Kamikazi Dub

Album review

Unlike Scientist, Prince Jammy espoused the minimal school of dub that their mentor King Tubby favored. In lieu of prevalent space-battle effects and flanger-riddled mixes, Jammy just stuck to warping the drum, bass and guitar tracks, with the occasional echo-treated horn or organ thrown in. On Kamikazi Dub's "Shaolin Temple" and "Kamikazi," Jammy creates that sense of boundless dub space simply by soaking the drum and bass in reverb, while organ and guitar additions are kept fleeting to maintain the eerily isolated atmosphere. For "Downtown Shanghai Rock" and "Waterfront Gang War," Jammy does include some of the "found" sound effects Scientist favored by using layered keyboard and percussion tracks, but this is kept to a minimum. Both Jammy and Scientist created masterful dub recordings, so it just comes down to a question of preference; for more psychedelic dub cuts, pick up a Scientist release, but for a more roots-informed yet sophisticated dub style, you will definitely want a copy of Kamikazi Dub.

© Stephen Cook /TiVo