“Recorded In Technicolor”, this collection of reggae tunes from the Brighton-based producer of Little Roy’s Battle For Seattle and the up-and-coming Hollie Cook is paying tribute to spaghetti western soundtracks and, in so doing, late-60s reggae – so much of which was inspired by those scores.
It’s effective, catchy, melodic, clever, amusing, lively and a laugh; it doesn’t sound like the product of a Jamaican studio – not from today, nor any other time. This is firmly British audio and, at times, such as on the opening Transistor Cowboy, it resembles More Specials in its misty, jaunty-but-spooky tones. Indeed, you might say this is the instrumental album The Specials never made: Mexican trumpets, parping organ, lots of minor key songs, dryly witty solos, sub- Duane Eddy guitars; even Hala Nagila at breakneck speed, the occasional retro spoken word sample and doomy choirs.
Titles such as Blondes Have More Guns and The Good, The Vlad And The Ugly speak volumes. You can either examine the influences or just enjoy it at face value; either way, it’s an uplifting, satisfying, and oddly haunting listen.
