First 200 copies on yellow vinyl.
Scientist began as King Tubby's protege at Tubby's Drumalie Avenue Studios in Kingston (essentially the birthplace of dub) and In the Kingdom of Dub was one of his first records released under his own name. This classic dub album is now available remastered and reissued on vinyl for the first time.
Recorded at Channel One & mixed at King Tubby's. Pressed in an edition of 1000 on heavy duty vinyl.
Hopeton Brown calls himself Scientist for a reason. Before recording and releasing records of his own, he built amplifiers and speakers, tested sound systems, and innovated the use of the studio as a musical instrument. By pressing technology as far as it could go, and by keeping his ear on live sounds, Scientist pushed recorded music to its limit, challenging other bands, musicians, and engineers to utilize every part of the sound spectrum, from the lowest bass tones to the tightest snare snaps. Over 30 years later, his records are still capable of pushing sound systems to their limits.
Scientist made dub what it is, and we can hear how he did it on one of his earliest records, Introducing Scientist (The Best Dub Album in the World). Thanks to years of experience working with King Tubby, Hopeton Brown started his solo career almost fully-formed, and the title of this early album was meant to announce that fact. Everything about it is the best: the hi-fidelity recording quality, the best musicians Jamaica had to offer, and the technical talent of Scientist, who acted as conductor, engineer, and performer. Cutting rhythms, bass lines, and sound effects together more deftly than any DJ, Hopeton casts his dub jams from dizzying edits and pure attitude. On songs like Steppers and Scientific his confidence shines through in the way that he drops beats and folds echo blasts onto each other. The effects are psychedelic in places, but the cool reggae skank is never lost, and Hopeton keeps everything together, accentuating his technical prowess with his imagination and willingness to explore different moods.
One year later, Scientist continued his dub explorations with In the Kingdom of Dub. Filled with outstanding, almost bluesy guitar performances and glowing organ work, Hopeton's mixing is focused on the quality and color of the instruments he recorded. His bass lines are as clear and powerful as his reverb-drenched tom-toms, his edits are more fluid and less obvious, and the music has an organic quality that's so convincing that some cuts, like 305 Spanish Town Road Dub, sound as if they were recorded and mixed in a single take.
Countless musicians would follow Scientist down the roads he paved on these two records, but none would ever match his abilities. Countless others would benefit from his pioneering technical work, which demonstrated just how full and robust recorded music could sound. Scientist didn't just push the reggae sound to its limits, he helped rock and R&B to evolve as well. His dedication to the full spectrum of audible sound gave every bass more power, and every drum set more punch. And that all started with these records, now available in official fashion from Important Records.
TRACK LISTING
1. 18 Drumalie Avenue Dub
2. Next Door Dub
3. 305 Spanish Town Road Dub
4. 13 Bread Lane Dub
5. 15 Grass Quit Glade Dub
6. 11 Guava Road Dub
7. Kingdom Dub
8. Chariot Dub
9. Thunder & Lightning Dub
10. Disciple Dub
11. Jerusalem Dub
12. Burning Sun Dub
REVIEWS
***1/2
Hopeton Brown (aka Scientist) was only 21 when he released this collection of dub treatments of tracks produced by Roy Cousins in the legendary Channel One studio. The original rhythms had been laid down by core members of the Aggrovators and Soul Syndicate bands, and the nascent dubmeister applies all the standard tricks of the trade to them: dropping instruments in and out of the mix, suddenly applying echo and reverb to the exposed drums, sending fading echoes of guitar and keyboard spinning off into outer space. Part of what makes this album such a success is its rhythmic variety: insistent steppers beats on 305 Spanish Town Dub and the fairly minimalist 11 Guava Road Dub; the thoughtful rockers rhythm that keeps the groove consistent amid the wild dropouts and echoes of 14 Grass Quit Glad Dub; the way a bright melody and lots of sonic space are juxtaposed with a wide-open one-drop beat on Chariot Dub. Scientist is not one of those dub producers whose career describes a long arc of progress; he seems to have emerged almost fully-formed as a dub artist from his earliest recordings, and this was one of his strongest.
