Committed (Pressure Cooker, 2003)

*GUEST REVIEW*
A reggae/rock steady/ska band that also throws in dashes of swing, Latin jazz and New Orleans gumbo, Pressure Cooker has been doing some serious cooking from their home base in Boston since 1997.  Committed is a collection of tracks they made between 1999 and 2003.  They get right down to waist-winding authenticity with the leadoff song "Originators," featuring the Skatalites' horn section (including sax great Lester Sterling) and praising Jamaican music's early pioneers through a rousing sing-along chorus atop a bubbling groove. And things stay strong from there. Whether pumping out good-time music ("Melody Ruler," "Cookin' in the Kitchen") or tackling conscious themes ("Criminal," "NKA"), these folks do it with locked riddims, blazing brass, substance and style. Vocalist Craig Akira Fujita handles pop phrasing as well as Jamaican accentuations with equal ease, bolstered by skilled players who back him up expertly throughout. Based on classic elements but sounding perfectly fresh, this is a dandy of a disc.

- Tom Orr