Back catalogue: Dancehall/Ragga

Review: Japanese reggae/dancehall artist Boogie Man embarked on a career in the early 90s, inspired by the prospect of filling an unfilled niche: adding humorous and bombastic lyrics to an internationally renowned genre he loved. The track 'Pachinco Man' is a tribute to pachinko, a popular arcade game in Japan that involves shooting metal balls into a machine. Much like the ballistics of such an unforgettable arcade fixture, the track flaunts Boogie Man's energetic vocals over an upbeat dancehall riddim, emphasising positivity and humour. Specialist Japanese dancehall like this is a great boon for the label Rhythm Discs!, who are now embarking on a full scouring and reissuing of the scene's best contributions.

Review: The latest entry in this series from the Dub Suty crew managed to nod to the roots of digital dub and dancehall while also very much looking to the future. It sees the label team up with a producer who lays down the beast while different vocalists step up to add their own twist to the sonics. Von D is the man on the buttons and he crafts a seriously weighty stepper that comes with horns, keys, guitars and of course some alluring bars. Reggae singers Chukki Starr, Chezidek, and Jah Mason all come correct with this positive, uplifting messages of unity.

Review: Any serious dancehall head will know that an original copy of this is seriously rare. It originates back in the late 80s and early 90s NYC scene van Cooly aka Koolindian aka Super Cat's cousin Andrew Maragh. It first Cameron his label Mad Indian Records but is now reissued by the excellent Death Is Not The End sub-label 333. 'Freedom' was written while the talented vocalist was in prison and details what he saw as the unfairness of the judicial system back then. Philip Smart is the man who laid down the rhythm that so ably carries the vocals. On the flip is a vision but it's the original that you need in your life.

Review: The newly formed Dreadlionsmusic label out of Austria debuts here with a fresh EP featuring the eponymous producer Dreadlionsmusic. They take charge of two tunes - the first features the mic work of Fitta Warri on 'Full Control' which has fleshy drums wobbling backwards and forwards and natty dub vocals with some fresh and futuristic synth work next to classic chords. Dreadlionsmusic then offers up a dub take, as they also do of the second tune 'Heart & Soul'. The original is another bit of well-made dub steeped in tradition but with fresh production bringing it right up to date.

Review: Demon Singles Club's latest addition to their fantastic catalogue comes in the form of a re-issue of Freestylers' 'Ruffneck' EP. Formed in 1996, when DJs and producers Matt Canro and Aston Harvey made the wise decision to join forces, the duo went on to release their now iconic debut album We Rock Hard on legendary imprint, Freskanova. Met with quick critical acclaim, We Rock Hard became the duo's most commercially successful release to date. This latest release, 'Ruffneck', cherry picks four standout tracks from the hit-studded album. 'B-Boy Stance', 'Ruffneck', 'Here We Go', and 'Warning' are a journey through classic big beat and breakbeat electronica, which has remained the band's trademark sound to this day. Also including the original artwork, this is a thoughtful ode to the duo's boundary-pushing work.

Review: Jah Screechy's 'Walk & Skank' on the Just Is label will have you doing just that. It is a tune that really will ignite dancefloors with its infectious rhythm and rich reggae vibes and is a rather timeless anthem that showcases Screechy's distinctive vocal style. It blends effortlessly with the track's pulsating bassline and hypnotic beat to embody the essence of Jamaican dancehall culture. On the flip is a signature 'Dubwise' version with even heavier drum rotations and party-pumping energy. Jah Screechy's status as a reggae legend is assured and this is sonic proof.

Review: Japan has an always eye opening and left of centre take on most of the world's most established genres. Urban Discos save sup plenty of it and this time it is a Far Eastern take on lover's rock that is in the sights. Here we have two cuts from Qimygo who also records as KIMIGO. Up first it is 'Aitai To Omoeba' with its shiny dancehall beats and glistening, innocent melodies all topped off with the pure and clean vocals of Qimygo. After that upbeat opener comes the swagger and ever so slightly more tradition dub of 'Abatina (Calypso Rose)' but still served up through a bright melodic lends.

Review: Sister Nancy is one of few trailblazers who helped pioneer the the female facet of reggae. 'Bam Bam' is a reissue of her seminal debut single, which features her signature sound of roots reggae and dancehall, raileing against the male-dominated 80s scene with its ribbing hook and slapping instrumental. The B-side 'Stalag Version' dubs out the A, versioning it into a gloomy, bass-heavy hypnosis.

