In 1995 this compilation from Brooklyn's WordSound label heralded the emergence of a new sound in underground music-one that took the slow, murky groove of Manchester trip-hop and leavened it with equal parts old-school New York hip hop and dubwise reggae. None of the featured artists were household names, nor are they five years later (although Sub Dub, whose ponderous "Monuments on Earth" opens the program, have gone on to some fame).
Qaballah Steppers are genuine New York fixtures these days, though; their combination of North African sonorities and heavy dubwise textures makes "Majesty Dub" a thing of eerie beauty. There's some very fine straight-ahead reggae from the well-named
Roots Control and from the mighty
Dr. Israel, whose "Saidisyabruklinmon (Nobwoycyantess)" crawls along at a glacial pace under the weight of a ten-ton one-drop beat. Corporal Blossom delivers seven minutes of creepy ambience in "Opportunist Dub" (along with a hilarious vocal sample). Most of the rest of the program consists of tracks that would all be highlights on any other compilation. Highly recommended. ~ Rick Anderson