Showing 'authentic love' for roots of reggae
By Chris Nixon
For the Union-Tribune
February 7, 2008
With its humble beginnings on Jamaica, the traditional song structure of reggae and ska – with its offbeat guitar pops and hummable choruses – never had the luxury of standing in one place.
Jamaican musicians were forced to immigrate to England and the rest of the world in order to be heard. With each change of address, reggae and ska found itself constantly evolving: from traditionalists like ska crooner Desmond Dekker and the roots reggae master Bob Marley to the English hybrids like The Specials and The Clash and America's hardcore punk and reggae originators Bad Brains.
The Canadian trio Bedouin Soundclash brings reggae experimentalism from the fringes of punk and hardcore back to the mainstream with its brand of accessible pop tinged with reggae and ska. Traditionalist might sneer at the genre-mixing by Jay Malinowski (vocals and guitar), Eon Sinclair (bass) and Pat Pengelly (drums), but the three lads in their mid-20s have a deep respect for reggae's founding fathers.
“We have an authentic love for the roots of the music we're playing,” said Sinclair in a recent interview from his home in Ontario, Canada. “We always maintain that we're not trying to be a traditional reggae band and we're not trying to be a traditional ska band. We're playing music that borrows from the traditional artists that we love, but we're trying to update and do it a new way.
“It helps us to create new music and hopefully create a new scene, but it also draws attention to those guys who weren't able to get the attention that we're getting now.”
DETAILS
Bedouin Soundclash, with Westbound Train and Beat Union
When: 9 tonight
Where: Belly Up Tavern, 143 S. Cedros Ave, Solana Beach
Tickets: $12-$14
Phone: (858) 481-8140
Online: bellyup.com
Malinowski, Sinclair and Pengelly first met as students at Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario, Canada, jamming on Bob Marley tunes in dorm rooms until they found their own style. After building an arsenal of songs, the band self-released “Root Down” – a snapshot of a band still finding its own style – in 2001 while still in college.
After touring Canada and stripping away the hand percussion prevalent in the first album, 2004's “Sounding a Mosaic” found Bedouin Soundclash defining its brand of poppy reggae with help from Bad Brains bassist Darryl Jenifer. The imposing figure of Jenifer – both historically and physically (he's 6-½-feet tall) – helped guide the band through the production process on the last two albums. The 2007 “Street Gospels” finds Bedouin Soundclash mastering a mellow mainstream style of reggae and ska with respect for the past and an eye to the future.
“Darryl seems to have the perfect background for what we do, because we're trying to fuse reggae and ska with a lot of different forms of music,” recalled Sinclair. “That's exactly what Bad Brains was doing when they blended hardcore and reggae. So, he had a good understanding of what it takes to blend different genres.”
Chris Nixon is a San Diego music writer.