Review: On its release last spring, reviewers hailed Horace Andy's Midnight Rockers as the honey-voiced reggae legend's best album in decades. It was certainly special, with the mighty Adrian Sherwood's production helping elevate the set to future classic levels. It was followed by the alternative, dub style 'Midnight Scorchers' album, which naturally featured Sherwood pushing the envelope far further than he did on the original set. This double-disc set brings together both sets, adds a couple of previously unreleased cuts, and allows us to once again wallow in the magnificence of such highlights as 'Safe From Harm' (a genuinely brilliant, surprisingly dark Massive Attack cover), the Ital Horns-heavy 'Material', Daddy Freddy hook-up 'Midnight Scorchers' and the Melodica-heavy dub workout 'Sleepy's Night Cap'.

Review: The ninth album from Barry Ashworth's Dub Pistols crew sees them teaming up with an amazing array of guests, ranging from Lindy Layton of Beats International fame, to rave heroes Ragga Twins and breakbeaters Freesylers, complete with UK reggae MC Top Cat in tow. The sound is the usual genre-bending combination of reggae and dub fused with punk, two tone ska, jungle, breaks and a whole lot more. No huge surprise the, but there's no denying it sounds as fresh as ever here, if not fresher.

Review: Active since the early 1980s, Robert Ffrench is a curio in the reggae scene, with a penchant for extra drum machines and a distinctly wacky sound. Emblematic of Ffrench's approach to music-making is the album 'Wondering', which here comes reissued via 333. Entirely themed around the tumult of Ffrench's relationships while living in 1980s Jamaica, hilarities like 'I Can't Finance You' and 'Heart Breaker' reflect the artist's intense thoughts on the various women in his life. It's all helped along, best of all, by his remarkable synthwork, making this an essential listen.

Review: Originally released digitally in September 2022, Kreed's debut album A Brief History enjoys a much deserved vinyl boost. A veritable soundsystem odyssey featuring vocals and links with a remarkable cast of vocalists from Rider Shafique to Killa P, Jman, Gardna, Charli Brix, Catching Cairo, here the Bristol producer goes all-in with the dot-joining and genre fusing. The end result sits somewhere between dub, soul, bashment, hip-hop, garage and dubstep. Warm, hypnotic and loaded with twists and turns, highlights include the garage-style shuffles and flexes of 'Weeper's Lament' and the digi-dub bubbler 'Ashes'. Vibe overload. The rest is history.

Review: Steely and Clevie were amongst some of the most supreme rhythm makers in all of Jamaica in the 1980s and on into the 1990s. They worked together at King Jammy's in the aftermath of Sleng Teng with Steely doing the synth work and Clevie making the magic on his drum machines. They wrote a wide array of essential rhythms for the day's best emerging dancehall tautens and At The Top is a collection of crucial digital dub workouts "that strips bare the computerised wizardry at the duo's core." These are essential dubs for fans old and new of dancehall.

Review: Milan's Simone Trabucchi, whom we know by the name of Dracula Lewis thanks to a rich catalogue of related material, launches his new STILL moniker on Berlin's unfailingly explorative PAN label. The result, however, is something we haven't been exposed to before and, for Italian electronic music, it marks a fascinating new journey into the 'outernational' realm. Each one of these 9 sonic experiments is made up of peculiar ethnic blends that span from Rastafarian culture to Pan-Asian influences; most of them are tagged as 'riddims', attempting to form new and visceral forms of futuristic sound-system culture for the next century. We're not kidding when we say that this is the first time in a while that we've heard something genuinely different, genre-blending and in a sense, utterly mystifying. Dancehall is in all of these tunes' DNA, but the execution is peppered with all sorts of sci-fi-leaning tricks and electronics, making it the perfect sort of material for fans of both dance music cultures. Don't sleep on this one. It's another nutty episode of PAN.

Review: Scotch Bonnet's periodic Puffers Choice compilations are always worth picking up, featuring as they do a mixture of label highlights from Mungo's HiFi and their closest collaborators, and tracks from like-minded producers and vocalists scattered around the UK and far beyond. Predictably, this third volume - the first in two years - is every bit as essential as its predecessors. It boasts a mixture of digi-dub, revivalist roots, dancehall and lover's rock, with highlights including Viktoriuous's hook-up with Earl Cunningham, 'Hotstepper', the raw weight of Parly B's killer crew cut 'Lyrics Spree' (featuring Daddy Freddy and Tippa Irie, amongst others), the future dancehall of Shokryme and RTKaL's 'BBS', and the soulful, warped bass-sporting heavy dub pressure of Skari's 'Black' (featuring INT Dub).

Review: Burning Sounds pay tribute to some of reggae's most crucial DJs with this new album The Magnificent 7. It is packed with artists inspired by the fundamental elements of Rastafarianism and they all speak loudly of the virtues of "living upright in those dread times." Jah Walton - later known as Joseph Cotton - kicks off with the positive vibrations of 'The Seed You Sow' before Big Youth gets deeper and darker. A brace of I-Roy jams roll on fat bass lines and King Sighta also appears twice with his natty vocals and percussive rhythms amongst a bunch of other superb sounds from the likes of Natty Love and Sister Sheron.