Dub is a Weapon

Dub traditionally was the realm of producers and engineers with Magico-techno smarts harnessing tape delays and reverb washes, but here it has come unhinged from the studio and evolved under the live stage creativity of the musicians. Enter Dave Hahn, a seasoned sideman and dub engineer (the Slackers, Antibalas, Easy Star All-Stars, Lee Perry). Hahn has crafted a live dub record and it's a confrontational sound, to be sure. Not content to merely indulge in fader acrobatics, Vaporized is as much about solid instrumentals that stand on their own as it is about danceable beats or unique arrangements. Mephiskapheles bassist Dan Jeselsohn stands front and centre, as his crushing ostinatos lead the rest of the band through fear-inducing calls to arms like "Insurrection" and "Turmoil." Impressive dubscapes show up on "Curva Peligrosa" and "Asheville," but by far Vaporized's signature sound is a double-barrelled torrent of relentless groove. This is no armchair dub record to smoke along to; it's the sound of a smoking band cocking the trigger. A weapon, indeed.