#Fashion Highpoints

[shaadiwish]

Check Out These Bollywood Couples Who Brought Glam To The NMACC Event And Set Fashion Goals. Stay Tuned To ShaadiWish For Latest Trends And Ideas.

[hel-looks]

Matheus, 19

“I'm wearing a 70s style ladies suit and a big hat that I probably bought from UFF secondhand. I like to replicate the vibe of some bands like The Rolling Stones or The Grass Roots, because I feel like that was the highpoint of fashion especially when it comes to suits.”

7 July 2023, Alppipuisto

[justsomerandomntmranking]

Juuso Salpakari

Place: 3rd-4th Place

Average: 2.5

I mean, what’s not to hate about this guy? He is utterly hot, enough said. Half of my rankings have been thirsting over Juuso and I’m not afraid to admit that. His face is just perfect for male modeling, those cheekbones go on for days and he had an already unique yet handsome look that would look perfect for the camera without him even trying. It’s maddening to me. Unlike other male models who gave hot but nothing else, Juuso was able to be very versatile in terms of high fashion and the commercial shoots given to him. His first few sets of photos were great, his promo was simple but sweet, I adored his candy shot, and the only FCO he got from me, the jewelry shot, is one of my favorites of the cycle for good reason. He then told a bit of a downturn for me, not saying it was bad, he was still up to his good average, always constantly landing on the top 3 sans one week but it wasn’t as impressive as his powerful first weeks. He just ended up being a side character while others started to rise like Vilja. Still, it’s not discounting his ability to model, he’s a born model from day one and just stood out from the crowd. When watching the shoots, he was one of the easiest models to work with for sure, everyone seem to have their problems on set (Sofia/Jerry on their insecurities, Roosa/Henry/Vilja being more jokey on set, and Robert being Robert) so Juuso had a more professional attitude, which is admirable considering how much of a nice person he was (as I could tell, I’m not Finnish). However, Juuso did falter by the highpoint and more critical part of the competition and that really did it for him, plus, there was somewhat of an obvious top 2 from the very start of the competition. Jerry had a great storyline alongside a lot of personality while Sofia was growing in confidence and just a born model as Juuso, it especially shows when the judges seem to tolerate Jerry a lot more for his negativity rather than Roosa or Robert. Whatever the case is, I loved Juuso and he made for a great addition to the cast, his beautiful face and experience showed throughout and I was sad that he barely missed out on the finale. It really shows how strong this cycle was when the top 3 are only separated by .1.

[fabframe1]

Elevate Your Home with the Best Twin Sash Doors in India

Introduction:In this case, when you are trying to upgrade your house’s exterior and interior appearance, door selection matters so much. From numerous options to choose from sash twin doors, highPOINT as an elegant and versatile solution. India recognizes door panels for their permanent beauty and practicality that it is widespread. So why twin sash doors? Our next topic is twin sash doors and why they are the best choice you will ever make for your home.

1. Timeless Elegance:Sash windows that are twin in size look highly elegant and charming and draw people with their nobility and atmosphere whichever the room is. The 3 1/3 of classical design with two sashes operating independently would suit both traditional and modern interior designs. Achieve the laid back vibe of the past easily with a twin sash door that blends in well with any architectural style from traditional to modern.

2. Versatility in Design:Although a twin sash door is probably not the first to come to mind when we are thinking of windows, in terms of versatility, they are at the top of the list. Made of various materials including timber, uPVC and aluminium these doors can be tweaked to suit your particular preference and blend with the decoration of your house. Ranging from quite intricate design and inlaid details to contemporary minimalist profiles, choose your own style and have twin sash doors in harmony with your architectural vision.

3. Enhanced Ventilation and Natural Light:The twin sash doors are the most up-to-date models that allow for the influx of both sunlight and air which makes them the best fit if the interior (not rooms) has to be lit and air becomes freshened. As the most important feature, it has two independently functional sashes enabling you to precisely bush the amount of fresh air going into your home altogether with the amazing sight of the nature. Apart from that, this element improves convenience for both residents and enhances energy efficiency thus cutting down the consumption of electric power for light and air conditioning.

4. Space-saving Solutions:It is a smart choice when space in the city where residents cope with reduced space is a premium. Twin Sash Doors provide a practical solution in urban abodes by making the most out of the available space. Whereas, fixed hinged doorways mandate a gap for swing open, twin sash doors slide with fitted tracks which makes them perfect in space crunch areas. It can be these doors that make you enjoy the living area whether large or not, and they can also help you a lot in the optimization of your home’s layout but without giving up the style and usefulness.

5. Durability and Security: Putting money in the high-quality twin sash doors implies that the performance will last long and the property owner will not have to worry too much. Indian manufacturers specialize in this area by providing you durable materials as well as advanced locking systems, which makes your home safe for you and eliminates the possibility to break into it. Hardwood, uPVC, and aluminum are the common windows materials with our twin sash doors being resilient and durable. You can rest assured that these frames will last withstand the test of time and keep safe your family and belongings.

Conclusion:Twin sash doors with timeless classic, adaptability to design, and facility for the homeowners in India to raise their lifestyle levels, have remained a favourite option among the homeowners who intend to upgrade their houses. Be that renovation or new construction, you should match these fashionable and functional doors which will be able to add to the aesthetics, comfort, and performance of the areas of your house to live. Take a stroll through the abundant variety of models and pick up the ones which you like the most and match your taste, lifestyle and architectural taste as well. For more information visit us:-https://fabframe.in/twin-sash-doors.php

[itshotnewyork]

Choose ItsHot for signature-style jewelry

Rapper-designed jewelry has an appeal of its own. The creative juices of rapper artists can help in creating pieces that are truly breathtaking. A person can acquire the aura of a true style icon by wearing ItsHot rapper jewelry. 

The connection between music and fashion

A few fashion labels are milking to the hilt the connection between music and fashion. They hire rappers as their creative directors. ItsHot’s rapper jewelry collection is truly inspired by rap artists who are committed to creating lilting music.

Highpoints of ItsHot

These top outlets have artisans who are aware of the latest fads among fashion enthusiasts. They don’t flinch a bit in spending hours and even days creating designs that are genuinely rapper-inspired.

Even if they are not co-designed with famous rappers like the legendary Virgil Abloh, they do carry a signature style. They might prove to be a charming addition to the jewelry case of a collector.    

A darling of fashion boutiques

Most luxury watch enthusiasts would like to change the look of their watches every time they wear them. The wishes of a rapper jewelry enthusiast can be answered if they choose ItsHot replacement watch bezels. While these watch bezels are available at this jewelry store, they can be a darling of any fashion boutique.

Jewelry which entertains

Rapper jewelry should do what pop stars do best, and that is to entertain. Fashion labels hire pop stars as their designers for this very reason. There are a few select jewelry outlets, which makes it a point to make the jewelry rapper-inspired. The ItsHot rings, pendants, and bracelets are oversized, which makes them appealing to hip-hop jewelry enthusiasts.

Custom-made jewelry

Most jewelry outlets will have pendants with a standard length and thickness. This doesn’t suit hip-hop jewelry lovers; they are attracted to oversized jewelry. Jewelry makers at ItsHot customize rings that are not only oversized but also fully iced out. They truly stand out among the mundane jewelry items that are available in the stores.

