Even the great Pablo Picasso knew: “Good artists copy. Great artists steal.” Or as we Germans say: “Good stealing is better than bad homemade.” Creative people call this process “inspiration.” Something similar must be “Ono-Sendai Sound Battles The Root Of All Evil“. The multi-instrumentalist, who lives in Tilburg (NL), and about whom next to nothing is known, gives us a sound that could also be called a reminiscence of times long past and deceased heroes of this genre. In particular, King Tubby, Yabby You, Roots Radics, Lee Perry, Joe Gibbs, Scientist, Errol T and so many others to whom we owe this wonderful music.
A creative process such as the creation of such a great album never takes place in a vacuum. Rather, the result of this path is the logical consequence of a chain of impressions that the artist collects and reconciles with his experiences. When you listen to music in a normal way, for example, these impressions are stored in the brain as subconscious perceptions. Creative people like Ono-Sendai Sound seem to collect these things, like a squirrel hoarding nuts, in order to retrieve them when they are needed.
But much more important is of course the conscious inspiration through active observation and listening far beyond one's own nose. This is more or less how Ono-Sendai Sound must have proceeded. For "Battles The Root Of All Evil" he took some reggae classics by Johnny Clarke, Peter Tosh, Eek-A-Mouse, John Holt, Gregory Isaacs and others and created a contemporary, gripping Dub-album. The riddims are still unmatched and the text samples underline this breathtaking mix. Hall-soaked percussion makes its way through a thick veil of echoes and reverb. Of course, bass and drums form the backbone of this production, which is full of attention to detail. I don't want to go into detail about each individual track here, because for me the overall impression of the almost 35-minute album is what counts, and it has already made it onto my shortlist for the best of the year this year.
Finally, I have to mention one more track, “Rich Mans Curse Dub“, because it captivates me with the constant threatening sound of a circling helicopter and at the same time brings back bad memories of reporting on the Vietnam War. I have never heard a more haunting version of “Police in Helicopter”.

3 Responses to “Ono-Sendai Sound Battles The Root Of All Evil”
With this review, it is worth listening first and then reading. Because even if the riddims are well known, the essence really comes out. Absolutely clear, massive bassline, which in itself gives me great pleasure. A refreshing new edition of the classics. I agree Ras Vorbei absolutely agrees when he quotes Picasso accordingly.
To a small but noticeable extent, the redesign of the classics reminds me of the style of Brain Damage and their interpretation of the Hebron Gate album, especially on Higher Bidder Dub. So work out the essence and add a spherical background. A style that makes me extremely happy and means I can listen to the album more than once. The idea of a personal best of the year list also occurred to me. I can absolutely understand the full 5 stars.
Helicopters have always fascinated me. I often dreamed on the “highway” of buying myself a helicopter so that I could just fly over all those “poor bastards” down there in the traffic jam. It didn’t matter what kind of oversized car they were standing around in, be it a big Benz, a big Audi or a flashy BMW. They were standing on the highway or weren’t moving any faster than a snail on a sandy beach. The sound of rotating rotor blades has a magical – if not so threatening – effect on me too, as I was sent to the land of dreams after the Sandman when I was reporting on the Vietnam War. I was too young. I also find “Rich Man’s Curse Dub“, the sound vibes of the rotor blades are almost brilliant in their effect, but I have to complain a little bit, because for my taste, they don’t necessarily cover the whole DubTune. And I must also say that this effect has been done much better at least once. At least that is how I feel. I will just say, “This is the End” by the Doors in “Apocalypse Now”. For me, one of the best films of all time!!! But even without the film, it is unsurpassed. I also find the helicopter on “The Wall” by
Pink Floyd. The best DJ we ever had here in Göttingen was so cool and always started with "Johnny B. Good" by Peter Tosh. The effect was of course gigantic the very first time. First there was this helicopter for a while and then when you think, now we're going to continue with Pink Floyd, the drums and the bias line from Jamaica come in. I then recorded it exactly like that on one of my favorite cassettes. I thought it was just "really well stolen" by me ;-) Later I dared to play the Babylon by Bus version of "War / No more Trouble" after the intro to "Jerusalem" by Alpha Blondy. It was also a very good effect and at least I didn't get botched by the dance guests. It was very risky of me because "Jerusalem" by Alpha Blondy was something of a four-year hit here in Göttingen. Well, there wasn't a dry eye during "War" by Bob Marley either, so the risk was limited.
So much for the helicopter sound, which is also very good here, but I just had to mention the other helicopter missions because I think they're so cool. Oh well.
I am often inclined to suggest to artists that they should steal a bias line or riddim from Jamaica for the hundred thousandth time, or better yet, rework it, rather than do it badly themselves. Magical bias lines are not a given, if I am not mistaken. Neither from Jamaica nor anywhere else do riddims like those here from the Ono-Sendai Sound come from another DubVariant, excellently staged. I am delighted!
As an example, I simply have to mention "Ganja Smuggling" by EEK A MOUSE. It's the first tune from "Wa do dem", if I'm not mistaken. I had never heard of EEK A MOUSE before, but back then I bought every single reggae record I could get in the shop. And when I put the record on at home and "Ganja Smuggling" started rolling, I knew what real dance hall style is and always will be!!! Very often I have the feeling that I'm far from the only one, because almost all sound systems have this BIG TUNE with one of the biggest riddims ever in their "program".
(I would have to put that into perspective a little now, because I haven't been to a sound system that often, but I'd rather keep that to myself, otherwise my eulogy for the Jamaican riddims might not go down as well as I hope it does now.)
Yes, I already have this album in my top 5 charts for 2025 ;-) The bar is already set pretty high, but I'm sure there will still be plenty of creative inspiration.
And to all the bassmen in the world, I send out greetings,
"Don't let me discourage you"! Any bass line is better than no bass line! It just seems to me sometimes that many people confuse bass with bass line.
As far as I'm concerned, you can add a few polar lights to the 5 stars ;-)
Greetings in the name of DUB !!! ……………………………. lemmi
MEGA!!!