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Five Star Review

Lee PerryHeavy Rain

There is finally something - longed for by me for a long time: "Rainford in Dub". Sorry: "Heavy Rain“(On-U-Sound) it says of course. Finally the Adrian Sherwood compositions without Lee Perry's "vocals", but with the occasional trombone playing by Vin Gordons and with progressive, "abstract" Dub-Mixing the On-U-God. And? Solves that Dub-Album what I wished for? I have to admit, at first a cognitive distortion stood in my way: the expectations. It was just too high. “Heavy Rain” didn't convince me spontaneously. On the contrary: the album seemed inaccessible and weak. Complex arrangements, radical, sometimes disruptive mixing and quite reserved bass prevent the album from being overheard in the background. But that is exactly what makes it so strong. Adrian Sherwood has never cared about mainstream and ease of consumption. He was always looking for challenging sounds, disturbing compositions and generally interested in acoustic experiments of all kinds. That's why he and Lee Perry are (actually) a congenial couple. And that's why “Heavy Rain” only unfolds its full effect when you consciously listen and analyze, but let yourself fall into the musical chaos without any expectations or reservations and become fully aware. Then structure and order suddenly reveal themselves and previously disturbing sounds are transformed into fireworks of unheard of ideas and surprising discoveries.

The tip of the iceberg is the first track on the album: “Here Come the Warm Dreads”, which - the title suggests - Brian Eno mixed it. Apparently it was from Perry's legendary work “Revolution Dub“Inspires and cheerfully switches the stereo channels on and off on the track - and also causes a lot of disruption. A little too intentional for me, but from a marketing point of view, a collaboration between Sherwood, Perry and Eno is undoubtedly a brilliant coup. My personal highlights, however, are the two exclusive new tracks “Dreams Come True” and “Above and Beyond”. Okay, to be honest, the two are more “classic” and the beats are clearer and more reduced. Are the other titles too cerebral after all? I would say: it's all in the mix. To put the two pieces at the center of the album and thus to take a break, was a good idea. So: Long write, short sense: Rainford in Dub is actually quite unexpectedly as good as expected.

Rating: 5 out of 5.

9 replies to "Lee Perry: Heavy Rain"

I just wanted to give the same of myself, because nobody has said a word about the excellent artwork ... and by that I mean not only Heavy Rain, but also Rainford and the various pre-singles of both releases.

Above & Beyond is recycling ... minus sax, plus violin. In general, I noticed the lower overall volume, in addition to the bass, which has moved into the background ... in and of itself a good sign because it can prevent clippings and overmodulation (!) And thus a more "original" sound is possible ... But I am not sure here - the bass is not pronounced enough, which can also be on purpose ... "Dubsetter ”was also the case.

Does anyone know Gaudi's role in the production ... that Dub-Mix?

Anyways, nice album that unfortunately doesn't massage your stomach tonally.

Well guys? ……… .. ;-)

At first I thought you just wanted to test me here. Because of too quiet and too little bass and so on.
Today for the first time I had the opportunity to hear more than the bits and pieces that have only been held out to me before.
In addition, I had just plugged together my system and rebuilt it a little. Then I thought, oh look again DubBlog over and then I read this beautiful 5 star review. In addition, a comment that reinforced the quiet bass again. So I check into the window and just think, "Huh, are they kidding me?"
I had the hammer sound here! The bass bubbled around my ears at its finest and the volume was also completely OK!
In addition, what I heard literally knocked me off my feet. My expectation wasn't as high as René's, because the well-known chunks haven't flashed me that much. Overall and in detail, however, there is “really something going on” if I may quote Brigitte Nielsen.
Most of all, "Above And Beyond" knocks me out. That is pure DubMedicine !!! You know, I'm a bassline fetishist and that's exactly how I have the drums, most of all. But why can't I understand that with the weak - or "quiet bass"?
Quite simply, I only just noticed that my volume control is or was set to FULL PULLE and I can
just give everyone the tip to do that too, because then you can say again:

ON - U. SOUND IS IN THE AREA !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ………………………………………… .. lemmi

lemmi, you clearly notice the volume and the bass when you mix heavy rain tracks with others Dubyou hear ... a la mixtape. The difference is striking.

I'm not so sure about 'On-U Sound is in the area'. Maybe it says “Gaudi is in the area” or “Brian Eno is in the area” ... I miss the liner notes and all the information that you don't get when streaming ... they would very likely provide information about it. Man can't googling everything :)