Shop for jewelry where celebrities

ItsHot rapper jewelry is popular among rap artists like popular rap artists like Pharrell Williams and Jay-Z. SZA and Zendaya are also die-hard female fans of these jewelry items. Kanye West swears by the allure of these jewelry pieces.  

Conclusion

ItsHot's signature style jewelry collection reflects the fusion of music and fashion, offering pieces that exude style and creativity. With craftsmen dedicated to crafting unique designs and customizable options, ItsHot stands as a favorite among celebrities and fashion enthusiasts, elevating personal style with captivating, entertainment-driven jewelry pieces.

[adahrosegallery]

The painting “Reverie; Highpoint” raises questions about the line we draw between indoor and outdoor. The painting depicts what appears to be the interior of perhaps a hallway or foyer, with an image of a meadow projected onto a wall. The image appears in the same fashion that sunlight shines through a window onto a wall and wraps around the architecture, warping the image. The landscape is painted with similar shades of vibrant pink and orange that is used for the highlights of the interior, making it hard to separate the two scenes. 

Audrey Acres - Sidwell Friends '24

#painting #interiors #alexcurley #adahrosegallery #figurativeart #palette #outdoors #insideoutside #Pinkandorange

[luisruesga]

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Luis Ruesga (@lruesga)

We are ready for your next shipment, see you in High Point, IHFC D502 #marketing #next #sustainability #shipment #innovation #highpoint #weareready #business #architecture #design #designthinking #inspiration #new #branding #fashion #luxury #zuomod #interiordesign #designer #product (at High Point, North Carolina) https://www.instagram.com/p/B3FjzaEnbPK/?igshid=zw8t7gzyi4py

[fallenlightsif]

“Come home” with Ari please

"Come home." for Ari.

It's a small, coastal village in Leydon, a two days ride from Myrine, just outside the border of Oclesia. Ari knows the journey well, and the people of Highpoint greet her like a friend when she arrives.

She had loved their hero, after all.

Highpoint is small but buzzes with life; children running around, the smell of the bakery wafting in the air, grandmas sitting on porches knitting. In your letters you had said it reminded you of home, your first home. Before Kesdon.

She clenches her fists at the though of Kesdon. Of Ebia. It was their fault you were gone. She had wanted you to come to Oclesia so desperately, to join her in Myrine and damn the consequences.

You had refused, saying you didn't want to put anyone in danger. She had reluctantly agreed, citing the same reason.

You had told her to visit soon, and she'd planned to. The months were long, though, and the winter had brought more sick children than the temple expected. Anais had needed the help, and Dimitri was hopeless when it came to any kind of magic.

The responsibility fell to her. The next time she saw you, you were buried six feet under a fir tree.

She and Dimitri had made the first trip together. He had helped her fashion you a headstone and held her when she cried, a few tears escaping him as well.

He couldn't bear the trip anymore, seeing her fall apart every time. He remained with Anais and Venera now, helping them watch over the children.

Ari approaches the grave, the dirt soft beneath her feet. The climate is warmer here than it is in Myrine; you had always been fond of the coast.

She lays baby's breath beneath the headstone and then takes her seat, not minding the stains now marking her pants. The villagers stay away while she's here, even the children refraining from visiting the so-called Hero of Highpoint while she mourns.

It's been five months. She's still mourning.

"We found a girl outside the village a few weeks back." Her voice cracks as she begins to speak, "She had eyes like yours. The very same color. Anais said you were still watching over us all, even in Lady Vielia's realm beyond."

She sheds no more tears, only resting a heavy hand on the carved stone, pressing a kiss to the unmoving rock. She had known you for only a year, but it felt like so much longer.

You should've had so much longer.

"I still remember that night in Tamur, after you helped me heal the governor's son." She smiles, "I kissed you under the balcony and it was the best choice I ever made. I don't regret it, regret anything, even now. I just wish-"

She stops speaking, closing her eyes against the building pressure.

"You promised they were different." She whispers, "I believed you. Dimitri warned me not to but I did. I know you only said it because you thought it was the truth, but they're the same as all the others. They let you die."

Her voice shrinks to a hiss. So much had been taken away in this damned war, but this loss could've been prevented.

Perhaps that stings the most. A visit a week earlier, a heavier warning against the Ebian court, forcing you to come to her when you were alone-

But she cannot change anything. You are cold beneath the ground, and she is here. Alone, perhaps, but she is here.

Everyone she loves dies, yet she remains. Left behind, more broken with each passing, but breathing nonetheless. She must have a reason for her continued existence when everyone else leaves her so.

It's nightfall when she finally stands.

"I just wish you could come home with me." She says as she prepares to leave, the wind snaking around her like the ghost of a lover's embrace, "I suppose I'll just have to look forward to coming home to you."

First, she has work to do. She hopes you'll wait a bit longer for her.

[eighthwholove]

One of the reasons that makes the Doctor Who movie an underrated classic, is the overall Gothic Horror/Frankenstein  theme it upholds within in the plot. There is a reason that Big Finish eventually made Eight travel with Mary Shelley. Honestly, so much love was put into the making of this film. Observe:

1) The Doctor/Frankenstein parallels 

My take on it is, if the Doctor is meant to symbolize Frankenstein's monster, would that technically make Grace Dr. Frankenstein, for the sole reason that she killed him (by accident), and thus gave life to Eight? Does that make sense?

The addition of the actual movie makes it more obvious, putting the regeneration, which has lightening sparks already, side-by-side to it.

I love how they weren’t even trying to hide it here. The creation is alive!

IT’S ALIVE!!!!!!! yeah....

A little side note, the Doctor carrying Grace, yet another reference to the Frankenstein film, where the monster carries his creator.

2) The Gothic TARDIS

Considered to be a highpoint of the movie, is the TARDIS. The Gothic set-up goes hand-in-hand the Frankenstein theme. Old fashioned carpets, furniture, library, and the candles overall cast a Gothic ambience in the TARDIS. I  definitely would want to travel the universe in that old girl.

3) The Doctor’s costume

Originally stolen from a locker and based upon Wild Bill Hickcock’s garb, the Doctor seems to be dressed up in a Steampunk inspired ensemble, making him appear as a Victorian gentleman. The kind who would definitely write Romantic Poetry. Down to the flowing locks, the dark green velvet frockcoat, white winged collared long-sleeved shirt, the embroidered waistcoat, and the cravat, perfectly match him to the interior of his TARDIS. Old fashioned.

4) Lastly, the sountrack

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r4PMLL2hITg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=llVMtI25oY0

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DC-2gn3hKZ0

The three links are music from the film. “Open the Eye” “The Eye of Harmony/Half-Human” & “Reroute the Power!/Temporal Orbit” all exhibit one thing:. The Gothic tone in the film.  The way the orchestra summarizes the scene in which is being taken place, are done perfectly, all which are in the TARDIS, emphasizing it’s Gothic structure and ambience. John Debney’s score is an underrated one. He deserves more credit than he receives.

In conclusion, the Movie exudes Gothic/Frankenstein themes that were clearly implemented with absolute care. Down to the set designs, costumes, and music, this makes the Movie an enjoyable watch, and, truly, a classic.

[kneipho]

Sumbitted by: @mantrabay​

Ballroom In The Sky.

Gazing with his mouth wide open towards a sullen evening sky dotted with jet black clouds

Geoff Wild weeps.

He was on his knees on this grass-strewn, unkempt graveyard.

Two years later and her memory still lingers.

