Short and Sweet NYC,
CD Review
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Joyful Noise is a new reggae compilation from I Grade Records, a Virgin Islands based record label. The way the album works is there are four roots reggae riddims (basically the musical backing track) being used five times each with a variety of artists taking a stab singing over them. All in all I’d say these are decent songs if you are a reggae fan. Not the best I’ve ever heard but not the worst either. However, listening to the entire album and hearing essentially the same songs over and over is bizarre and can be rather frustrating. I liken the experience to that of Bill Murray in Groundhog’s Day. The first go-round was pretty standard, nothing extraordinary but certainly some high points. Then I heard the music of the first track start again. I was confused at first and thought I was mistaken, but sure enough the second, third, and fourth songs also repeated. The singers were different, but it’s hard to really take notice of that when you are in a state of disbelief. I accepted how this was going to go down but it still sort of got on my nerves. Every time I heard the intro of the first riddim begin again it sounded more and more spiteful. I don’t know if this is common practice among reggae comps because I generally listen to one artist at a time, or in some cases one producer. Of the four, I’d say the third riddim (known as the “Flying High Riddim”) was my favorite. It was probably the mellowest, but in a minor key and with a good sense of longing. It’s hard to pick definitive versions of the different tracks because most of the album did blend together and few songs stood out. Special mention should be made of Danny I’s “Hold On” for putting a noticeably different take on the “Harvest Riddim.” If you love roots reggae and don’t think you’ll be put off by the repeated musical tracks, then give it a try. However, if you skip this one, you won’t be missing anything phenomenal. 01/20/10
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