Live on KBOO (Instigators,  2002)

Not to be confused with the DC-area ska band or the British duo Mafia & Fluxy (who began their careers under the same name), the Instigators are a little-known 8-piece roots outfit hailing from the Portland, Oregon area who hopefully will gain some much needed exposure with the release of Live on KBOO.  As the title indicates, this is a live recording of the group's performance in July 2002 for the Portland radio station KBOO (boo!).  As such, the sound is a bit muffled and rough around the edges, although you could argue that this adds to the grittiness and/or vintage sound of the album.  And The Instigators do indeed have a throwback sound.  While I wouldn't say that they sound authentically Jamaican (the vocals in particular have a discernable American lilt), they clearly have listened to and studied the classic Jamaican roots and rock steady sound (complete with bountiful horns in practically every song), achieving  a wonderfully vibrant live-band sound comparable to fellow US roots groups like Groundation, John Brown's Body, and Soldiers of Jah Army.  Lead singer (and songwriter) Daniel Lamb's vocals are likeable but slightly uneven in quality (I'll forgive this, however, due to the fact that he's singing live without the benefit of "studio magic."), and the music is strong and propulsive with influences ranging from bouncy rock steady to placid roots to edgy dancehall.  Several tracks leap out a grab you, begging for wider exposure (and perhaps a re-recording on a studio album): "Conscious Time" and "Star Shine" are funky jams, while "Clean Air" is a catchy environmental tune, and "Footsteps" has a heartfelt, peppy hit sound and manages to mine new life from the cliched "Footprints" poem that has appeared on coffee mugs, t-shirts, plaques, bookmarks, personal lubricants, etc.  Although the latter part of Live on KBOO falters a bit, it certainly is a promising debut that hopefully is a good indicator of things to come.