May 17, 2016

The Lickshots | The Lickshots

ARTIST: The Lickshots
TITLE: The Lickshots
LABEL: Rockers International
Coming out of deep left field, here’s one of the most interesting new reggae recordings I’ve heard in some time. The Lickshots are an intentionally mysterious band based in New York, centered around keyboardist Jimmy McGerald and multi-instrumentalist Nick Fantastic. They’re tapping into Augustus Pablo and Prince Jammy’s “rockers” instrumental sound: sparse, deeply soulful grooves with lots of space for dub manipulations and solo asides from a variety of instruments: you’ll hear flute, melodica, saxophone and organ in the mix. Track 1 sets the stage for the whole project, with Micro Don’s spoken word intro, a classic “rockers” musical intro, heavy dub effects throughout and melodica drifting over the top. 7, another version of the track 1 riddim, wraps things up. In between, 2 has a righteous melody and some strong sax playing, and 3 skanks at a faster tempo with a Jackie Mittoo-like organ line and a hard-hitting horn section. It’s noteworthy that this is being released by Rockers International, the label Augustus Pablo started that’s now helmed by his son, Addis Pablo. More of this please, whoever you are.
TOP TRACKS:    1    2    3    7
ALSO RECOMMENDED:    4    6

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