Dub Is A Many Splendoured Thing

At long last, an article that I've worked on for months - entitled Dub Voyage - is out this month in Exclaim.

The worldwide popularity of reggae's offshoots continues unabated - from roots sounds, to dancehall and in this case dub. The article identifies the key components of dub and how they've journeyed from their origins to have direct and abstract influences throughout the world of popular music. There are a world of issues to be explored, too, so I decided to focus on the paths outward while leaving out more detailed analysis of race, class and economics. Now that this article is done, I can't wait to read Michael Veal's "Dub: Soundscapes and Shattered Songs in Jamaican Reggae" which devotes several hundred pages to these issues which I could only touch on in 3000 words.

Hopefully, full transcripts of the interviews with King Jammy and Deadbeat will be available at the Exclaim website soon.

Dub is truly special music - and a special process - that has been one of my guiding inspirations for 25 years of musical activity. Hope you like the article.