Yes gtkriz,

the disc is already pretty quiet. I just wanted to portray my shakiness in a self-deprecating way, which gave me a wonderful listening experience due to my "mistake" in checking the volume control.
The thing about the mix tape is another reason for me to freak out and fall into anger. The different volume levels of the sources have always existed, but with the old analog recording technology with mixer and level control I was able to do it EARLIER !!! always compensate pretty well, so that the mixed tapes or CDs were somewhat "homogeneous" or equally loud. I've tried something like this as a computer program in the meantime, but there must be big differences in execution. My good old Cd burner from Philipps always did that wonderfully. Everything was right there. Just as I heard the bass when recording, in the end it was also when it was played back. With the (shitty) computer program there was a blatant difference between recording and playback. The control only succeeded by chance, if at all, and it's no fun at all when I compare it with the great technology before it. My life was simple and clearly structured. Now it sinks into chaos and depression, because I was robbed of an essential fun factor in life by bad innovations that have only made life more complicated but not easier. May my yowling be heard over all the hills and valleys ………… ..
"On - U. Sound is In The Area" or On - U. Sound, at least it says below. Even with Spotify. I haven't been able to make out 100% typical “Adrian Sherwood effects” in “Heavy Rain”. I've heard it first and I'm excited about the overall result. But even if the good Adrian didn't mix that much himself, I can feel that this is on-U.Sound just from the type of music. For me, that is what the musicians stand for.

Well, of course I very much hope that the album will soon be available in my home in “golden vinyl”. Usually the most important information should be on the back.

In any case, I would also say that Brian Eno and Gaudi are very welcome at On-U.Sound.

Someone wrote here that Spotify is still not in the black. I'm really worried about the beautiful ones Dubs from AlDubb via Richie Phoe to Zion I Kongs, all of which I unfortunately only have in a kind of lending library. I can't even think about that, or I'll start yelping again. Even if the Pope can't help it, I would like to quote Lee Perry:

"Kick the pope in his ass" …………………………………… .. lemmi

Even if it is offtopic: Nobody needs to worry about Spotify. Why?
The streaming services business model has two components: convenience and digital expropriation.

Convenience is clear - even for many who are not big music fans and always hear the same thing, it is worth a few euros a month to have your favorite music immediately available without advertising and in decent quality.

Digital expropriation: starting at the end of the 90s, the unlicensed copying of music using CD burners and downloads soon afterwards changed from a nerd hobby to normality for large parts of the population within almost 10 years. As a result, the (mainstream) music industry shoots wildly, starting around 2005 dubiose law firms with the globally rather unique tool of warning + criminal declaration of omission, tens of thousands of music fans in financial distress up to personal bankruptcy.
From the end of the 00s, the majority of the above-mentioned group tried to consume more and more legally: some (undemanding) listen to music on Youtube (with all the known disadvantages such as low audio quality, video compulsory and advertising), others use the single- File purchases via the shop system. The number of providers is increasing. Files are bought, mostly with digital watermarks, except for the initial crutches, always with the option of playing and copying the file on compatible devices (be it for backup purposes or to make friends happy).
Next up are the streaming services and take away the file as well. It's a win-win situation for the music industry, even if it's habitually howling. But it has been doing that since the tape recorder became popular. Win-win, because the cash register rings for each playback process and receives all the data: who is streaming what and when? Not only can great pseudo-individual playlists be created from this, but assembly line hits can also be produced in a target group-oriented manner. With a precision that even Dieter Bohlen cannot manage for the taste-amputated private television audience. In the future, definitely also via AI.

As a fan of fringe group music, streaming services are a bit difficult. I had Spotify for a few months, then Tidal.
On the one hand, of course, it's great to have availability, and you get to know a lot. On the other hand, the feeling of interchangeability increased with me. Why should I be the last panda now Dub Hear the release again when I felt ten thousand previously unheard potentials Dub- Got pearls in the loop? In my opinion, this devalues ​​the music and makes it a constantly available mass product, stronger than illegal downloads where you somehow still had the feeling that you had got hold of something great.
Then there is the fact that you know several versions of a song and love one in particular. For me it is often the limited edition 7 ″, the not yet perfectly mastered version that was first published. When streaming, you get the whole album on which the song is on, but played more soullessly and mastered differently. Then there are all the songs that you know from the good sound system sessions ... the roots tunes, which were released on some labels and are offered for 30 EUR upwards on discogs ... if there was a CD release then it was disappointing.
Most recently at Tidal I had the feeling that half of my music was available there at most. Spotify may have a little more, probably they have a hundred times as many customers and therefore more listed labels, but I just couldn't find a lot there.

to Lemmi: do it like me, create 31 / 46min long Spotify playlists and clip the tape deck to the computer. Well, it's MiniDisc for me (because I recently found 150 MDs in the bulky waste and my 90s Sony MD recorder is still working properly, unlike the tape devices that have also been neglected for years, different story). What is in self-distribution at bandcamp can be bought with a clear conscience, there is a lot going down with the artists and you have optimal file formats (FLAC for the archive or the CD burner and compact m1a files for the smartphone). What is really cool and is offered as vinyl or CD is what you buy :) The trend for me is increasing because a lot of roots are repressed.