The sudden passing of his loved one had left this middle-aged man gaunt, ashen faced and skeletal. Wild’s troubled expression had become a haunted house of uncanny notions and strange secrets waiting to flow from his water-logged eyes. Those circumstances surrounding Violet’s death were never clear.

Velvet Heart was Geoff’s courtship name for Violet.

Was it a death wish or an accidental fall from their elegant townhouse?

Death through misadventure was the colourful term used.

“Cherish all those wonderful experiences we had. Whichever one of us dies first.”

Violet actually said.

Almost as if she had some premonition.

This was six months before she passed away. .An endless see-saw of creepy dawning’s convulsed him.

Yet Wild fondly recalled when they first met at the Skyline Ballroom.

The Skyline was a battered tumbledown barn whose allure was its availability.

The chipped hardwood floor and the dusty pale cream walls with paint flakes that peeled off only confirmed its tenement status. It was known locally as the “Creaking Beam”” due to its ghostly acoustics and flickering lights. Here in this spooky venue Geoff and Violet had their earliest encounter. Wild remembered her radiant smiles.

The ripples of long dark hair, her apple blossom cheeks and of course her angelic aura..

On that night she wore a polka dot ruche dress, amethyst ear pendants, whilst sporting satin moccasins.

“Have I the gumption? The courage.

A faint heart etc.” Geoff could hear his heart flutter as he did his tightrope walk toward her.

“May I dance with you?” Geoff asked.

Velvet heart’s hands formed a lazy arch and her dainty fingers curled inwards.

“Of course. I would be delighted.” Violet spoke in that pear drop tone which beguiled everybody.

Geoff, the local journalist and writer was in seventh heaven.

They never forgot that enchanting song they first danced to, “Ballroom In The Sky.”

The song was performed by Valerie And The Blue Skies.

They weren’t very big but had a cult following..

Geoff could see how similar Violet and Valerie were.

They were mirror images of each other.

Even in speech and humour.

Valerie was based in a remote enigmatic area.

She used to refer to songs as role plays.

“You feel as though you are a member of the audience.” Valerie remarked.

Violet did admit to meeting Valerie casually and for autograph purposes but not otherwise or so it seemed.

It was amazing how “ Ballroom In The Sky” with its airy ascending rock chords and jaunty jazz lines could draw Violet, Valerie and Geoff into a peculiar triangle.

The sudden moody breaks, abrupt silences built a momentary cocoon.

Valerie’s top sideman….well, he was known as Silent Sam.

He had a track record of sorts.

Sam’s blue attire was appropriate.

He wore a large trilby hat tipped over his forehead sheltering his pointed face and pencil slim physique.

He, Sam, was short-sighted when it suited and eccentric.

Practical jokes were his forte and the impish grin.

“Yep ..Yup….or Sure.“

These were the only asides from this oddball sidemen for the most part.

He was accident prone.

Valerie had to indicate where things were. Theirs was a sign language of its own complete with slanted facial squirms.

One wondered if there was a deeper relationship between them.

Those Blue Skies airs were fillers without Sam.

Every time “Ballroom In The Sky” was played Valerie, Violet and Geoff were sharing unwittingly a secret.

The startled looks were part of this outlandish ritual.

Wild recalled now.

“Valerie could croon in a real hypnotic fashion. Everyone in the dancehall was enthralled. People would sway like ice skaters one moment, waltz in a swan-like manner the next and just as often rave in the isles like end of term teenagers.”

Geoff whispers in the graveyard.

“JUST A PASSING DREAM………..STILL SO VIVID…….DANCING IN HEAVEN…… KISSES ALL AROUND….MAGIC HAND……..A LITTLE BIT BLIND, and of course “BALLROOM IN THE SKY.”

Geoff and Violet would swing religiously to those fantasy songs every Sunday as their courtship blossomed.

“Ballroom In The Sky “ was always the highpoint.

This constellation of events occurred in a scenic nineteen seventies spot.

Despite its haunting vistas and backdrop of panoramic hills it resembled a ghost town. Openings were few against an infinite spiral of closing factories, bookstores with half-empty shelves and shopkeepers peering out of doors.

Ten years earlier it was a beacon. “I shudder to think……A jigsaw puzzle.”

Geoff surveying the cemetery.

Such memories could have been taken directly from some movie script. “Yes .. it was a hub that Skyline. Like homeless drifters, the folk who attended.”

Geoff again.

They were fugitives.

Escapees from that heavy-handed dole queue void.

Suddenly something happened.

“What the heavens is? Snap….a branch.” Momentary jitters engulfing Wild.

He shook in concert with the overarching colonnade of brown edge green leaf trees.

An eerie rustling dewdrop tiptoe now caressing Geoff’s ears.

”Up there somewhere Velvet Heart?

Dancing in the heavens?”

Nervous laughter now relief road to that traffic jam of sentiment about to speed off.

Glued to the spot that macabre sixth sense of Violet hovering above evaporates due to an illusory late evening sun shaft.

Wild could no longer hide from Valerie and Velvet Heart’s identities.

“Oh those comic jibes and piercing glances. Some ethereal intrigues were passing through the air.”

Geoff recalls with forensic clarity.

Poor Silent Sam would do his usual u-turn into the shadow.

Two months before Geoff’s and Violet’s parting, an incident occurred.

Memory is a lodger which steadfastly refuses to surrender its keys.

Valerie and the Blue Skies were in flying form as the tunes morphed into each other.

Valerie and Velvet Heart were magnets for men.

Violet caught Geoff off guard.

“Guilty conscience, there Geoff?”

Having fantasies about Valerie.

Focus on me.

As for that eternity ring remember?”

Those penetrating peepers of Violet knew how to vet a body in a flash.

“Oh no …..not at all.” Geoff with a looping

smirk.

“Just those mystical melodies working their spell.” He said.

“You came into my life like…. a new dawn.” Wild poetically.

“You honey tongue you. Geoff our song. Ballroom.” Violet mutters.

Valerie nodded towards Sam.

Her expression was a hard to decipher veil and deep code command.

“Get those fingers flying, Sam.”

In a tone almost identical to Velvet Heart.

Sam didn’t always act immediately.

“Yep.. Yup …Sure.” Sam’s stock retort.

“Ballroom In The Sky” now strong as ever cast its bewitching spell throughout the venue.

A medley was included tonight.

“SOMEONE FOR EVERYONE” ( Sam looked at Valerie), “A LITTLE BIT BLIND” ( Sam staring vacantly at both Valerie and Violet), “MIND YOUR STEP( Sam winking at Geoff while scrunching the mouth at Violet).

Violet edged toward the stage.

A dim-lit silence ensued.

Ballroom started again. Valerie and Violet now singing this tune. An eerie vacuum filled this dancehall.

A triangular crush of people occurred near the stage with Geoff in toe.

Valerie handed Violet a letter.

Sam was now talking tersely to Valerie.

A misted over photo gallery memory blur in place.

“Pst…Pst. Your Velvet Heart is back to haunt you.“ Violet’s lofty twang.

“What in the name….I can’t phantom…..fathom.” Geoff shudders.

Violet’s voice a wet whisper stretching over twigs that simultaneously tap against windows.

She pulled back an orchard pattern duvet covering Geoff.

“Fell asleep at your favourite film, The Passing Of A Velvet Heart. All those graveyard scenes shot in our small town remember?

We know Silent Sam wrote the soundtrack for the film along with Ballroom. He sings on that one.” Violet recounts.

