Shredders Dub will be a worthy match for any well appointed PA with its punishing mix of minimal bass and drums. Vancouver resident Mike Campitelli does a good deal of the instrumental tracking himself, starting with the kit drums front, centre and processed. Its a drummers album, through and through, with a wonderfully open feel to the lead instrument that recalls Style Scotts primary role in Dub Syndicate, but with a much louder volume to the kit. Bass is always subterranean, and a variety of instruments and textures float somewhere in the middle. The production vibe is hip-hop and the hooks are dubwise. Case in point is "Ackee" with a rhythm suitable for Richie Spice, but with heavily vibratoed guitar and Star Trek radar noises burbling around. Elsewhere, the guitar squalor and use of distortion only increases, lurking menacingly behind the bass and drums on tracks like "Lumins." With repeated listens, the microtonal approaches to the non-rhythmic instrumentation creep up on you, especially as tracks begin to slow down later in the disc. The entire album hangs together well, with only a few dull spots between the many psychedelic lickshots.
How did you get into dub? Who are your inspirations right now? After reading about Kool Herc coming from Jamaica and the birth of hip-hop I realised all the music I liked at that point wouldn't exist if it weren't for the pioneers who invented dub music. I had wanted to make an electronic/hip-hop album for a while and dub seemed like a way I could express myself through my abilities in the rawest form. These days I'm listening to a lot of Augustus Pablo & Max Romeo...for obvious reasons, they are classics. Little Tempo and Rhythm & Sound are the future of dub & sub.
How do you achieve your sound? I lay down the drums first, sometimes just jamming with people to get rhythms going. Then we start layering tracks. Most of it was off the floor, just straight tracks. Sometimes Im using effects on [my kit] while Im playing but generally its just live I have a few secrets I'm not willing to give up yet but we did add some layers to the live joints like hand claps, Fender Rhodes and sub bass to make 'em bump a little more. I definitely tweak my mixes to the point where the engineer thinks I've lost my marbles.
(Plug Research)How did you get into dub? Who are your inspirations right now? After reading about Kool Herc coming from Jamaica and the birth of hip-hop I realised all the music I liked at that point wouldn't exist if it weren't for the pioneers who invented dub music. I had wanted to make an electronic/hip-hop album for a while and dub seemed like a way I could express myself through my abilities in the rawest form. These days I'm listening to a lot of Augustus Pablo & Max Romeo...for obvious reasons, they are classics. Little Tempo and Rhythm & Sound are the future of dub & sub.
How do you achieve your sound? I lay down the drums first, sometimes just jamming with people to get rhythms going. Then we start layering tracks. Most of it was off the floor, just straight tracks. Sometimes Im using effects on [my kit] while Im playing but generally its just live I have a few secrets I'm not willing to give up yet but we did add some layers to the live joints like hand claps, Fender Rhodes and sub bass to make 'em bump a little more. I definitely tweak my mixes to the point where the engineer thinks I've lost my marbles.
