Dub Disaster (Doctor Echo, 2005)

Doctor Echo returns with another dose of dub, and this time he's brought along some friends.  Dub Disaster gathers dubs of songs recorded when he was the drummer for the band Steady Ups in the mid- to late-'90s.  These are straightforward, few-frills dubs, some of which may strike newcomers to the genre as a bit dry, but dubheads should should eat them up.  This is dub how it should sound: meditative yet with a sense of fun, and always based in the '70s roots style of the golden age.  There's live instrumentation, from the crisp drums to the pounding bass to the plucky guitar, soaring horns, and even the occasional organ and melodica.  Standouts include "Shake Down Dub," "Step Live," "Fist of Dub," and the fun rock steady/ska of "Dub the Nation." 

Echo Evahlastin' (Anicca, 2006)

Dr. Echo's latest joint finds him at his most experimental as he adds (gasp) vocals to his repertoire, courtesy of dub poetess Solange St. Croix. Unlike fiery dub poets like Mutabaruka and Oku Onuora, St. Croix is generally laid-back, blending perfectly into the down-tempo music and allowing the sultry softness of her voice to hypnotize. She has a Caribbean accent, but often downplays it, only occasionally (perhaps too infrequently) emphasizing it for dramatic effect. I suppose that some purists of the modern dub style (if there is such a thing) may not welcome a vocalist in the instrumental mix, but for the most part, it works, and even if you don't like it, only half of the album is voiced. Still, with music as subtle as this, any vocals threaten to overpower it and take away from one's full appreciation. "Love Evahlastin'," a drowsy groove riding a jazzy horn line, sets the tone for the album, eschewing conventional reggae one-drop rhythms in favor of a dreamy, meditative fusion of jazz, electronica, hip-hop, funk, and I suppose a bit of reggae. The sound is described in marketing materials as "down-trip-island-dub-hop." I'm not a big dub guy, and the dub that I do listen to tends to be more old school and rootsy, but the great thing about Dr. Echo is his across-the-board appeal. He creates atmospheric audio landscapes that can prove gripping even if you're not into the whole electro-dub sound. When he's at the top of his game (as with "Dream Garden" and "Blasting Dub"), Dr. Echo creates powerful, cinematic pieces that make you feel like dying a slow-motion, heroic death. It's probably for the best, then, that not all of Echo Evahlastin' is quite so moving, but neo-dubbers and dub traditionalists alike should still find something of value here.