“Incredibly you chose Velvet Heart as your courtship name for me based on the film.

The film was never a huge success but did get our area limited publicity.

Sam earned extra royalties from the soundtrack.

Valerie and Sam tying the knot next Sunday of all days.

As for that love letter you mumbled about.

It’s an invite to their secret wedding.

Very private. As Sam is.

What a time and place he chose for the invitation.

During that ethereal love song which brought us together.” Violet observes.

“Poor Sam’s a little bit blind a

on occasions or is he?

I was upstairs on the flat roof today.

Six months ago I fell off it.

You’ve never liked me being up there since.”

Violet continuing.

“Guilty secret must confess. I used to be onstage instead of Valerie.

Well, sometimes.

She was dating you pretending to be me.

We never knew each other that well but it was a dare worked out between us.“

Geoff shouted. “Hoodwinked.”

An incredulous look ripples over Wild’s pale face.

Violet’s eyes now ablaze.

“You never noticed did you? Deep down.”

The tease in Violet surfacing..

Geoff was thunderstruck.

Violet strolled towards their CD player on the mahogany table.

“Think you’ll like this one. Our song.”

Violet stated.

“May I dance with you?”

Geoff smiled. “Of course. I would be delighted.

And relieved!”

Silent Sam’s voice weaves in his own inimitable shy way a song usually sung by Valerie, his wife to be.

And sometimes Violet, or Velvet Heart.

A number that united three people in the most curious and otherworldly manner!

“Yep….Yup ….Sure.”

As Sam was in the habit of saying!

mantrabay photograph and short story copyright protected.

Thanks for reading my works

.

[shaadiwish]

‘India In Fashion’ NMACC Gala Event Featured Some Fabulous Traditional Fabrics & Embroideries. Stay Tuned To ShaadiWish For Latest Trends And Ideas.

[sb4life]

Today I went on a nature walk and found peace...... ___ #greensboro #northcarolina #nc #charlotte #hiphop #raleigh #rap #music #winstonsalem #art #follow #highpoint #like #ncat #working #edition #dryleaf #fashion #buildingbridgestour #dj #photography #atlanta #christmas #party #hair #durham #gso #fun #stevieboi #sbshades #StevieBot (at Greensboro, North Carolina) https://www.instagram.com/p/BsgdzbvgsHy/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=1gual44ly5lb9

[ohthatsviolet]

A Gibtic Drabble

Alexander isn’t feeling very well. Makoa wants to take care of him. (Ao3 link will be in the RBs for those who prefer that.)

"Don't worry, love. I'll have you right as rain in no time at all!"

Caustic looked up from his book, towards the kitchen where his partner was busying himself with a pot on the stove. 

"We've already discussed this fuss you are making is completely unnecessary," he replied, setting what he was reading into his lap. 

He placed his hand over his mouth in an attempt to muffle the stream of coughs that wracked his body, leaving his lungs feeling weak and wheezy. 

Makoa turned towards him, folding his arms over his chest. 

"I’m fine," the chemist said, picking his book back up. "You don't need to concern yourself with me." 

"That didn't sound fine to me," the other man replied, turning the stove down to allow the pot to simmer. 

He stepped around the kitchen counter, making his way towards the large armchair where Alexander was sat. 

"If you're not feeling well, then you're not feeling well," he said softly, patting the scientist's arm in a comforting fashion. "No shame in that." 

"I am not ashamed of my poor health," Caustic said, closing over his book so he could focus his attention on his companion. "I just see it to be frivolous that you would waste your time nursing me. Most common illnesses pass with time." 

Makoa shook his head, with a small laugh. 

"That don't mean you have to suffer the whole time. You know me, love. I don't budge, so you best get used to it." 

Caustic removed his reading glasses and set them, along with his book, on the side table, with a sigh. 

"As you wish." 

"Might I assist you with anything?" 

Gibraltar looked over his shoulder, to see the chemist hovering near the stove, despite having told him multiple times that he was free to relax on the couch, while he prepared their meal. 

"I've got everything under control, I think." 

Alexander nodded with a small grunt. 

"If you are to insist on looking after me, then I may insist on offering my assistance." 

"You're a stubborn old man," Makoa laughed, shaking his head again, allowing a stray strand of hair to come loose and fall into his eyes. 

His laugh was infectious and Alexander found himself chuckling quietly, until he had to purse his lips together and turn his face away, attempting to stifle another cough. 

"You can keep an eye on the pot if you like," Makoa offered, removing the lid to show off what he had been cooking this whole time. 

Caustic peered over his shoulder, as the delicious scent rose from the pot, making his mouth water. It appeared to be a very hearty looking soup. He took a large spoon in his grasp and began stirring in slow circles, admiring the vibrant ingredients and the smell that only seemed to get better as time passed. Makoa reappeared a short while later, cradling a collection of freshly chopped herbs in his hands, and added them to the pot. He offered the scientist a bright smile, before placing his hand over his on the spoon, quickening the pace. 

"Gotta give this a good, old stir. Make sure all these flavours are perfectly married together." 

Alex indulged him for a while, before stepping away and allowing his partner to take over the rest of the cooking. He lingered in his space, unable to stop his eyes from drifting onto the loose strand of hair, still hanging over the taller man's forehead. 

“It appears you have something out of place,” he said, carefully brushing the rogue hair back to join its counterparts and securing it with the clip it had originally escaped from. “Allow me.”

The highpoints of Makoa’s cheeks flushed at the gesture. 

“Thank you, Alex.”

“It was...my pleasure.”

It was later than evening, when they made their way to the couch with their bowls of soup in hand. Makoa draped a large blanket over both of their laps, as they tucked into their meals, in a comfortable silence. The chemist could feel himself feeling better already, as the flavoursome soup offered its warmth to his body. 

“You have a great talent in the kitchen,” Alexander eventually spoke up, upon finishing his bowl. “I do not believe I have had a superior soup to this.”  

Makoa found himself chuckling quietly at the remark, setting his now empty bowl onto his knees.

“See, I told ya I’d fix you right up!”

“Indeed,” Nox spoke, with a small nod of his head. “I do wish to apologise if I was unpleasant earlier. I am still growing accustomed to all of this.”

“I didn’t take no offense,” Makoa replied, with a shrug, nudging him playfully. “I know you’re a big softy, in your own way.” 

“Regardless, I do...appreciate your assistance today and your...companionship.” 

“Well, you ain’t so bad yourself, Al. I feel the same way,” his partner replied, turning slightly to face him, allowing them to share a soft smile. “Now, how about seconds?”

Alexander stood, and collected their bowls, before returning to the kitchen. 

“That sounds delightful, my dear.” 

[creedatelier]

Ballroom In The Sky.

Gazing with his mouth wide open towards a sullen evening sky dotted with jet black clouds

Geoff Wild weeps.

He was on his knees on this grass-strewn, unkempt graveyard.

Two years later and her memory still lingers.

The sudden passing of his loved one had left this middle-aged man gaunt, ashen faced and skeletal. Wild’s troubled expression had become a haunted house of uncanny notions and strange secrets waiting to flow from his water-logged eyes. Those circumstances surrounding Violet’s death were never clear.

Velvet Heart was Geoff’s courtship name for Violet.

Was it a death wish or an accidental fall from their elegant townhouse?

Death through misadventure was the colourful term used.

