Description

The 18th Parallel Downtown Sessions Vinyl LP

In September 2021, The 18th Parallel released their first collaborative album with Lone Ark, Showcase vol. 1, which received unanimous praise from international critics. Following a string of singles collaborating with key artists from the golden age of Jamaican reggae such as Lee “Scratch” Perry, Linval Thompson, Dennis Walks, Burro Banton and Mike Brooks, the Swiss musician-producer combo is set to announce one on November 18th, 2022 back with a new project, Downtown Sessions, which will delight the ears of fans of old-school roots music.

Downtown Sessions is the result of ten years of studio sessions between Geneva and Downtown Kingston with legendary drummer and rocker movie star Leroy “Horsemouth” Wallace (Studio One, Black Disciples, Soul Syndicate, Pierpoljak, Groundation,…). The 18th Parallel has invited some of the biggest names in Jamaican reggae to this new record: Cornell Campbell, Max Romeo, Ras Michael, Fred Locks, Big Youth, I Kong, Leroy Brown, The Silvertones and Hopeton James, not forgetting a Swiss guest , Lala Love. A veritable anthology of roots reggae legends thriving on original and varied riddims that pay tribute to different eras of Jamaican roots music production, from the gritty sound of the Randy's to the reverberant Studio One disco mix of the late 1970s, through the elaborate arrangements typical of Geoffrey Chung's productions at Dynamics Studio, or the sound of Ras Michael's Nyahbinghi drums! An exceptional album that combines tradition and modernity by bringing together the original voices of roots reggae with the refreshing vision of the young Swiss collective The 18th Parallel, led by the legendary Horsemouth and producer Mathias Liengme. A future must-have for any music lover's collection!

Vinyl LP | 2022 / UK - Original | New item

Who's who

Ever since Fruits Records emerged in 2015 with the release of I Kong's comeback album A Little Walk, the Swiss label dedicated to roots reggae music has become one of our favorite production camps. In their seven years of existence they have released 100% quality reggae music, mostly in collaboration with what can now be called the who's who of reggae music. The list includes Jamaican artists and musicians such as The Viceroys, Cornell Campbell, Samory I, Oku Onuora, Lloyd Parks, Micah Shemaiah, Keith & Tex, Time Unlimited, Dennis Walks, Linval Thompson, Lone Ranger, Prince Alla, Burro Banton, Earl "Chinna" Smith, Sylvian White, Lee 'Scratch' Perry, Vin Morgan, Roy Ellis, Vin Gordon, Yasus Afari, and Mike Brooks. They also collaborated with the Spaniard Roberto Sánchez, the Danish Horns section of the Guiding Star Orchestra and from Switzerland with the singing duo The I-Twins, Cosmic Shuffling and Najavibes. Certainly not a bad list of names, to say the least.

The 18th parallel

In 2017, Fruits Records, run by musicians Antonin Chatelain (drums), Léo Marin (guitar) and Mathias Liengme (keyboards and percussion), felt the need to find a new name for an in-house band to cover their studio activities Bridge Music Studio in Geneva (Switzerland) is responsible. And so The 18th Parallel was born. The core of The 18th Parallel is occasionally joined by members of well known Swiss crews & live bands and occasionally Jamaican musicians (Leroy “Horsemouth” Wallace, Robbie Shakespeare, Dalton Browne, Scully Simms, and others). Guests from Jamaica and Europe provide vocals for The 18th Parallel's riddims.
singles

In late September, Fruits Records released two 7″ singles featuring songs by Fred Locks and Big Youth, which more or less heralded the release of The 18th Parallel's full-length Downtown Sessions. After hearing and discussing these two singles, we came to the conclusion that Downtown Sessions was going to be a very strong album. And now it's on the market and we'll see, or better yet, hear if it's what we expected.

The music

Cornell Campbell has the honor of opening the album with Lovely Feeling. A good choice, because the veteran singer with the great falsetto voice comes up with an excellent melody. It's just the kind of song you can play over and over again without getting bored. If a melody is beautiful, play it twice! In this case even more than twice! While Cornell Campbell's Lovely Feeling alone makes this album worth buying, there are also great tracks from the aforementioned Fred Locks and Big Youth. Fred Locks' The System Is A Fraud comes on a Steppers riddim that perfectly suits the veteran's vocal style. Maga Lion and Brother Wildman from the Emeterians provide good backing vocals. All in all, Fred Locks' contribution is one of the highlights here. Ditto for Big Youths Man With A Mission. Underpinned by an engaging rub-a-dub riddim driven by a great bassline and boasting nice-sounding horns, Big Youth has created a real banger. Just Like The Rainbow, the first vocal collaboration between Max Romeo and I Kong, doesn't have a huge appeal right away. Somehow it takes several listens to fully appreciate this work. The Silvertones, led by founding members Keith Coley and Gilmore Grant, are in fine form on the wonderful Lover's Piece Only Me, making this a joy to listen to. Canada-based Jamaican singer Leroy Brown has delivered some of the best reggae songs imaginable, but inexplicably remains an overlooked and underappreciated reggae artist. Here he delivers a totally compelling social commentary titled Times Tough in great style. Rasta elder and singer Ras Michael is featured with the anthemic Ride On. Recorded at Earl "Chinna" Smith's Inna De Yard in Kingston and accompanied by the Inna De Yard singers, Ride On is a track that evokes memories of the heyday of rasta roots reggae. Hopeton James' enthralling Just A Wonder is a soulful song that's vocally reminiscent of Curtis Mayfield at times. Just beautiful. Lala Love, a Swiss singer with an angelic voice, rounds off with the consistently pleasant river.

All in all it lives up to expectations as this is a very strong album indeed!