NEWS
EVENTS
Reggae Roast Jamdown Review
Wednesday 21st November 2012 | Tiffany
“This is like a fever, and if you ever catch the Reggae Fever – there is no known antidote” – David Rodigan, 10/11/12
As a lover of Reggae music, and a certified member of the David-Rodigan fan/stalker-club, the Reggae Roast Jamdown that took place on the 10th November at Plan B, was an absolute treat. I wasn’t even remotely deterred by the possibility of a horrendously long night-bus journey on the way back (the journey from one side of London to the other on public transport after 12am is NOT time-efficient), because this event was looking to be too good. And oh boy, did it deliver...
The Reggae Roast team are tearing up the scene not just in the UK, but internationally. They have performed at some of the biggest and bestest festivals (Glastonbury, Outlook, Bestival, Big Chill & more...), stormed some of the most iconic club scenes (like Fabric), hosted countless sell-out events, and have hosted some legendary line-ups, which have included the likes of the Channel One Soundsystem, Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry, Gappy Ranks and many others. What’s more, there is also the extremely successful record company, Reggae Roast Records, which has jungle and dub artists and releases (as well as Reggae artists and releases, of course) on its impressive roster.
So you can see what kind of night I was in for, and that my musical senses were to be titillated to the extreme. I wasn’t the only one who had been waiting for Reggae Roast to return to London. Full use was made of both rooms in Plan B – the Room 2 on the basement floor was occupied by Unit 137 Soundsystem, whilst the main floor-Room 1 had a line-up that consisted of Vibration Lab, Reggae Roast feat. Ramon Judah and Clappah, Ram Jam Rodigan, Shepdog, Alpha Steppa and Adam Prescott. I managed to arrive in time to hear the end of Vibration Lab’s set. From the minute that I stepped in the venue, absolutely everyone was dancing and totally feeling the vibe; the crowd was friendly and chilled out – this was a non-pretentious and welcoming event. The bass systems were, suitably, huge,adding to the electric atmosphere – you could literally feel the bass going through you! The two rooms kept things nice and varied as in my opinion, they had slightly different atmospheres: Room 1 had a lighter atmosphere, whilst the Reggae of Room 2 was slightly-more up-tempo, with an extra sprinkling of ‘dub’.
That night, I was completely schooled in Reggae music – there was so much going on, and each one of the DJs and performers introduced me to a range of records that I had never heard before. With the tunes and the Wray & Nephew’s cocktails flowing, I can say that this was a better lesson than I’d ever had in my 20 odd years of education! Shepdog and Reggae Roast’s James were great - the perfect sequel and prequel to Rodigan, they made a perfect Ram Jam-sandwich.
By the time of Rodigan’s set, the crowd were well amped-up to party with the music-Guru himself. Perfectly positioned right at the front, I had an absolutely sick time dancing away to decades of reggae history, that featured many greats including Desmond Dekker, Prince Buster, Busy Signal, Dennis Brown and many more. We were also treated to Reggae from Brazil and from our own old blighty! Rodigan really showed us everyone an amazing time, and not only was his brilliant set testament to his untouchable musical knowledge, but the amount of personalised hooks he had – sung by Reggae legends themselves – I mean seriously? Legend. My favourite homages to Rodigan were parts of Busy Signal’s ‘Wicked Man’ , YT’s ‘England Story’ and Damian Marley’s ‘Welcome to Jamrock’. Rodigan kept us hooked by infusing other musical genres – we were treated to Damian Marley’s remix of Dub Phizix’s ‘Marka’, which went straight into TNGHT’s ‘Higher Ground’ and then a dub-remix of ‘Niggas in Paris’...absolute heaven. Did I mention that I also got a personal shout out at the start of the set?
Rodigan ended as he had begun, on a sweet, sweet reggae note that made an easy transition into Shepdog’s set. I once again started to keep moving between both Room 1 and Room 2 and danced the night away, fuelled by Wray & Nephews. Not often is it that I’ll stay at an event until the soundsystems are switched off, the lights and on, and the bouncers are begging you to leave, cause for some reason you’re still hanging around – but that night was one of those. My first Reggae Roast surely won’t be my last, and I’d 100% advise everyone to be part of the Reggae Roast experience! Somebody say PULLLL UPPPP!!!!!
For more information about Reggae Roast, visit,
Website: http://www.reggaeroast.co.uk/
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/reggaeroast
Check out the video of the amazing night, here!
by Tiffany Wilson
