BDF – BDF Meets Loud And Lone – CD

BDF (Basque Dub Foundation) started in the early 1990s as a studio project led by Iñaki Yarritu, a Basque musician and producer based in London since the 1980s. BDF was born out of a personal passion for producing reggae. The first BDF performances were as a Sound System during the 90s, pioneering the creation of dubplates and exclusive productions. Following several demos, BDF’s first album, Sustraidun Roots Dub (Massive Sounds Records), was released in 1997. Until then, BDF had been Iñaki’s personal project, collaborating with various Jamaican musicians from the London reggae scene (interestingly, it was a Jamaican musician who came up with the name Basque Dub!). BDF’s live shows were in the sound system style—playing records and dubplates with vocalists toasting over them. After several national tours alongside Mad Professor, BDF also evolved into a live band. This lineup reflected Iñaki’s musical experiences together with experienced and prestigious musicians from the London reggae/dub scene, who have worked with legends such as Ijahman, Culture, The Abyssinians, Ken Boothe, Johnny Clarke, Jah Shaka, Jackie Mittoo, Twinkle Brothers, and John Holt, among others.

BDF Meets Loud & Lone is their second album (released in 2002) and is entirely played, arranged, mixed, and produced by BDF and Loud & Lone. The album was recorded at A-Lone Muzik Studio, Loud & Lone’s studio in Santander. Much like the two legendary meccas of 1970s Jamaican dub—King Tubby’s studio and Lee Perry’s Black Ark—any lack of gear was compensated for by a deep knowledge of the essences and techniques of analog sound. It is within these secrets that a large part of the unique character and magnetic influence resides, which 1970s and 80s roots reggae and dub have projected onto nearly all contemporary pop and club music styles.

BDF Meets Loud & Lone represents the culmination of many years of dedication to Jamaican sounds. Most of the tracks are original compositions. Reggae from the very depths, genuine riddims without commercial concessions to the mainstream, and light-years away from the clichés and summer aesthetic tropes associated with quite a few national reggae and derivative outfits. BDF and L&L offer only genuine roots and dub reggae produced the old-school way: with “real” instruments, no digital sequencing, a “gritty” sound, and raw dubs where bass and drums dominate the mix. Echos and delays saturate to the limit, washing over all the instruments, yet they are balanced by vocal harmonies in the style of the great Jamaican vocal trios. It stands as a veiled yet sincere tribute to the artists and producers who have influenced them: the mystical cadences of Augustus Pablo and Yabby You; the militant rhythmic heavy-weight approach of The Revolutionaries (Sly & Robbie) and Roots Radics; the perennial heritage of classic rhythm tracks from Studio One and Rocksteady; the conscious message wrapped in the sublime soulful harmonies of the great Jamaican vocal trios; the combination of all these elements recreated by British reggae bands; and, of course, the never-sufficiently-acknowledged work of dub pioneers like King Tubby, Prince Jammy, Scientist, and Lee Perry.