“Cherish all those wonderful experiences we had. Whichever one of us dies first.”

Violet actually said.

Almost as if she had some premonition.

This was six months before she passed away. .An endless see-saw of creepy dawning’s convulsed him.

Yet Wild fondly recalled when they first met at the Skyline Ballroom.

The Skyline was a battered tumbledown barn whose allure was its availability.

The chipped hardwood floor and the dusty pale cream walls with paint flakes that peeled off only confirmed its tenement status. It was known locally as the “Creaking Beam”” due to its ghostly acoustics and flickering lights. Here in this spooky venue Geoff and Violet had their earliest encounter. Wild remembered her radiant smiles.

The ripples of long dark hair, her apple blossom cheeks and of course her angelic aura..

On that night she wore a polka dot ruche dress, amethyst ear pendants, whilst sporting satin moccasins.

“Have I the gumption? The courage.

A faint heart etc.” Geoff could hear his heart flutter as he did his tightrope walk toward her.

“May I dance with you?” Geoff asked.

Velvet heart’s hands formed a lazy arch and her dainty fingers curled inwards.

“Of course. I would be delighted.” Violet spoke in that pear drop tone which beguiled everybody.

Geoff, the local journalist and writer was in seventh heaven.

They never forgot that enchanting song they first danced to, “Ballroom In The Sky.”

The song was performed by Valerie And The Blue Skies.

They weren’t very big but had a cult following..

Geoff could see how similar Violet and Valerie were.

They were mirror images of each other.

Even in speech and humour.

Valerie was based in a remote enigmatic area.

She used to refer to songs as role plays.

“You feel as though you are a member of the audience.” Valerie remarked.

Violet did admit to meeting Valerie casually and for autograph purposes but not otherwise or so it seemed.

It was amazing how “ Ballroom In The Sky” with its airy ascending rock chords and jaunty jazz lines could draw Violet, Valerie and Geoff into a peculiar triangle.

The sudden moody breaks, abrupt silences built a momentary cocoon.

Valerie’s top sideman....well, he was known as Silent Sam.

He had a track record of sorts.

Sam’s blue attire was appropriate.

He wore a large trilby hat tipped over his forehead sheltering his pointed face and pencil slim physique.

He, Sam, was short-sighted when it suited and eccentric.

Practical jokes were his forte and the impish grin.

“Yep ..Yup....or Sure.“

These were the only asides from this oddball sidemen for the most part.

He was accident prone.

Valerie had to indicate where things were. Theirs was a sign language of its own complete with slanted facial squirms.

One wondered if there was a deeper relationship between them.

Those Blue Skies airs were fillers without Sam.

Every time “Ballroom In The Sky” was played Valerie, Violet and Geoff were sharing unwittingly a secret.

The startled looks were part of this outlandish ritual.

Wild recalled now.

“Valerie could croon in a real hypnotic fashion. Everyone in the dancehall was enthralled. People would sway like ice skaters one moment, waltz in a swan-like manner the next and just as often rave in the isles like end of term teenagers.”

Geoff whispers in the graveyard.

“JUST A PASSING DREAM...........STILL SO VIVID.......DANCING IN HEAVEN...... KISSES ALL AROUND....MAGIC HAND........A LITTLE BIT BLIND, and of course “BALLROOM IN THE SKY.”

Geoff and Violet would swing religiously to those fantasy songs every Sunday as their courtship blossomed.

“Ballroom In The Sky “ was always the highpoint.

This constellation of events occurred in a scenic nineteen seventies spot.

Despite its haunting vistas and backdrop of panoramic hills it resembled a ghost town. Openings were few against an infinite spiral of closing factories, bookstores with half-empty shelves and shopkeepers peering out of doors.

Ten years earlier it was a beacon. “I shudder to think…...A jigsaw puzzle.”

Geoff surveying the cemetery.

Such memories could have been taken directly from some movie script. “Yes .. it was a hub that Skyline. Like homeless drifters, the folk who attended.”

Geoff again.

They were fugitives.

Escapees from that heavy-handed dole queue void.

Suddenly something happened.

“What the heavens is? Snap….a branch.” Momentary jitters engulfing Wild.

He shook in concert with the overarching colonnade of brown edge green leaf trees.

An eerie rustling dewdrop tiptoe now caressing Geoff’s ears.

”Up there somewhere Velvet Heart?

Dancing in the heavens?”

Nervous laughter now relief road to that traffic jam of sentiment about to speed off.

Glued to the spot that macabre sixth sense of Violet hovering above evaporates due to an illusory late evening sun shaft.

Wild could no longer hide from Valerie and Velvet Heart’s identities.

“Oh those comic jibes and piercing glances. Some ethereal intrigues were passing through the air.”

Geoff recalls with forensic clarity.

Poor Silent Sam would do his usual u-turn into the shadow.

Two months before Geoff's and Violet’s parting, an incident occurred.

Memory is a lodger which steadfastly refuses to surrender its keys.

Valerie and the Blue Skies were in flying form as the tunes morphed into each other.

Valerie and Velvet Heart were magnets for men.

Violet caught Geoff off guard.

“Guilty conscience, there Geoff?”

Having fantasies about Valerie.

Focus on me.

As for that eternity ring remember?”

Those penetrating peepers of Violet knew how to vet a body in a flash.

“Oh no .....not at all.” Geoff with a looping

smirk.

“Just those mystical melodies working their spell.” He said.

“You came into my life like.... a new dawn.” Wild poetically.

“You honey tongue you. Geoff our song. Ballroom.” Violet mutters.

Valerie nodded towards Sam.

Her expression was a hard to decipher veil and deep code command.

“Get those fingers flying, Sam.”

In a tone almost identical to Velvet Heart.

Sam didn’t always act immediately.

“Yep.. Yup ...Sure.” Sam’s stock retort.

“Ballroom In The Sky” now strong as ever cast its bewitching spell throughout the venue.

A medley was included tonight.

“SOMEONE FOR EVERYONE” ( Sam looked at Valerie), “A LITTLE BIT BLIND” ( Sam staring vacantly at both Valerie and Violet), “MIND YOUR STEP( Sam winking at Geoff while scrunching the mouth at Violet).

Violet edged toward the stage.

A dim-lit silence ensued.

Ballroom started again. Valerie and Violet now singing this tune. An eerie vacuum filled this dancehall.

A triangular crush of people occurred near the stage with Geoff in toe.

Valerie handed Violet a letter.

Sam was now talking tersely to Valerie.

A misted over photo gallery memory blur in place.

“Pst...Pst. Your Velvet Heart is back to haunt you.“ Violet’s lofty twang.

“What in the name….I can't phantom…..fathom.” Geoff shudders.

Violet’s voice a wet whisper stretching over twigs that simultaneously tap against windows.

She pulled back an orchard pattern duvet covering Geoff.

“Fell asleep at your favourite film, The Passing Of A Velvet Heart. All those graveyard scenes shot in our small town remember?

We know Silent Sam wrote the soundtrack for the film along with Ballroom. He sings on that one.” Violet recounts.

“Incredibly you chose Velvet Heart as your courtship name for me based on the film.

The film was never a huge success but did get our area limited publicity.

Sam earned extra royalties from the soundtrack.

Valerie and Sam tying the knot next Sunday of all days.

As for that love letter you mumbled about.

It’s an invite to their secret wedding.

Very private. As Sam is.

What a time and place he chose for the invitation.

