Soothsayers Meets Victor Rice and Friends in Dub

vocal first, dub second (if at all), that's the motto for most Dub-Factories. This order is also logical. Of the Dub is known to be mixed from a vocal original, so it must inevitably come second. Most bands and producers take their time with the second step. Much time. Commercially it makes little difference since that Dubalbum is only appreciated by a very, very small audience anyway. But they still exist, the bands and producers who disregard this practice and the Dub be given the same status as the original. Like: the Soothsayers and Victor Rice. The band's new instrumental album "Soothsayers Meets Victor Rice and Friends in Dub" (Red Earth Music) was released to coincide with Soothsayers Meets Victor Rice and Friends. Two grandiose albums that actually fit equally into this column, because the "Original" is a purely instrumental album.
The Soothsayers are a British band based in London. Formed in 1998 by two brass musicians (Idris Rahman and Robin Hopcraft), it embraced ska, reggae and afrobeat. Sounds to which she has remained true to this day. Accordingly, their music is dominated by powerful brass sections, mostly fast shuffle beats, many jazz influences and a very analogue studio sound in general. Not surprising, then, but of absolute perfection and irrepressible joy of playing. Above all, the jazz borrowings ensure a beautifully complex structure that contrasts congenially with the repetitive rhythm. It is also beneficial that both the speed of the beats and the arrangements vary greatly from piece to piece. This is how the instrumental album becomes the right listening experience.
The Dub-Pendant adds the remix layer. But of course, better stands out Dub through a clever reduction to the essentials. Producer and remixer Victor Rice knows this, of course, and consequently eliminates more than he adds. Without a doubt, Rice is exactly the right man for the job. He was socialized as a bassist, sound engineer and producer in the New York ska scene of the 1990s and 2000s. In 2002 he emigrated to São Paulo in Brazil, founded his own band, produced and remixed countless albums (among others he became one of the most important producers at Easy Star Records) and dealt intensively with in particular Dub. The latter is a rather unusual decision for a ska musician, since ska is a type of music that, due to its speed, has little room for Dub leaves. Well, Victor Rice made his USP out of this dilemma and has stood for fascinating ones for a number of years Dub-Versions of ska or ska-influenced music. That's why his name appears in the Dubblog regularly.
On "Soothsayers Meets Victor Rice and Friends in Dub' he once again delivers a prime example of his art. His Dub-Mixes fit organically into the complex structure of the instrumentals and create a completely new, original interpretation of the originals. That Dub-Album has a completely different tonality than the instrumental album. While the latter is like fireworks, the Dub-Version more like a campfire to warm yourself around. Concentration and introversion instead of exuberant temperament and unrestrained extroversion. Both have their appeal, but we friends of the Dub naturally tend to do less than more (only with the bass it's the other way around ;-). By the way, Victor wouldn't be Rice if he didn't already have some of the instrumentals with soft ones Dub-Effects equipped. So there is only one recommendation: just stream both albums!