Friday, July 25, 2008

No Peace & No Peace Dub

No Peace by The Meditations

No Peace Dub by The Upsetters

Lee "Scratch" Perry was one of the major Jamaican music pioneers from the mid 60's thru 1970's, producing dub "versions" as early as 1973. "No Peace" by The Meditations, was originally recorded at Black Ark studios by Perry and released as a single in 1978. Both the original version and the dub are excellent examples of the signature sonic qualities that were unique to Lee Perry. From the wave-crashing reverb on the initial vocals of the dub version, to the effects laden vocal build at the end of the original. Perry consistently managed to create a balance of overdriven tape distortion that merges the instruments and vocals into one cohesive sound. If you are new to the dub genre, pay particular attention to the edits on the vocals in the dub version around 1 Minute, 20 seconds. The singer is cut in and out of the mix by the producer, leaving the delay to carry the melody. This technique was used by most of the dub producers at the time, and is a good example of what a dub remix is.

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