We as a society have been remiss. As it turns out, gypsy and dub go hand in hand.

It boils down to cut-rate theory. The 2/4 emphasis in reggae is already in polka and Eastern Euro folk. All you have to do is add percussive accordion or flitting brass to give it that old Roma flavor. Gogol Bordello side project J.U.F. did it with reggaeton in ’08, but Austria-based pan-Balkaners La Cherga have galvanized it into something a little more hipster high-brow, sans the gimmicks.

The band is ready to drop Revolve, a debut collab of Croatian, Macedonian, Bosnian, and Jamaican artists, and a quirky leap in the pop fusion landscape. Hailing predominantly from war-torn former Yugoslavia, La Cherga (or “rag rug” in Bulgarian and “drifter” in Romany) is an intellectual smirk, a wink, and shot of vodka in a dimly lit dive in the face of strife. They’re not romantic, angsty, or overtly political from the outset. Revolve is a quietly ironic, distinctly Eastern European fatalist experiment that elbows its way into indie approval.

Your taste for it depends largely on your patience for gypsy and dub, as well as an unsuccessful foray into jazzy alt-pop (“Voda” might play at my dentist’s office)  and another one into hard sufi rock (“One” is like Limp Bizkit for yogis). On most songs, distant electronic dub beats underscore a refined rhythm guitar, loose-tongued brass, and Adisa Zvekic’s menacing Tina Turner vibrato. Zvekic, in fact, steals the show every time, singlehandedly plopping a soul twist into everything she touches. “Resolve and Evolve” is one of the best examples, with Zvedic leaning on dissonance, drama, and footloose rhythms to compete with the musical cocktail in the backdrop.

Despite some flubs on Revolve, the obvious marriage between dub and gypsy cannot be denied, nor can La Cherga’s chill, subtle arrangements on their better tracks. Ironically or not, former Yugoslavia is officially back on the map, only now, it’s closer to Jamaica.