During that ethereal love song which brought us together.” Violet observes.

“Poor Sam’s a little bit blind a

on occasions or is he?

I was upstairs on the flat roof today.

Six months ago I fell off it.

You’ve never liked me being up there since.”

Violet continuing.

“Guilty secret must confess. I used to be onstage instead of Valerie.

Well, sometimes.

She was dating you pretending to be me.

We never knew each other that well but it was a dare worked out between us.“

Geoff shouted. “Hoodwinked.”

An incredulous look ripples over Wild’s pale face.

Violet’s eyes now ablaze.

“You never noticed did you? Deep down.”

The tease in Violet surfacing..

Geoff was thunderstruck.

Violet strolled towards their CD player on the mahogany table.

“Think you’ll like this one. Our song.”

Violet stated.

“May I dance with you?”

Geoff smiled. “Of course. I would be delighted.

And relieved!”

Silent Sam’s voice weaves in his own inimitable shy way a song usually sung by Valerie, his wife to be.

And sometimes Violet, or Velvet Heart.

A number that united three people in the most curious and otherworldly manner!

“Yep….Yup ….Sure.”

As Sam was in the habit of saying!

mantrabay Photograph and Prose Poem Copyright Protected

#creedatelier #blog@creedatelier

.

[dustedmagazine]

Listening Post: African Head Charge

African Head Charge conjured a potent variety of psychedelic dub, which blended the boom and echo of classic reggae production with intricate West African polyrhythms and sampled vocals from nearly every religion on earth. The band got started at the beginning of the 1980s as a partnership between producer Adrian Sherwood and the Jamaican percussionist Bonjo Iyabinghi Noah, but the five albums we are considering come from later on. Three are from the early 1990s and two after a decade-long hiatus that ended in the mid-aughts. 

We come to this material through a reissued five CD (or five vinyl album) box set from On-U Sound, which collects four studio albums—the classic, career highpoint Songs of Praise (1990), the follow-up In Pursuit of Shashamane Land, a collection of alternate mixes, dubs and rarities from 1990 to 1993, Churchical Chant of the Iyabinghi and two later albums, 2005’s Vision of a Psychedelic Africa and Voodoo of the Godsent. 

Jennifer Kelly: I am personally pretty gobsmacked by the first two albums, and the way they bring in hallucinatory chants from various regions of Africa and other places into the groove. For instance, I’m listening to “Cattle Herders Chant” from Songs of Praise right now, and it’s sort of magic how it brings together absolutely primitive, traditional singing into this technologically-enhanced dance beat. I mean, it’s very disco, very sensual, but also really spiritual. To me it gets to the links between religious transcendence and the kind of experiences you can have with music.  

What are you guys hearing and liking in this set?

Jonathan Shaw: I know so little about dub and reggae, but I really love this music. When I hear dub that I groove with, I think of William Gibson's Neuromancer, the Zionites and the constant throb of dub. Strange stuff to find in a science fiction novel about artificial intelligences — but that's the trick with dub. It's a blending of deeply spiritual sounds with the technological powers of the machine. The mixing board gets possessed by ghosts. Like on "Learned" from Churchical Chant of the Iyabinghi: there's a machine-like precision to the looped drum tracks that threatens to render the rhythms overly artificial, but when the voices cut in, there's a hair-raising weirdness that can only happen in the flesh, through the flesh.  

Tim Clarke: Feels a little absurd to have never heard African Head Charge in the 25 or so years since I first noticed their name mentioned in issues of NME and Melody Maker that I used to read religiously during school break times. Dub reggae has never been my bag, which makes this collection a pleasant surprise. I approached the albums in an upside-down fashion, arbitrarily beginning with the outtakes collection, Churchical Chant of the Iyabinghi, simply by virtue of it being first alphabetically. As Jonathan mentioned, the juxtaposition between the loose religious chanting and the machine-like rhythmic loops is strikingly odd. I'm leaning towards favoring the rougher, dubbier cuts over the more easily digestible tracks. Either way, this is an unexpectedly toothsome feast — and one I'm still chewing my way through.

William Meyer: Sorry to be so long responding to this, but my, there’s a lot of African Head Charge to take in. I bought Songs of Praise at the time it came out and had a mixed response. While I never sold it, I never bought another record by the band. Listening to the record now, my opinion isn’t that different. I like the sound of the vocalist’s voice, and find the chanted delivery easy on the ears, but it doesn’t lure me in to actually listen to what he has to say. The big, bold 1990s drum programs didn’t sound good to me at the time, and they don’t sound good now. The hand drumming is much more engaging, and my interest corresponds to the extent that its patterns cover up the boom-thwack grooves.

I’ve gone through the subsequent albums in alphabetical rather than chronological fashion, and found that the cleaner the production, the more fusion-esque the bass solos, and the more sparkly the guitars sound, the less interested I am. The denser the layering of percussion and chants, the murkier the samples, and the more aggressive the dub effects are applied, the more I like it. So, I think that Visions of a Psychedelic Africa is great.

Jonathan Shaw: Agreed that Visions... is the real find among these records--at least in my listening. I'm largely in accord with Bill's analysis of the sounds, but the sparkly guitars in "Surfari" are interesting to me. I hear in them a sort of a "fuck you" to the Beach Boys and their surfin' safaris, which replicate the colonial ventures of 19th-century white dudes in pith helmets. Rock and roll is a lot of things, and its pronounced tendency to leech vitality from black culture is one of the less attractive of those things. So it's fun to hear surf guitar runs subsumed into AHC's dubby weirdness.

"Unplanned" from that record is just terrific. A bit more spare, a bit more spaced out, lots of hand-drum sounds. Lots of semi-creepy weirdness.  

Andrew Forell: I discovered Dub kinda accidentally after Mark Stewart left The Pop Group and started recording with Adrian Sherwood on On-U. African Head Charge’s first record My Life is a Hole in the Ground remains a favorite. Of these rereleases Songs of Praise is the only one I’d previously heard and i agree with Jen that it’s a remarkable combination of the sacred and profane. But I have to say that the two latter albums Visions of a Psychadelic Africa & Voodoo of the Godsent are the records that have really excited me on first, and subsequent listens. I get what Bill’s saying about the 1990s drum programs, sparkly guitars and fusion bass solos and agree there are times when they become a distraction but when it works on Visions and Voodoo i find it pretty irresistible. I’ve always found Sherwood to be a producer sympathetic to the source material no matter how much he’s deconstructing, reconstructing and generally mucking it around and i think the application of dub techniques to African polyrhythms a nice closing of the circle between reggae’s roots and Sherwood’s continuation (some might say appropriation) of Jamaican innovators like Lee “Scratch’ Perry and King Tubby. Adding space and bottom end to hand drums and chants makes, at least for me, compelling listen.  

Ben Donnelly: Dub is inherently about the character of the production, isn't it? Along with psychedelia, it's the first manifestation of the studio as a pop instrument. And uniquely, it's the first form where existing recordings are the main source of sound. So, if the sheen or the haze of one of these records isn't working, there's not much further one can be expected to delve.

I first encountered African Head Charge in the rotation bin of my college radio station, midnight shift in 1987. I'm not sure which LP I was slapping on the turntable, but a combo of giddy fatigue and typography fixed the band's name in my mind as African Head *Change*. In the context of the era that misconstrued name fit with the tribal industrial stuff that was also in rotation, like Dissidenten, Test Department, Flux and so on, with more than a few of them also Adrian Sherwood productions.  

