Mystical Truth Dub

by Victor W. ValdiviaDespite its title, Mystical Truth Dub isn't completely a dub album. Several songs, including a cover of War's "Slippin' Into Darkness," are complete with vocal tracks. The bulk of the album, though, consists of dub versions of songs from Mystical Truth, and sometimes these are complete, radical reworkings of the originals. Stripped of all but a handful of vocals, "Dreadlock Pall Bearers" becomes a dark, ominous dirge, while "Young School Girl" becomes a lolling, hypnotic groove. The band's cover of Peter Gabriel's "Mercy Street" is superb, with just the right mixture of atmospherics and grooves. Unfortunately, few of the album's tracks are as compelling. "One Love" and "Pay Day" are both too padded with goopy synthesizers and lyrics that border on treacle to really work. Too many others are lacking in the drama and tension that make dub truly gripping, and instead come off as little more than pleasant background music. For a true introduction to how magnetic Black Uhuru's dub work can be, The Dub Factor would be a far wiser choice.