CD: New Way

Style: Reggae

Quote: "This is a deep kind of musical spirituality, and manages to avoid the commercialized sound that has become synonymous with Americans’ idea of reggae music".

Reggae records have a tendency to go either one way or another. There’s just not much in the way of “middle ground”, musically speaking. Either it’s virtually devoid of emotion, instead cashing in on the classic reggae beats and themes, or it finds a way to touch a chord in your soul, and moves you to listen more closely. Jahmings Maccow is the real thing. This is a deep kind of musical spirituality, and manages to avoid the commercialized sound that has become synonymous with Americans’ idea of reggae music. It is something felt, rather than implicityly heard, and the message is often easily translated without having to utter a word. But what it is more than anything, is a serious form of music that tends to tackle more lofty subjects than your typical “I wanna ROCK!”. Maccow tells stories, spins yarns, asks big questions, the type typically reserved for the inner workings of the brain, and questions his existence, the need for suffering, and directs them at the audience and Jah Almighty simultaneously.

This is a good record for many reasons. First, it’s a nice break from loud guitar, crass lyrics, and homogenized alt-rock. Second, NEW WAY uses classic reggae instrumention, but adds a personalized twist, and since Maccow does the majority of the playing on this record, it becomes a personal vessel for one man. Next, this record feels very “live”, there’s really a freshness to this that spills over to the listener.

Of course, even though this record makes me long for warm weather, walks on the beach, and various other things that prove to find difficult in Indiana these days, it also puts me in a political mindframe, and makes me want to overthrow my government. I’m sure this is being monitored, so I should probably stop there. Highlights on this record include “Check Me Out”, “Scamper Dread”, “True Love”, “Why” and “Doomsday”.

Artist Website: http://www.rebelsproduction.com

(Liquid Cyber Records)