With December here, Ban Ban Ton Ton is looking back on the musical year. Since Japanese superstition holds 7 as her luckiest number, we’re gonna try to keep each selection tight to this total, in the hope that our conjuring of 7 X 7 X 7 X … will collectively manifest some magic for 2025. You may witness some attempts to creatively bend the rules, blur / invent genres and rinse formats, in order to squeeze in as many great releases as possible…
7 SINGLES
Coyote / Living In Heaven
Timm and Ampo channel The Orb’s Towers Of Dub on this most excellent 8 minute epic.
David Harrow & Little Annie / End Of Times (Rude Audio Dub)
Two old friends, both On-U Sound alumni, reunite with a dose of socially conscious dancefloor dub poetry. The Rude Audio remixes in particular were dynamite.
Galliano regrouped for a new album, promo’d by this very special 7. Revisiting their big ’90s Balearic hit Skunk Funk, referencing Andrew Weatherall and The Clash, while defiantly countering the cries of racist, rioting bullies and rightwing political grifters.
“I don’t want to take my county back, man. I want to take my country forward.”
Fuck me, yes!
Alex Kassian / A Reference To E2 E4 By Manuel Gottsching (Mad Professor Dub)
Huge tune from the Test Pressing crew – my money’s on this topping tons of end-of-year lists. Mr Kassian’s update of Manuel Gottsching’s electronic music landmark was smart, super respectful and one of those tracks that could slot into both a “chillout” or banging set. Mad Professor’s dub though was off the charts. You could shake a leg or just stop, stand still, and get lost in it. The old OCD me would have bought two copies.
Tom at Dubwise Vinyl tipped me to this (as he has to so many other delay-drenched winners). This was the first I’d heard of the Toronto-based label, but since then I’ve picked up everything they’ve done (do yourself favour and check out the brand new T3AL remixes). Mantra, however, maybe my favourite – for an old lag it’s a fantastic flashback to the mid-80s post-punk experiments of ACR and Jah Wobble.
Hugo Nicolson & David Harrow / Revolvalution (Rude Audio & Dan Wainwright Mixes)
More from David Harrow and Rude Audio, this time also hooked up with Andrew Weatherall’s former studio partner, the rather unsung sonic hero, Hugo Nicolson. The results are spilt between breakneck rave and 2 outstanding dub symphonies.
Taikokissie & Dub Passengers / Tepid Sunshine
This was another example of Dubwise Vinyl convincing me to take a second listen. Toward the end of last year, personally, I was revisiting a lot of post-rock, and the sounds on this E.P. fit in perfectly. When I contacted Taikokissie he confirmed that acts like H.I.M., The Dylan Group, and Isotope 217 were big influences.
7 REMIXES / REISSUES
Apiento / Orange Place (Castro’s Dub)
Sound Metaphors reissued Apiento’s novo new beat classic, and Castro from the crew took the opportunity to deliver a thumping dub deconstruction.
Corker Conboy / In Light Of That Learnt Later (Purelink Mix)
This was the first in a promised trilogy of 12s from Adrian Corker and Paul Conboy, that will revisit and rework their 2003 post-rock long-player, The Light That Learnt Later. Chicago’s Purelink collaged elements from the whole LP into a beatific beatless bass river.
Jura Soundsystem / Udaberri Blues (Tapes Mix)
Isle of Jura pulled in some big names for a “Remix Special”… Good Block, Quiet Village and Tapes. Everything on this E.P. is brilliant, but the latter’s take on Udaberri Blues sees him strut uncharacteristically onto the dancefloor with a rattling uptempo nyabinghi nugget.
Jason Boardman’s boss Manchester-based label Before I Die dipped into the archives of Television Personalities-associated ’80s post-punkers, Khartomb. While the original tracks were already pretty dubby, Jason also commissioned a couple of wicked remixes from local luminaries, Synkro and Talking Drums.
I hate to admit it, but I sold my copy of LS Diezel’s 1993 E.P. Get Your Spear Out – which contains the cracking mutant Cuss Cuss cut Skunk Funk – before moving to Japan, so this Mysticisms’ reissue was very, very welcome.
Jim Coles, one of the few folks that I interviewed for Ban Ban Ton Ton this year, locks Mr. Fingers’ house anthem in his Acid Dub Studies echo chamber.*
*We also did something separate for Electronic Sound.
Traams / J Glass Dubs
Space rock trio Traams had tracks from their 2022 album Personal Best, reworked by leftfield dub dons J Glass Dubs and Elijah Minnelli. Both sets were smashing, but JGD’s ethereal “glacial dancehall” ambient makeovers are a sublime, euphoric sonic wash.
7 ALBUMS
Renaissance man Justin Robertson continued his world building, tying his paintings and novels into an album of “avant” dub. A melting pot of influences – in my review I named checked Steve Beresford, Public Image, Psychic TV, This Heat and David Tibet – everything is held together by bass.
Something again from Jason Boardman’s Before I Die, Broken Beauty found Martin “Brew” Fisher aka J Walk, eschewing his usual library-influenced instrumental funk perfection for experiments with echo and toy instruments, while tapping into Manchester’s rich post-punk roots.
Klangkollektor / Dub Tapes Volume 1
Even more marvellous music care of Before I Die, this time it’s treasure from the hard drive of Nuremberg-based drummer Lars Fischer. There are 7 pieces on the album but tonally they are the same, so play like one long journey. All are pretty peaceful percolations with their admittedly far removed roots in dub techno. It’s there in the use of reverb, delay and the odd flash of high pass filter, in the sense of space, but rather than raving, serene elegantly echoed keys instead encourage a smoke, a single malt snifter and introspection. There are beats and live, groovy bass lines, but they are largely unobtrusive. One exception being the hypnotic, electronic motorik of Baund. Midnight Express, too, is a little pace-ier. A sorta samba, with bigger, more dramatic piano.
Love Wonderland / The Best Twilights Of
A compilation of demos from Japanese band Love Wonderland who describe themselves as “lovers rock from the other side.” Taking reggae as their foundation they then mix in shoegaze and Eric Satie.
Elijah Minnelli / Perpetual Musket
The musical director of the mysterious Breadminster Community covered a quartet of folk songs in his own unique style. I heard their subject matter as a veiled political message, but I could be wrong. I love the Little Roy track – Vine & Fig Tree – and the versions are predictably strong.
Richard Norris / Oracle Sound Volume 2
Richard Norris’ reggae-influenced project, Oracle Sound, released 2 new volumes in 2024. The first featured funkier tracks. Things like Glory Version and Stronger Together were more Balearic than before.
Richard Norris / Oracle Sound Volume 3
The third volume was perhaps deeper, displaying heavier trance and dub techno textures. The digital bonus, More Fever Dub, is divine.
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