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Review

Album Review: Paolo Baldini Dubfiles meets Dubblestandart

07/01/2020

by Gerry McMahon

With Covid-19 putting a clamp on the music scene, addicts are currently confined to visiting the vaults of stored sounds. However, for those who have exhausted their trip down memory lane and are in search of some new and exciting sounds, Paolo Baldini is the man.

In this 12-track compilation, Italy’s Baldini links with near neighbour’s Austria’s Dubblestandart, providing a quality fusion of dub reggae that’s heavy on techno-soaked echo effects.

Baldini’s latest produce is but another storey on the reggae building, as it takes on contributions from artists that first emerged during the genre’s ‘golden era’, like Lee Perry, Marcia Griffiths, Steel Pulse and Burning Spear. But it is nevertheless novel, as Dubblestandart’s Paul Zawilensky pens – with the aid of his crew – the majority of the set’s tracks, whilst Baldini characteristically excels on the production and re-mixing duties.

Though all tracks have their merit, the contributions of Perry and the late Ari Up to the closing track Island Girls, may well be the standout, as it merges sweet sounds from the past with more modern influences. Though not a patch on the original, Fly Me To The Moon (as covered by Spear, Sinatra etc.) will also evoke positive reviews. But the millennials may well disagree and opt for Anthony B’s embellished input to the extended Dem Can´t Stop From Talk or Up’s crystal-clear vocals on the assorted sounds of Soulmate. 

Baldini’s DubFiles Meets Dubblestandart is a must for dub aficionados. So, if you want to banish the coronavirus blues and go Dub Crazy, then this is the job for you.

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