Pecker - 21st Century Dub

From the Brain aka PlanB247 aka DJ Plan B


I got this on a trip to NYC (before I lived there) back in 2000 or 2001 at the great Jammyland , which is now homeless except for the internet. I also once posted it to an infamous FTP music sharing network that I believe a handful of Roxxers were on, but I wanted to spread the love a little more... possibly to make up for drunken, post-Obama celebration, Mark E. Smith-type comments I left recently.


Anyway, it's one of the strangest albums I own, with a little avant garde jazziness thrown in with some great dub. For my money, "Kylyn" and the cover of "Concrete Jungle" are heartbreakingly beautiful, though Reggae Reviews has a slightly different take:


East meets West on this masterful set too often overlooked when considering the best dub albums of all time. Japanese percussionist Pecker (often a collaborator with the Yellow Magic Orchestra) approached none other than Bob Marley with the idea of doing a dub/reggae album, and although Marley doesn't appear on this album, he hooked Pecker up with some of the best musicians in Jamaica (including Sly & Robbie, Augustus Pablo, Rico Rodriguez, Mikey Chung, Carlton and Aston Barrett, and Earl "Wire" Lindo), culminating in this stunning showcase....


Though largely performed by Jamaican musicians, I'd have to attribute the one-of-a-kind sound -- slow and brooding with jazz/funk overtones and an off-kilter sensibility -- to the quirky Pecker. Despite the occasional eccentricities ("Dr. Dr. Humanity" and "Pecker Power Pt. 2" can't really be classified as reggae, but rather avant-garde percussion mumbo jumbo), 21st Century is surprisingly restrained and pensive -- this is music for cloud watching or cross country trekking.


Hear