LINVAL THOMPSON Vinyl & CDs

Review: Originally issued in the late 70s on Trojan, these two dub albums-produced by Linval Thompson and recorded at Channel One-capture the form at its deepest and most elemental. Long overdue for a reissue, both sets are finally brought to CD for the first time, with all twenty tracks remastered and restored to full power. As ever with Thompson, the players are elite: Sly & Robbie anchor the riddims, while the Revolutionaries stretch out into expansive, reverb-soaked territory. Cuts like 'Rock Me In Dub', 'Natty Dread Dub' and 'Fisherman Style' showcase the dense atmospheres and militant low-end that defined Channel One's late 70s sound. There's a raw immediacy to these mixes-stripped of vocals and soaked in space-that still feels bracingly modern. Dub historians and newcomers alike will find plenty to lose themselves in here. A vital document of Jamaican sonic architecture at its peak.

Review: Spanish dub maestro Roberto Sanchez first met Channel One artist and all right reggae legend Linval Thompson 15 years ago. In the time since, the pair have collaborated on numerous projects, though nothing as ambitious as this. It sees Sanchez provide an authentically dusty, deep and rhythm-focused dub translation of Thompson's 1978 album I Love Marijuana - a set that, despite King Tubby handling production duties - had never been fully re-worked in. Largely working with the original master tapes, Sanchez has delivered a dub re-imagining that sounds like a long-lost King Tubby or Lee 'Scratch' Perry production - all weighty low-end 'riddims', effects aplenty and echoing organ, guitars and vocals.