Various / Diplo

Riddimentary: Diplo Selects Greensleeves

BY Daniel SylvesterPublished Feb 8, 2011

Diplo didn't introduce the indie kids to dancehall, but he may have made it cool. The globetrotting producer behind Major Lazer and M.I.A. works almost exclusively with Caribbean and South American samples at a time when elements from Euro-dance and American classic rock make up most synthetic-based music. Diplo cuts together 15 tracks from the famed Greensleeves Records label, which enjoyed its salad days in the '80s and '90s with a roster that included Shaggy, Shabba Ranks, Beenie Man and Elephant Man. But as expected, Diplo eschews these artists, focusing on more organic selections from Prince Jammy, Gregory Isaacs, Barrington Levy and the hugely underappreciated/oft-misunderstood Eek-a-Mouse. Mixing songs into a low-end, high-voltage mix of reggae and riddims, Riddimentary isn't as much a representation of popular Jamaican music in the late 20th century as it's a representation of Diplo, the Ken Burns of indie crossover himself.
(VP)

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