To contemporary ears, Songs of Praise is coming from a place that's passe. The digital sharpness of the sampling and percussion, and the travelogue of the sources no doubt inspired to the sort of world-music-trance-techno that you'd find on a compact disc in the checkout line at a food coop in the mid-90s, with that "global village coffeehouse" artwork.  

So, I start cringing when the chanting children launch "Hymn," yet the rhythm track is still off kilter enough to delight me. And this keeps happening to me as I approach this album in 2020 - those Afropop leads that became corny signifiers used to sell Fruitopia break free of their 90s appropriations, and I can hear them as the more thoughtful juxtapositions they originally were.  

The more recent albums, *Visions* and *Voodoo* have a cloudier surface, more like something that came from Lee Perry's Black Ark studio. While that Upsetter sound is now the standard we use to measure dub, *Songs of Praise* was created in a time when the terms "dub" and "version" were thrown around much more freely, e.g. U2's "Celtic Dub Remix." 

The latter records also arrived out in a time when their influence was fully felt, as Hyperdub and Hotflush were defining dubstep and UK bass. I'm struck at how the basic AFC formula of hand drums and queasy vocal samples defines the boundaries Shackleton has spent his career richly exploring.  

Bill Meyer: Michael Veal wrote a swell book that takes on the question of what dub is, and what it was. It started out as a way to skimp on money, reusing the backing track for the b-side instead of coming up with new b-side, and went from there. Sheen came into the game when digital means of recording replaced analogue in Jamaica, and when the dub influence started to spread around the world. Adrian Sherwood has made a life’s work of inserting dub consciousness and methods into places where it previously was not present. But the influence went both ways, and the mainstream drum sounds and late 20th century treble overload has a lot to do with me rating the 1990s Headcharge lower than Vision of a Psychedelic Africa.

Sometimes the slickness works as contrast, though. Ex: the clash between cocktail piano and the pitched-down command to “smoke up your collyweed” on “Take Heed…And Smoke Up Your Collyweed” is pretty cool.  

Ben Donnelly: It's very appealing how many of these tracks can be simultaneously ridiculous and ominous. The track later on Voodoo of the Godsent built around the sample of the newscaster voice repeating "Undulating to atonal music while experiencing way out trances" made me think it must be a 1990s track, as that sort of campy sample went out of fashion at the end of the century. That it is from 2011 is charming. These records are definitely burnished by removing them from the flow of decades and treating them as their own backwater.  

Bill Meyer: Yeah, the coexistence of ridiculousness and dark portent may actually give this stuff life outside of its time. Sometimes I hear African Head Charge and wonder what an Adrian Sherwood-Prince Far I match-up would have sounded like. But instead of Prince Far I, who sounded like the only thing he read was the Old Testament, I imagine these guys kick back and watch a bit of cable TV in between takes. It’s more a part of the world than Prince Far I sounded like he was, even though at the same time it imagines an alternate, psychedelic African universe.   

Ian Mathers: As someone who's a big fan of dub in general, from Lee "Scratch" Perry's first attempts to replicate the sound of dropping a pebble down an old dry, metal well as a kid (or is that story apocryphal?) to, well, Adrian Sherwood's noble crusade to apply dub techniques wherever they even sort of fit, it's kind of surprising (I still stand by his Echo Dek dub of Primal Scream's Vanishing Point record, especially the "Stuka" dubs), it's kind of surprising I hadn't gotten around to searching out African Head Charge material yet; honestly, if I'd known it was less of a solo outing for Sherwood and had heard anything about Bonjo I (a really compelling performer, on the basis of these records), I might have sped up the process a little. But in any case, I was thrilled to have the excuse when we decided to tackle these reissues, and I'm glad I did — at worst for me these are totally pleasant, and at best genuinely revelatory.  

I do agree at least to some extent on the general take here on Songs of Praise and the other material from around then; not all of it has dated super well, although the slightly more out there versions found on Churchical Chant of the Iyabinghi are among my favorite tracks here. It's interesting to see how their influence has made it through to some unexpected places; when I hit play on "Peace and Happiness" from that compilation, I might have believed me if you'd told me this was a TV on the Radio deep cut. Even with Songs of Praise, at least this version with the bonus tracks, has some unexpected range; finding something as solidly dubby as "Full Charge" a track down from the more traditionally arranged "Deer Spirit Song" is an interesting contrast.   

But I do also agree that Vision of a Psychedelic Africa is a more potent example of African Head Charge's whole thing, especially when they start doing that thing where they sequence songs and their dubs right next to each other ("Run Come See"/"Ran Come Saw", "Blessed Works"/"Work Blessed", and so on). What particularly intrigued me when I started looking into the band was the whole notion of "psychedelic" dub (even though I know my tastes in psychedelia are narrower than my tastes in dub) and a lot of this record and Voodoo of the Godsent pretty much nails what I was hoping for when I saw that genre tag. It's not that the earlier records are necessarily bad, just that something like In Pursuit of Shashamane Land's "No, Don't Follow Fashion" or "Pursuit" feels more like just dub (or maybe some sort of dub fusion thing). I'll still need to give these more listens to decide exactly how much I feel the need to keep around, but things are looking for the new records and Churchical Chant of the Iyabinghi at least.  

Jonathan Shaw: I'm not conversant with the band's evolution, so it's tough to track the changing currents and differing emphases when there's so much music to take in, and so much I'm hearing for the first time. But I think it's so good, so pleasurable and powerful. I really dig the big vocal gestures at the beginning of Songs of Praise. "Free Chant" sounds like a drum circle in the middle of a tent revival meeting. That devotional vibe gets amplified by the opening seconds of "Orderliness, Godliness, Discipline, and Dignity," though the flavor of those voices singing "He that followeth me..." scans a whole lot whiter to my ears. So, when the dubby stuff and the toasting abruptly cut in, the shift has an effect that's both jarring and comic. The rest of "Orderliness..." is just terrific: the squalling, rasping guitar noise, the zooming and glistening noises.  

Andrew Forell: Totally agree on the Echo Dek/Vanishing Point comparison (and as a sidebar - what Andrew Weatherall - RIP - did with Screamadelica for Primal Scream as another example as studio as instrument) as an example of both the dub production template and what Sherwood’s vision can bring to source material. I really like AHC’s music but the excitement for me is listening to what the collaborative process produces. Oddly, I was never really into reggae, but dub made a lot of sense to me. The emphasis on the bass and the space and particularly the fracturing of the original track was like listening to Charlie Parker or Coltrane break down a popular song, play with the melody, interpolate quotations from other songs, do something completely new and then bring it all back to the source, which took me a while to ‘get’ when I started really listening outside the punk/postpunk etc. guitar based realm, but which thrilled me just as much as when I first heard bands like The Pop Group & The Birthday Party who seemed to be deconstructing the classic rock I grew with on the AM radio.   

Ian Mathers:

Absolutely agree about favoring dub over reggae, I think mostly because of those studio-as-instrument reasons you give. When I do find a reggae record I like, I really  like it (I'm far from alone in saying this, but The Congos' Heart of the Congos  is one of the most transcendent records ever made), whereas any basically well-done dub I'm happy to throw on and listen to. To divert just a bit further before bringing it back to these albums specifically, I personally also found dub very comfortable when I first actually heard it because the use and style of bass specifically was familiar; I grew up listening to, among other things, an Ontarion indie band called King Cobb Steelie, whose  Junior Relaxer  was kind of a hybrid between lots of the echo-y guitar stuff I already loved and more dub-informed percussion and bass. I wouldn't say any of the tracks were full on dubs, but I still find a track like "Rational"  astonishing, and for me personally definitely a gateway.

