru 7" (Steady Beat Records) -- Read The Duff Guide to Ska review here.

The Meow Meows: Friends on Benefits 7" EP (Jump Up Records) -- Read The Duff Guide to Ska review here.

The Reggay Lords: Run or Get Down LP (Jump Up Records) -- Read The Duff Guide to Ska review here.

The Selecter: Access All Areas CD/DVD (Edsel) -- Read The Duff Guide to Ska review here.

The Selecter: Subculture CD/LP (DMF/Redeye) -- Read The Duff Guide to Ska review here.

The Specials: More Specials 2xCD reissue (Chrysalis) -- While I cringe at how many times The Specials' catalogue has been reissued in various packages (why can't Rico's That Man is Forward and Jama Rico receive this kind of attention?!), I picked up this deluxe version at the recommendation of a friend, who told me that the newly remastered More Specials (so often neglected/maligned in the past) had never sounded so good. One listen to the extraordinary, nuclear dread-filled opening to "Man at C and A"--the only song Jerry Dammers and Terry Hall ever wrote together--or the brightly masked despair of being stuck in a life with no future in Lynval Golding's brilliant "Do Nothing" and you'll be convinced.

Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra: Ska Me Forever LP/digital (Nacional) -- Read The Duff Guide to Ska review here.

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Click here for Part 2 of The Duff Guide to Ska's 2015 Year in Review!

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Duff Review: Heavensbee "Soul Mates"

Trilby Records
2015
Digital download (through Amazon)

(Review by Steve Shafer)

Named after a character from "The Hunger Games" (Plutarch Heavensbee, who is one of the leaders of the rebellion in District 13 against the Capitol), the new, intriguing, self-described "dub-pop" trio Heavensbee is comprised of members with deep roots in the NYC ska scene: Roger Apollon, Jr., Marc Wasserman, and Meg Howe. All three are currently in the ska-does-New Wave act Rude Boy George (full disclosure: I was a member of RBG for a spell), while Apollon and Wasserman are also founding/ongoing members of the terrific 2 Tone-influenced Bigger Thomas and Howe has her own excellent ska-pop-punk band, Across the Aisle.

As the brilliant and cheeky cover artwork might suggest, Heavensbee's Soul Mates is largely concerned with the seemingly enormous challenges of successfully navigating romantic relationships (without being emotionally devoured--love is a battlefield, indeed!)--with the ultimate goal of finding, and holding onto, one's perfect mate. Having said that, it's not an album full of happy love songs, but it certainly contains some very beautiful original music about the experience of looking for love.

Heavensbee's dub-pop sound is very much grounded in ska and reggae, but they also mix in small bits of rock and hip hop, and everything is coated in an appealing UB40-ish pop sheen (the songs were written by Wasserman, while the lyrics were composed by Apollon and Howe). Of note, most of the tracks contain compelling lyrical exchanges between the two singers--illustrating the push and pull/point-of-view of the two people engaged, locked, or trapped in the relationship (oftentimes going south).

One of my favorite tracks on Soul Mates is "Life Boat," an amazing, stripped-down pop song (vocals, keys, and clarinet) about a relationship "lost at sea," with unexpected pauses between their sung exchanges, like the singers only appear when the crests of the waves lift them up into sight/hearing range (and, in a similar vein, their lyrics are like these disjointed snippets/observations about their perilous situation that you only sometimes catch). The chorus includes this plea for rescue: "Lower, lower the lifeboat/fire, fire the flare." The pretty ballad/duet "Lay of the Land" covers similar topical territory (losing one's way in a relationship): "Frustration and the pain replaced the pleasure/the journey hasn't gone the way we'd planned."

Not everything on the album is sour. The fantastic Toots and Maytals'-like "Mr. Know Everything" has the female singer gently--but firmly--countering the male singer's swagger:

"(Roger:) I looked at my phone
and got the new reminder
Today's the day
You thought I would forget

I'll take you out
and treat you a little kinder
It's so easy
I don't sweat

You'll be so happy
When you see
I know it all
Just trust in me

(Meg:) Hey, hey, hey
I'll love you forever and always
But you don't know everything
My love, my darling

Did you know, they call me Mr. Know Everything?

You're thinking that I don't know what I'm doing
I make it look so easy and so cool
The moves I've got keep all the ladies queuing
Let me tell you
I'm no fool
You're so lucky you're with me
I know it all
Just trust in me"

It may be an imperfect relationship, but they're comfortable enough with being themselves--and understanding each other--and they've made it work (so far!).

Another fave is "You Put Me On," which has this driving, wonderfully menacing, New Wave-y ska sound. And, like another certain song from the 80s, compares vinyl records to relationships:

"(Roger:) You gaze around my party
and you caught my eye
I love the sound you make
And I don't know why

When I put you on
You make me move my feet
I want to keep you playing
Keep you on repeat

So many records, so little time...

(Meg:) You put me on
You spin me round
You turn me up
And turn me down
Roller coaster 'till the break of dawn
And then I'm gone

More love, pump up the sound
With each spin, I'm losing ground
Hold me gently, I'm not a toy
I need some love from my sound boy"

In this song, for the male singer, music/women are like dirt (in the Desmond Dekker sense of the word: everywhere, plentiful), but she wants to be his exclusive number 1.

As much as I love vintage, 2 Tone, and 3rd Wave ska (as well as roots reggae), I'm attracted to acts that like to take risks and experiment with nudging the genre's boundaries into fresh sounds and compelling places--something that Heavensbee is doing quite nicely. At the moment, this act is solely a studio creation; but my fervent hope the songs on Soul Mates are given life on stage. I very much want to see where they might go!