REGGAE RUNNINGS -- 12 September 2007

By Jesse I

 

Jah Mason had Melbourne well and truly blazing on Saturday night, as he lived up to the hype, and delivered a performance unlike any we've seen in this town to date. Fiya Mason was indeed pure fire on stage, as he burned through his huge catalog of tunes, selector Lenny Roots razor sharp on the mix behind him. The crowd response to Mason's sweet singing and hardcore rockstone chanting was amazing, as lighters burned in the air, people banged their bottles on the speakers, and whistles blew to an almost deafening level. For me personally, this was the best reggae session I've ever been to in Australia - just a perfect combination of an amazing performance, and a perfect crowd - and it augurs well for the future of reggae down under. As well as cutting dubplates for a bunch of Melbourne sounds while he was here, Mason also voiced a killer tune for Melbourne producer Tempa - hold tight for the release of this one!

Chant Down's next session at Brown Alley will be on October 13, as things return to the regular More Fire program. Residents Ras Crucial, Damajah and I will be joined for this one by Adelaide's Dubarama, Perth's Spinn-Aphex, and local guests A13 and Bonnita.

After deciding he didn't want to work with Freq Nasty after all, Spragga Benz will no longer be here for the Parklife festival this month, which also means no sideshows. Word from the Melbourne promoter is that the tour should still happen before long - watch this space for updates.

The next major international tour to look forward to comes in December, in the form of Jamaican singer Junior Reid. Known for his work both as a solo artist, and with Black Uhuru, Reid is a true legend of the music, responsible for hits such as Original Foreign Mind, John Law, Fit Yu Haffi Fit, Rappa Pam Pam, and the seminal "One Blood" (one of the most-sampled songs in reggae music). Recent times have seen Jr Reid make a big impact on the hiphop/r&b circuit, thanks to his remix of MIMS' "This Is Why I'm Hot" - and he still is hot, even after decades in the business. As with Jah Mason, this will be a soundsystem tour, Reid singing live over riddims provided by New York 's DJ Power. Jr Reid will perform live at Brown Alley on December 15, as well as the Meredith Music Festival on the same weekend. More detail closer to the time.

Big ups to Uptight and Steve Austin from Heartical Hi-Fi, who kicked things off in fine style with their first "Basement Session" at The Night Owl a couple weeks back. Sadly I was out of town and missed this one myself, but from all reports it was a wicked night of extreme bass, and a real treat for fans of the UK dub sound. Heartical have now locked in a monthly residency at the Night Owl, so check for them on the first Saturday of every month from October 6 th .

Friday the 21st September brings the second Riddim Method party at the Croft Institute, after a great debut last month. Resident sounds Housewife's Choice and Rise Up will be joined for this one by Natty Sistren, and Chant Down Sound (with MC Damajah) spinning a pure dubplate set. Spinning downstairs on the same night will be Ms Butt and A13, so reggae has the whole venue pon lock for this one!

The very next night is Pressure Drop's monthly instalment at Laundry. Natty Sistren, Nich Power and Tempa welcome the "Ghetto Fabulous" Bass Bin Laden to the controls, as well as Dreadlock Trinity selector Glen Irie and sing-jay Ras Robbie.

Jamaica's record output slowed down greatly in the last month, as Hurricane Dean swept through the island, wreaking serious havoc and shutting down power and telecommunications for several days. Music production never really stops though, and Europe continued to put out top-ranking riddims as usual... The Levi riddim from Manasseh's Roots Garden label is one of my favourites of the last couple months, a strong digital-roots piece with an old-school sound, and excellent vocals from Jahmali and Luciano (with Ras Zacharri). Maximum Sound have just released two killer riddims, Ashanti Warrior, and Blackboard . The former is an original roots piece, while the latter is a tough reworking of the Lee Scratch Perry "Black Board Jungle" dub; both highly recommended. DST is Yellow Moon's latest, a strong roots riddim with some nice bounce, and a bunch of strong cuts. Though MP3s have been on the net for a good six months already, Lone Lions have finally released the vinyl of their Graduation In Zion riddim, based on the classic Kiddus I tune of the same name. Check for strong cuts on this one from Capleton, Gyptian, and Kiddus I himself re-doing his original. Gangsta Law on IM music lacked punch for me at first, but it did get better after a few listens, and has been pretty popular with other Melbourne selectors - well worth checking at any rate. Other recent roots riddims worth a listen include Weed Seed on Black Shine, No Foe on Black Dutch, and River Bed on King Yard.

On the dancehall tip, new riddims to look out for include Big Up on John John (a tough one loaded with strong cuts from the likes of Capleton, Buju, Ninjaman, Assassin, Beenie, etc), the minimal Silver Screen on Don Corleon, the hiphop influenced Hustler on Rashanco, and Atomic Bomb on Heart of Love.