Reggae superstar Mykal Rose, original voice of the Grammy Award-winning Jamaican group Black Uhuru, steps into the future with Lee "Scratch" Perry's former band, NYC dub specialists Subatomic Sound System and London lovers rock queen Hollie Cook on the release of the trio's collaborative full-length album "Rockin’ Like A Champion".
Reggae is loved around the world, but so many people have lost touch with the Jamaican artists who invented the genre. Being able to have giants like Mykal Rose and Larry McDonald together representing a sound they were integral in creating and bringing to the world, is crucial work.
Subatomic’s production style flourishes throughout the album, highlighting their approach to classic analog sounds in the higher frequencies while drawing on more futuristic techniques inspired by their immersion in NYC hip hop, electronic music, and sound system culture to extend bass frequencies to the lower octaves for deeper resonance and a wider spectrum.
In this case, the upper frequencies are reminiscent of horns from classic 1960s Ethio jazz recordings; drums, guitars, percussion, organs, tape echoes, phasers and spring reverbs from 1970s Jamaican dub productions; lo-fi snare drums from 90s golden era NYC hip hop production. Meanwhile the bass and kick drum live deep in sine wave, sub-bass frequencies, steady pulsing like the sound of a mother’s heartbeat to a baby in the womb or an 808 thumping in a car trunk three blocks away, heard through your open apartment window on a hot summer night in Brooklyn.
Performer Credits:
Mykal Rose - vocal
Hollie Cook - vocal backing
Emch - bass, guitar, melodica, organ, dub mixing, sampler & drum machine
Troy Simms - saxophone
Lawrence McDonald - congas, flexatone, percussion