At the height of illegal downloads there was a lot of discussion about a culture flat rate, as we unfortunately still live in turbo capitalism, the market has now regulated it and we have Spotify and Netflix, along with various competitors.
Practically nothing changes for the musicians, they have always been poor (except for the top 10 if they are / have not been excluded from producers and labels).
For the big labels, given the circumstances (the reproduction technology has been completely democratized. WE have the machines to keep copying!), It is totally great because they have increasing sales despite the unlimited copying options. And that's exactly why streaming services are “here to stay”.
Small labels and independent artists benefit from inexpensive technology and low-threshold sales opportunities.
Music consumers of all stripes have increasingly golden times and can choose between a large number of good offers. For example, because of the YouTube channels "RasDashanSound" and "MysticRevelation" alone, I have fantastic treasures in roots /Dub discovered and bought more vinyl this year than between 1990 and 2014 combined, and spent more money on music than ever in a year. Most of it is not found on streaming services, practically nothing but version.

If Spotify etc. increase the prices at some point, a few users will drop out or change providers. In the age of total surveillance I do not believe in a return to illegal downloads, Babylon Shitsdem has done a great job. CD burners are just as unimportant in the mass market as CD players. The possibility of analog recording of individual songs will exist as long as analog signal paths are available in the mass market, the development is currently moving away from it (see audio via Bluetooth, WLAN, in the professional area Dante). Pro equipment with an analog input will probably be around for a while, and headphone converters will still work electromagnetically, albeit with Class D amp and DSP equalization so that even with technical skills you can't get a really good copy there. We'll see what the future brings in this regard, meanwhile I'll put the needle in the groove and close my eyes.

well, just my 2cents :) Heavy Rain likes it very much, the sound is excellent to my ears. I don't know if I will hear it a third time. Reasons are somewhere above in the text.

“We'll see what the future brings in this regard, in the meantime I'll put the needle in the groove and open my eyes
to".

In fact, that's my favorite thing to do. It's just a shame that that doesn't work with Richie Phoe or the Zion I Kings.
I can hear a certain oversaturation from you too, when you probably won't even hear “Heavy Rain” anymore, because a lot of other good material “in the loop” is waiting to be heard as well. I want to hear “Heavy Rain” at least 100 more times and rub the cover against my stomach.
But this disc alone - which used to be in every record store - I have to order in a complicated manner on the Internet. In any case, the payment is still too complicated for me.
I come out as “Vollhorst” but I haven't even managed to buy Spotify Premium because I still haven't been able to pay with PayPal. When I finished filling in the "fill in the blank" for payment and clicked on "Next", only a message appeared that I still haven't understood. My colleagues said that I should rather continue to work with the "pizza delivery service" because I was probably the only person in the world who managed not to have completely followed the most important steps in the PayPal registration. There was probably a 1 cent transfer with an attached code that I would have found on any of my bank statements if I had looked at more of my K statements than my current account balance. So I am simply not made for "normal life" as one lives today. After all, I'm ready to deal with direct debit authorizations. It took me a long time to do that. And now that I finally get it, the world is a lot further and I am forced to do something again that I personally would never have needed for my life ... Paying with Pay Pal is really very simple, that's me already clear but my inner aversion and my distrust block me so much that, figuratively, I cannot even tie my own shoes.
But now comes the big "BUT" pop up!
Do you really think I should rebuild my old tape deck? Actually lies right next to my entire system on the floor. That wouldn't be an act at all, but are there any cassettes at all?
Blanks for my Eins A Cd burner are no longer available anywhere on the Internet.
In addition, I would not accept Richie Phoe and Zion I Kings on cassette either. To have something on cassette was always just a stopgap solution so that I could, for example, even listen to my old friend's great vinyl records at home. In the meantime I've bought the most important discs.
Spotify and Co. are therefore only an emergency solution for me. It still doesn't get into my head why we don't make it complete. The internet is checked to see what is going on, then an order is placed, and from 10 panes onwards, it is mastered and printed.

Sometimes I think, at the bottom of my heart, I just want to go back to my mom's stomach ………………. lemmi

Heyii rop up
thanks for your long explanations about the music industry and streaming services ... i still do it to myself to own all my music myself (lately mainly digital, but also from vinyl again and again) ... and because i'm on the endless search for the absolute album am (hunter and gatherer sends his regards), it will go on like this ... from switzerland, downloading without payment is currently still possible (legally?) and i do it on a large scale ... but have no bad conscience, as i also have a reasonable I pay for the music I really want and go to a lot of concerts ... and I think that even my own stream will be registered from my own hd (both from itunes and from musicbee, for example ... the latter is the best app in my opinion to manage large digital libraries, and I currently have around 35 albums and new ones are added every week ...). as long as your device is connected to the network, you will be tracked in some way ... everything else is an illusion!

[…] Doyen Sherwood himself has never lost relevance in his more than 30-year history as a producer - well, sometimes he has ventured into somewhat more obscure areas (such as his collaboration with Pinch), but only his productions with the Dub Syndicate and/or Lee Perry showed how much he works on the cutting edge and beyond. Who doesn't remember Perry's epoch-making "Rainford" release and its no less valuable counterpart "Heavy Rain"? [...]

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