I don't just mention that because Junior Relaxer is still a favorite of mine and I tell people about it whenever I can, though; to me it's another sign as these African Head Charge albums are of the near-infinite mutability and capability of dub. I wouldn't diminish it by saying it's just a production technique, it's more a particular mindset or way of approaching the elements of a track, which may be why I remember seeing the descriptor "dubwise" appended to lots of stuff that didn't strictly fit the criterion. Sherwood has always had a very dubwise sensibility, whether it's expressed here in as... classical(?) a sense as in Churchical Chant of the Iyabinghi's "Dervish Dub" or as radiantly offbeat as Vision of a Psychedelic Africa's "Dobbyn Joins the Head Charge" (both of which have been favorites for me as I keep listening to these). 

Shrunken Head by African Head Charge

Ben Donnelly: I generally don't get much from ambient styles of music, but dub works for me as both wallpaper and object d'art. That can make it a challenge to write about. I really appreciate Lee Scratch Perry's recent life-summary work with Sherwood, but I'm surprisingly tolerant of his work a decade ago with passable Euro-dub players, or his bizarre live-date configuration backed by American stoners. I'm almost suspicious of my own judgement as I ease into the haze of dub this satisfying.

This also makes it difficult to compare to other forms with Jamaican origins. Dub's development has happened independent of the subsequent flow of reggae. Contemporary roots reggae is as irritating as underwear made of hemp burlap. Dancehall is frequently genius and even more frequently tossed off filler. Folding dub back towards contemporary Jamaican music is an effort mostly made by outsiders - The Bug and Santigold with notable successes. And there's the increasingly strange legacy of dubstep as something with more DNA from to Nine Inch Nails than King Tubby.  

If I was going to narrow down AHC to one idea, it would be “Dervish Chant/Dervish Dub.” The found vocals syncopate almost telepathically with the big beat, and the conga drum rhythm line sounds human and electronic at the same time. The components are alien to 1970s reggae, yet the whole feels like a direct descendant.  

Mason Jones: Totally a side note, but I was so surprised to see King Cobb Steelie mentioned that I had to reply. Back when SubArachnoid Space was touring, we did a pass through Canada and played a couple of shows with those guys, right after Junior Relaxer came out. They were super-nice, incredibly stoned people, and I really enjoyed their shows. Playing that stuff live, complete with a Space Echo, was even better than the albums. They got the dub-rock-experimentation thing down really well.  

Bill Meyer: While the making of dub is studio-dependent, it was originally presented as public, social music. Aside from buying singles (which a lot of Jamaican music fans could not afford), people heard the music at drinking establishments that used sound systems to lure people in. They heard it played at enormous volume, so that it was felt as well as heard. Sound systems used exclusive material, including dubs, to bring people in. I'm not sure that it was considered to be separate from reggae; it was one of part the music.  

Ben Donnelly: Yeah, that's my understanding- in a way dub becomes its own genre as it becomes a separate pursuit in the UK. Once you get to the Sleng Teng riddim in the 1980s, anything without an electronic beat isn't danceable enough for the sound systems in the homeland, parallel to how house and techno displaced funk drumming in the same era. 

It is already half a decade old, but my favorite contemporary Jamaican take on dub I've heard is Aidonia's "Ganja Farmer", and the dub takes were mostly done overseas, as best as I can tell.

Big stars like Popcaan seem to start dabbling in dub once their reach is international, but not as they're competing for attention.   

That's part of what's interesting at looking at these African Head Charge records in retrospect. The form isn't there to slap you around — it risks dissipating in a cloud of smoke well-worn tropes. I don't know that I'd have picked Visions of a Psychedelic Africa out of a promo list when it was first released. It may well have come through Dusted channels without anyone thinking it was worth seizing upon.  

Ian Mathers: Mason, I'm super glad someone else can report that King Cobb Steelie were great - I didn't get to see them until they were playing shows for the album after Junior Relaxer (they were my first interview for the university newspaper, and super nice guys, as well as incredible live) but my experience was very much the same. They did a reunion show a little while back, don't think it came to any new music but that Space Echo was still going strong.  

The sound system thing is so fascinating to me, especially knowing it was novelty that was often a draw, and especially knowing that as a result the systems were often eager to get their hands on dubplates of pretty much anything that seemed like it'd be hot with the crowd — if my memory of the reading I've done is correct, that's where dub got its name, although given that what we now think of dub was far from the only type of production found on those dubplates that were being sneaked and smuggled around, I'm not sure why it stuck that way.  

As someone who tends to keep playing the same dub albums rather than keeping up with what the sound is (or isn't, I guess?) doing, I really appreciate some of the more recent context (that Aidonia is great), as well as the reminder that although the roots of the form were definitely Jamaican, a decent amount of the codification/plaudits/etc. come from overseas. It makes me wonder at what cross-pollination does occur — there's ambient dub techno, of course, a form I love but will happily admit is an acquired taste for many, but I also to what extent, say DJ Screw was thinking about dub when he started making Chopped & Screwed versions of songs. Different audiences (on different perception-altering substances, possibly), but it feels like there's a kinship there. 

Jonathan Shaw: Thanks for the context, Bill. I've certainly been playing AHC really, really loud.  

Ben's notion of the Dervish resonates. I've been listening to some noise projects (Herukrat, Koufar) that invoke Islamic devotional music and call-to-prayer as potent figures of resistance to Western modernity. It's spiritual music, and it's interested in summoning very heavy presences; not didactically political, but vibrating with an intensity that has a political register. I don't know a heck of a lot about Rastafarianism, but it seems a sort of liberation theology. I've responded to the AHC music that's most in tune with those impulses. "Healing Ceremony" on Songs of Praise feels that way to me: the blossoms of synth sound want to brighten the track, but the distended, fucked-up tone of the guitar solo renders that problematic. And those voices, wailing and electro-fried. The song may heal, but the wounds feel pretty livid.  

[afrobeatsindacity]

NEW EP: BLAQBONEZ - MR BOOMBASTIC

Having made waves in the Hip Hop underground scene, Blaqbonez has dropped a new EP named after his latest alter ego, Mr Boombastic.

Mr Boombastic is a seven-track project, sporting overt Reggae influence, which features a deviation from the hardcore rap style usually associated with Blaqbonez.

Blaq describes Boombastic as his ‘groovy’ alter-ego, and this is emphasized over the course of the project, with Boombastic’s penchant for up-tempo dance records, as well as his use of patois and fashion sense.

The project also features a number of interesting highpoints, including an attention-grabbing intro in “Run My Race”, fan favourite, “Shut Up”, a stellar feature from the infamously reclusive, Black Magic on “Magic”, as well as a superb verse from Falz on title track, “Boombastic”. Tracks like “Promo”, “God When” and “Come 4 U” also help round out what is overall a smooth and versatile project that is appropriate for a myriad of settings.

Mr Boombastic is everything you expect it to be and more, download and stream the EP Now!

Download/Stream Link: Blaqzbonez - Mr Boombastic

Follow @Blaqbonez on Instagram | Twitter