Jahtari – EPs collection
Reviewed by Sadie O., 5/8/09
“Digital Laptop Reggae” - half really excellent dub, half video game skank ‘n’ ska, comin’ at ya straight from Leipzig, baby! This is three of their free download web EPs (they have a HUGE wealth of music etc. on their website, BTW.) The first 8 tracks are Ras Amerlock’s Farther East EP, and are mostly very slow, VERY dubby, and very much classic dub (very good – and great for soundbeds.) Tracks 9-11 are apparently from a weekend party, called “Jam’In Sauce”, and are very upbeat, and starting to tend into the video game noises arena. Tracks 12-17 are hyperactive ska (including some classic covers) almost entirely in video game noises, called Atari-Ska L’Attack.
(Thanks to Gears for uncovering this!)
No FCCs noted – almost no vocals, and those are mostly heavily processed.
I really like all tracks, but 10 and 15 most of all.
1. 3:33 **Downtempo dubby skank with prominent bass.
2. 5:24 **slow dub with hints of melodica.
3. 4:11 *bit of heavily processed announcement, then slow skank with electronic chimes and insects fluttering.
4. 3:52 ***midtempo, very dubby, with lots of drum and percussion. Snakey, sparse, bass-y.
5. 3:16 ***starts with tape rewinding and a bit of singing, then downtempo bubble, strong drums. Fine, classic dub.
6. 4:34 ***shots, random noises, then slow nyahbinghi-meets merry-go-round music with bits of spoken b-movie dialog.
7. 3:16 **lots of tape rewinding noises, then slow bubble with reverb on the snare, sirens. Ends with tick-tick boom!
8. 5:24 **track two with different added noises.
9. 2:17 **bouncy downtempo skank with melodica and happy keyboards. You can SKIP to this. Go ahead. Try it. There’s a hallway handy…
10. 3:28 ****this is where the “tari” comes into “Jahtari”. Downtempo bouncy skank with video game noises. A bit glitchy and a lot good.
11. 4:36 **massive reverb on the electronics, super dubby, stoner-candy. Some jaunty bubble, then back to smoking trees.
12. 3:12 ***big electronic noise, then hyperspeed video game noise cobbled into SUPER jolly ska.
13. 3:59 **hyperspeed video game noises in a happy dance, then a completely different happy dance, then back and forth… Fun stuff. Goes kinda space alien disco 2/3 of the way through.
14. 2:37 ***now the video game noises are doing an upbeat march. Last 30 secs is all video arpeggios. Runs right into next track.
15. 3:18 ****hoppy upbeat video game cover of the Maytals ska classic. Nice.
16. 1:40 **electronic vroom, then hyperspeed video game romp, Pioneers ska cover. Glitchy and crazy.
17. 2:35 ***whooshes, then midtempo ska – not the Exodus you may be associating with reggae, however. Gnarly! 2 finger keyboard solo!