Reggae superstar Mykal Rose, original voice of the Grammy Award-winning Jamaican group Black Uhuru, steps into the future with Lee “Scratch” Perry‘s former band, NYC dub specialists Subatomic Sound System and London lover’s rock queen Hollie Cook on the brand new song “Put Down The Gun” which serves as the second single from the trio’s upcoming collaborative full-length album, Rockin’ Like a Champion slated for release July 26 via joint venture between Dubshot Records and Controlled Substance Sound Labs. “Put Down The Gun” is out now on all digital platforms.
With everything going on, people need to understand that they can come together. Forget the gun. We tell them to put it down, but they think they can’t live without the gun.” says Rose.
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Addressing a topic on everyone’s mind right now, the real message of the song is about the joy we can share in the celebration of life when people put down the gun, told as a story that begins with a single gun shot:
In the beginning, it was the sound of a gun
One gun shot and people started to run!
Musically, “Put Down the Gun” has the reckless energy of a pressure valve blowing open — a catharsis reminiscent of the intersection of reggae and punk that in the 1970s and 80s grew from a collective frustration with the state of the world. Mykal’s work with Black Uhuru always carried an element of social commentary over the hard charging steppers beats innovated by Sly & Robbie, and with Hollie’s past in The Slits, and Emch from Subatomic originally finding dub through the punk band Bad Brains, that energy makes itself known in this song, anchored by a driving kick drum and steady pulsing bass emphasized with blasts of horns and filtered guitar and keys swirling around in a Black Ark studio dub style, all subtly interwoven throughout with an orchestra of percussion.
Reflecting on the role music plays in shaping people’s mindsets, Emch says As musicians, the concept of unity and bringing people together in peace are the seeds we sow. There are many times we have found ourselves performing for or with people who, in the past or even under different circumstances, could have been pointing guns at us or at each other, but instead, through the universal language of music, we found ourselves celebrating life together. It is partly the message in the lyrics and partly the vibration of the music. This song itself exists as a testament to unity, with the members of this collaboration crossing generations, cultures, nations, and different histories.”
About the collaboration:
“I always want to do my ting different,” says the prolific Rose. “With Black Uhuru and with Sly & Robbie we try to reach beyond reggae, draw everything in to create a universal music. The first song me ever record was with Scratch (Lee Perry) at Black Ark when I was just a teenager. Scratch different for sure! And I see the work Scratch do with Subatomic different too, same way for this generation, reaching beyond.”
Born of time-tested relationships that date back decades, the “Put Down the Gun” single and forthcoming full-length album Rockin’ Like a Champion, are the results of a slowly evolving history where three distinct artists, each with their own unique background, converge in a meaningful intersection of generations, styles, and cultures: artists from Kingston, NYC, and London, each with a story that has led them to create an album and also perform together as a band. Summer tour plans are in the works, with more dates to be announced soon.
Hollie Cook was first introduced to Emch in 2010 through mutual friend Ari Up from the pioneering 70s all female punk band The Slits, with whom Cook had joined in their final incarnation before Ari Up’s death in 2010. Subatomic and The Slits had been collaborating on several tunes with Lee “Scratch” Perry and dub mixing for The Slits at the time. Emch and Cook kept the connection through the years until the multi-talented producer eventually recruited the singer to add her lilting vocals as a counterweight to Mykal’s powerful delivery — which has earned him the nickname “Ruff” Rose — on the current project.
“I feel honored to be in any collaboration with Mykal Rose,” gushed Cook. “I really appreciate Emch’s vision of how I fit into this new project. Doing background and harmony is my favorite! I’m so thankful to be doing it in this context with these people. I always vibed on vocal harmonies,” of which, she cites Motown, especially The Temptations, The Supremes, but also The Beach Boys, The Shirelles, Shangrilas, and The Marvellettes as the most influential. “I was into punk, but I never saw myself as a singer in that style. If it wasn’t for me joining The Slits to sing harmony and the connection they made between punk and reggae back in the 70s, I may not have ended up singing reggae at all.“
