Long Beach Dub Allstars
Wonders of the World
Dreamworks
I was curious to see if this collective could maintain the momentum and vibe generated from their first release, Right Back, and darned if the boys – along with a number of guests – didn’t meet the challenge with irie results. If you don’t change the recipe, you won’t lose the flavor.
Long Beach Dub Allstars continue to use Sublime as the root for many tracks while bringing even more dub-style reggae rhythms into the mix. Most songs are skankin’ good and easy-going, like “Listen to DJ’s,” which simply gives shout-outs to all the reggae greats, and “Sunny Cloud”, which carries the “What I Got” break-beat in the background, while Will.I.Am of Black Eyed Peas lays down the vocals.
On the other hand, Wonders of the World touches on some more serious and personal topics. Most notably, “Talkin’ The Truth” condemns the use of hard drugs, while giving props to the herb. “Life Goes On” and “It Ain’t Easy” look at life’s hardships, losses, and the need to overcome them. “Life” is one of the stellar tracks on this disc, and features numerous guests (Half Pint, Tippa Irie, Chali 2na from Jurassic 5, etc.).
The boys didn’t lay all their cards on the reggae sound – “No Way” punks things up nicely, plus they cover a song from LB punks The Crude (“Every Mother’s Dream”) to keep the local scene represented.
All total, LBDA hit you with seventeen new joints, tightly rolled in the wraps of reggae, with a splendid blend of vocalists, musicians, and friends. Where else are you gonna find all that in one record? Check out the new LBDA and Wonder no more!
