Album Notes

Horace Andy & Alpha
Two Phazed People
Don’t Touch Recordings

To start, this is the album I have been waiting for since I heard Horace Andy on Massive Attack’s Protection album. Heavy dub bass pounding along with jumped-up beats and sci-fi electronics sparkling through the speakers would be more than enough for a dub-head like me but add in the always outstanding vocal contribution from Horace Andy and my day-month-really year has been made.

The production is stellar with layered beats, funky grooves, and a confidence that matches the expectations associated with Horace Andy. This is future dub and makes no concessions or sacrifices in its focus. One refreshing element of Two Phased People is how Alpha places Horace’s vocals front and center with little to no effects on it. Horace’s voice is a distinct instrument that needs no studio-trickery to mesmerize the ear. So to hear it immaculately-recorded and presented front-and-center is a top priority on my checklist of satisfied listening.

The second surprising element is that the songs “backing” track music is allowed to breathe and showcase how important the “riddems” are in dub and reggae. Track 2 clocks in over eight minutes as it builds itself into a dub meditation. Alpha’s production and composition skills have always been under-rated and criminally ignored in the realm of downtempo. So to hear them fleshed out and allowed moments to step to the forefront is a welcome addition. One of my main complaints about dub vocal collaborations are that the songs are hurried along and shortened to end right when the vocals finish and never gives the listener time to just take a breath and understand the groove and relish the dub delay.

Alpha’s signature sound is all over this production but they have understood that this is a collaboration and not their own album. This fact makes for an exciting proposition as we get to hear Alpha producing in an expanded way and Horace singing with a freedom to use his strength of strong melodies and still remain classic dub. Track’s 4 and 6 are the most “traditional” dub tracks and are so strongly written both lyrically and musically that reggae fans would want to shake their dreads to it.

Dare I say it but this album satisfies my need for another Massive Attack album. Not to say that Alpha are trying to recreate Massive Attack’s sound. Two Phased People just fulfills my need for forward-thinking dub that doesn’t rely on the past but strives to move dub into the future. Track 7 is a perfect example of this that fits in perfectly with the dub/electronica/dubstep coming out of Europe.

So this album could have been an easy one to relax and let Horace’s name sell the production. But never fear, Alpha sounds like they have something to prove (and they do prove it) and have produced an unexpectedly-upbeat album that emphasized electronics far more than any of their own releases. The music is mind-blowing, especially on Storm, Track 2 and Track 3 as an opening sequence that makes you smile, groove and haze out for nearly an hour to the dramatic ending of Track 11 that finishes the affair in an emotional flourish with swelling strings and crashing drums.

And finally, my favorite part of the record is the fact that you can hear and feel the amount of work that drove the making of Two Phased People an artistic statement. And in true dub soundsystem clash ethic, now the bar has been set high and creates expectations for future releases to match this effort by Alpha and Horace Andy.

Dedric Moore
Properly Chilled Magazine