Black Dub

The headline says it all. Music tastes are subjective and vary from person to person, of course, but I love the sound of this album from beginning to end. It's really unique and the lead singer's voice is great. My favorite song is Nomad, but there are many others i enjoyed. Check out the samples and see what you think. If it sounds good to you, you'll enjoy the rest.

Very good CD-not great-very good. I read in so many reviews of this CD that more Trixie Whitley's (on vocals, & daughter of recently deceased Chris Whitley) would have made this listen a 5-star performance-I agree. Daniel Lanois can probably even make me sound great. With the incomparably Bryan Blades (drums) & Mr. Lanois on other instruments, the production raises Ms. Whitley's voice to a new level, & brings out her best.You can also easily say that the songs w/o Ms. Whitley give a nice break to this work (she he is very good-but is not Diana Krall) I am eagerly awaiting her complete solo work. Go to YouTube & give this very young beauty a listen. She is a beautiful flower. that WILL be a star. Her pedigree will emerge, and she is a very good listen right now.

Like many others, I became attracted to this band by the NPR/Youtube "raw" clips which are *not* contained on this album. Some people are upset by that but I actually prefer the album cuts.The band sings well together although obviously Trixie is the star vocalist. I didn't know that Daniel Lanois could play guitar like this! Raw and edgy and at times some almost Hendrix-like sounds. Superb drumming here (and the drums themselves sound great) and the bass is prominent and upfront, not buried and muddy. The bass playing is excellent as well. Sonically, the album just sounds fantastic and IMO every song is enjoyable, not one throwaway.Production is first rate and the sound from the vinyl is gorgeous. If you have a nice system you are really going to enjoy this. Sturdy gatefold jacket and silent, thick, shiny discs...the way it should be. The songs are spread generously over three sides with the fourth being a really cool etching including a band logo. My copy did not include a download code.

I bought this CD out of my fondness for the vocal of Trixie Whitley. This CD is not to be compared to the solo efforts of Trixie. It is a raw blues rock and spiritual Fusion of sounds as well as a strong Jamaican reggae influence. Some of you will enjoy the raw sound of Trixie's voice and the powerful rhythms. I prefer a more polished Studio sound, this is not that. If you are a fan of Daniel Lanois then you will probably enjoy this CD.

I first heard Black Dub doing an in studio live performance on a Morning Becomes Eclectic podcast. I really liked their sound so I ordered the CD.On the first listen I liked the CD but not as much as the live show. Over the next month I have listened to it several more times. What finally made it a five star CD for me was when I listen to the music concentrating on the Rhythm section. They are great together. Focusing on the drums and bass and letting the guitar, vocals and production flow in around that pushes this CD into a great listening experience.This one does require some patience to get into it. Their songs are not very hook oriented so they don't grab you right away but well worth multiple listens.

First of all, I'm a professional musician so consider my review to be quite biased.I would describe this CD as a largely successful experiment.The pros: Trixie Whitley's vocals (this was my first at length introduction to her, she is very soulful, great pipes, I'm loving "Fourth Corner") and Brian Blade's drumming make for dynamic music that really moves. The production is beautiful, which is to be expected coming from Daniel Lanois. It was recorded mostly live but was substantially manipulated in mixing which gives it a vibe which encompasses both contemporary and retro aesthetics, which I like. There are several songs which really hit home.The cons: I think that while the huge talents on this disc work together well they sometimes don't articulate a unified artistic vision. By that I mean that they're not always hearing and working toward the same thing, and because of this the record is a little lacking in emotional poignancy, at least for me. It's a little bit rambling overall. Also, I'm not crazy abut the sound; the mix is great but tonally it sounds a little brittle to me (particularly the drums), which was a surprise.Overall I like the disc and continue to listen to it, and I would recommend it.

I have not seen the live videos which apparently parse the music and sounds to be more audibly digestible. Nevertheless I am thoroughly enjoying this album and I do not consider it to be over produced. I like the intensity of Trixie Whitley's vocals, particularly on the track Surely. I hope Daniel keeps this group together, tour and that they record again. It is a step away from the slower ambient sounds of previous Lanois albums and a wonderful addition to his catalog.

Absolutely great atmosphere for the "grown-ups" : interesting enough but not so heavy on the mind like early works.

Being a fan of things dub the title of this caught my eye along with the album art which I think is pretty cool. Musically not exactly what I expected but a pleasantly surprising album. For me personally the blend of rock/indie and roots reggae has a somewhat chequered past with much of it not to my taste.I was never a huge fan of The Police's efforts.What this album does is try to weave the flavour of dub into a landscape of other musical genres (e.g blues, soul, indie) which is quite hard to describe but actually works very well. There is some fine musicianship on display here that has won me over. Other reviews appear to have got bogged down in the production and sound quality rather than appreciate the concept of this CD. I have listened on my PC rather than expensive Hi-Fi but technically it all sounds very good to these ears.The dark, indie version of the old dancehall smash "Ring The Alarm" injects a much more haunting atmosphere to the song in a good way.Clearly the haunting guitar of Daniel Lanois is the backbone of most of the songs but it is well supported by all the other players on this set.If I was to be critical I would suggest a few songs are a bit too similar but there is a balance of styles throughout which keep things for the main interesting. Give this a listen, you may be pleasantly surprised. I would love to hear a Prince Fatty or Enrico Cacace remix of some of these tracks! Bring on "The Return of the Black Dub".

This fusion of Soul, Dub and Blues ist one of my absolute favorite CDs. I hope there will be a follower of this project, as Daniel Lanois has promised quite some time ago. The songs demonstrate an incredible musicality. It's far more than the remarkable voice of Trixie Wheatley, it's the whole band that show an extraordinary performance. Lanois' guitar play is wonderful, as well as the cool drums of Brian Blade. What is more, the recording quality of the CD is great.

They are a good band but it's the sort of CD that ends up never getting pulled from the rack again.

Great blues/gospel/Lanois sound. Lyrically sometimes "thin", but songs like "Nomad" are lovely. Whitley has a brilliant voice.

If you like Daniel lanois work then I am sure ,like me, you will love this.A worthy addition to his past work and sonically identifiable immediatly.Fantastic recording as always and you feel completly in the room.I hope there is another one.