If there is anybody in the history of the last half a century of Dub music constantly at the forefront of the roots, tradition and evolution of the genre, especially in the United Kingdom, that person is Jah Wobble.
Born John Joseph Wardle, the British Bass player and Dub Maestro has been (and still is, to these days), since the late 70's, a font of continue inspiration for fellow colleagues and young musicians, thanks to his unique vision and application of the genre into some of the most seminal records of the last five decades of music, while working with the elite of the music establishment.
Jah Wobble, in the last two decades, seems to have found a new creative lease of life, artistically speaking, working relentlessly on solo project, family projects and numerous collaborations with many fellow friends artists.
Among all those many projects, which include also a fascinating album released earlier this year and called The North London Line (Mildmay), a personal sonic excursion in what Wobble calls "Forgotten spaces" of his hometown London, the British Bass Guitar Maestro has just released a new solo record, called Dub Volume 1.
The aforementioned album carries a distinctive cinematic flavour, throughout its 8 tracks, where Wobble brings the listener into a journey in which the artist works not only as a highly skilled musician, but also as an observer and as a sonic narrator.
The eight tracks included in Dub Volume 1 are a proper tour of the world surrounding Jah Wobble inside and out; whilst tunes such as Dub In The East, Tragic Slavic Dub (originally released as a single in 2022) and the album closer Old Jewish East End Of London Dub examine physical spaces surrounding the British artist's everyday life, the remaining five pieces delve more into Wobble’s personal feelings, might they be related to family, love or soul vibes (Losing All Sense Of Balance, Sweet Dub and the splendidly romantic Lovers Rock Dub, among others).
Wobble's bass lines switch swiftly and beautifully between sonic opulence and discretion, throughout the album, balancing accurately the combustion between the electronic instrumentation and his bass playing needed to support the artistic vision of each soundscape necessary for each track, in the Bass Guitar Maestro's mind.
Dub Volume 1 is a highly entertaining record that sees a true creative and forward thinking artist like Jah Wobble in top form, completely at ease with life and with himself, something that, in our personal view, might constitute a major contributing factor in releasing inspired albums like his new one.
Dub Volume 1 is out now and it is available to be purchased via Amazon
