I love dub tracks with 4/4 kicks. "Sheba's Journey" is just one of the great tracks on A&O's 1995 release Sound System Dub, but this one sticks out for me because of it's driving rhythm and spatial synthesizer work. The radaric scanning beeps that run throughout the track seem to shift spatially. I found myself wondering if they were coming from behind or in front of me. The Morricone-esque main melody easily conjures up a dry desert journey, and the contrasting beat montages the urgency and depth involved in such a trip. And to continue the metaphor, the crackling of thunder seems as inviting as it is foreboding. Let it rain!
Sound System Dub as a whole is a really well done bit of English dub from 1995. Although steeped well in the ways of the Jamaican masters, A & O do manage to carve out a path of their own. These mostly instrumental tracks contain a healthy balance of John Sprosen's traditional sounds (melodica, as well as his more experimental and perfectly placed synths), but the element that most takes this sound out of Kingston is the thump of Christine Woodbridge's persistent bass, particularly on the tracks "Rastafari", "Merciful Jah" and "Sheba's Journey". An enjoyable sonic treat. throughout.
on 09 Sheba's Journey