Dub Reviews
| Artist: | Various Artists | Cover scan:
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| Title: | Dubnight Compilation Vol.2 | |||
| Label: | Big Vibes / Reggae Town | |||
| Catalogue Number: | - | |||
| Format: | MP3 | |||
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| Result: | Dub for the masses? | |||
| Review date: | 2008-07-15 | |||
| Detailed review: | ||||
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In 2007, a free MP3 compilation called "Dubnight"
caused quite some attention (which is clearly an understatement since they claim
to have had more than 10.000 downloads; this is insane, if only 10% of these
would buy some dub releases as well, all the producers would be more than happy!
If I think that the labels struggle to sell 500 copies and some even sell less,
then it really makes me wonder if a free dub album is downloaded 10.000+ times).
2008 hears the second part of it, this time as a double pack with two virtual
CDs in it. And again, it is for free. 25 tracks have been chosen by the dubnight
inventor Phil Harmony and his guest selector Malone Rootikal. The MP3s come in a
nicely packed ZIP file including a well made PDF booklet full of information. Most of the tracks are from the current "internet dubbers" which you can find on sites like Versionist, ReggaeDubwise or Myspace. Some more known artists like Zion Train, Dubmatix or Dub Spencer & Trance Hill also offered a tune. As a result, the happy listeners gets quite some minutes of dub listening pleasure with styles ranging from roots dubs to heavy steppers. The quality of the tunes differs as much as one could expect in a free album. There are several tunes to be found though which stand out and I want to mention a couple of them: Pete Murder Tone "Sabra and Shatila" (this guy really developed through the years, I still have some of his first contributions from the Versionist site and wow, what a difference now!), King Jubby "We Soldiers Dub On" (quite brave name), Natty I "Endless Dub" (nice piano skanks), Irish Moss "Space Time Blues Version" (heavily reverbed, outer space style fi sure), Ganjaman "Dub No 7" (aha, I didn't know that he would be into dub at all, what a positive surprise), Dubmatix "War, Peace & Dub" (although this tune is so old already, I still like it a lot). Surprisingly I find the Lackatee meets Malone "Hard Steppers Dub" too hard. How come? Maybe because I lie on the sofa while writing this text, being lazy. ;) On CD 2 I prefer Malone's "Rootikal Fyah" (seems to be the most professional production of the whole album and grooves as hell - except that I suppose hell isn't really groovy but you surely know what I mean), Dub Spener & Trance Hill "Kifi Mifi" (stupid title but the song will grow on you if you give it a chance), Jahcoustix feat. Dubios Neighbourhood "Dubious Dub Dance" (and another aha-effect, so far I was convinced that apart from the word Dubious, there is absolutely zero dub in this live band; I seem to have been wrong, at least in this case they deliver an extra nice piece of grooving dub; check out the bassline and the horns, oh yes) and finally Two Generations "African Boy's Dub" (good dub mix, the bass effect sounds like the famous Mad Professor one). All in all, I don't really know what to write more about it. I guess I don't even have to since the album will be downloaded anyway by thousands of people, much more than will ever read this review. I feel that I kinda waste my time here. I have to go home now and re-think my life. In case you are one of the few who don't have this album yet, get it here. As I said, it's free. P. S. There is an "n" missing in Ganjaman. I suppose they already know. ;) |
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