Bovell Out Of Control

Dennis Bovell's legendary work with The Slits, The Pop Group, and Linton Kwesi Johnson (as well as the dub LPs he recorded under the Blackbeard name) are probably what endeared him to younger generations of rock musicians. Bovell has been an unlikely collaborator for Arcade Fire, Joss Stone, Jarvis Cocker, Boy George, and The Beta Band's Steve Mason (the Mason/Bovell album Ghosts Outside is highly recommended, and Dennis recently said that he "loved making this album".)

He's worked with young punks like Argentina's Las Kellies, Sacramento band Drug Apartments. and British newcomer(s) Rat. For last year's Record Store Day, Bovell dubbed the b-side of a new Spoon single, "Wild". This year he remixed "The Smoke" for The Smile (Thom Yorke, Jonny Greenwood, and Tom Skinner).

The Pop Group's second reunion record, Honeymoon On Mars (2018), was mostly produced by Bovell (three tracks were produced by Hank Shocklee of The Bomb Squad). For the 40th anniversary of The Pop Group's 1979 debut album, Bovell remixed Y (later released as Alien Blood), and last year we were treated to Y In Dub, a new deconstruction of the original tracks.

Bovell also worked with On-U Sound again on music featuring Lee Scratch Perry (2010) and Coldcut (2017). He and Adrian Sherwood each contributed dubs to the Gaudi album 100 Years Of Theremin. The On-U related label Pressure Sounds has released two collections of Bovell's dubs, Decibel and Mek It Run. A new 2LP compilation called Dennis Bovell: Dubmaster arrived last month from Trojan Records.

I compiled some of the Dubmaster's adventures in the 21st Century for today's set, Bovell Out Of Control. Don't miss Dennis' own Bandcamp page, which features a wealth of his music, both new and old.