Solomon Jabby's brand of roots reggae & dub has the look, feel, and sound of a lost reel to reel recording that was uncovered in the back storage room of a grungy Kingston studio, only to find out later that it was just recorded last month and is completely new and original. With 3 dub albums and 1 vocal album to his credit, Jabby is quickly establishing himself as an international reggae artist with a knack for recapturing the traditional roots reggae sound while updating it with an originality and passion that gives his music a timeless appeal. With a deeply spritual message and an array of hard hitting riddims, Jabby is forcing the reggae community to lend an ear to his rootical creations by displaying razor sharp dub skills at the mixing board and a heavy drum and bass style that cannot be ignored.
"I've always been drawn to the studio sound of 70's era recordings. In my youth I listened to bands like War, Curtis Mayfield & Earth, Wind, & Fire. Bob Marley was largely influenced by War and Curtist Mayfield so there was a natural connection in production styles when I started to get into reggae. 'Rockers Meets King Tubbys inna Firehouse' was the first dub album I heard. I must have been about 16. That album made a lasting impression on me and was the defining moment that inspired me to start listening to dub and later start experiementing with my own dubs on a 4 track."
Jabby's musical experience started at age 9 when he got his first drumset but he wasn't content staying with one instrument. He learned to play trumpet and saxophone in middle school and in his teens he picked up guitar, bass, and keys. He was a Jazz major in college for a while performing with a jazz band as a drummer but dropped out of the program after a year. Soon after he began to write and record his own reggae rhythms and started experimenting with dub mixing in his college apartment. "I was never really good at playing any one particular instrument but at the same time, I was relentlessly drawn to all kinds of intruments. If it made a noise I would sit around the house and play around with it. I guess I just didn't have the discipline to stick with one thing. However I think having a broad knowledge of different types of instruments and how they worked, helped me as a producer to understand how everything fits together."
Jabby writes, records, and produces all his own music in his backyard studio which he dubbed "The Altarsound." The name is a play on words. "Altar" (a place on which sacrifices are offered -Solomon sees his music as an offering to Yeshua the Messiah), and "alter," (to make different without changing into something else... as in a dub or a remix).
"I believe good reggae must take a stand. It needs to have a deep spiritual element to it, a righteous cause, a bold statement, a bigger purpose other than just a good "riddim". Being a believer in Jesus the Messiah I naturally incorporated my personal beliefs into my art however I don't really want to be considered just a "Christian" artist for a Christian audience. I believe the message in my music is relevant to all people, all tribes, all tongues because that's who the Messiah came to reach out to. Messiah didn't come for the "religious", He came to offer hope and salvation to all people."
Jabby's influences range from King Tubby, Lee Perry, Scientist, Prince Jammy, Lee Perry to Michael Prophet, The Wailing Souls, The Gladiators, Agustus Pablo, Junjo Lawes, Dennis Brown, the Roots Radics, and many others. "I've studied these guys every move. They were my professors. I listened to every instrument, how it was played, recorded and mixed. Then when it came time to write I just let whatever came out to come naturally. That's something one of my drum teachers (Mike Vosbein) used to tell me about studying drummers. He used to tell me to study the masters, then put it away and put my own spin on it. So I've kind of applied that philosophy to writing songs."
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