Search - Perfect :: Born Dead With Life

Not Quite Perfect. But I'm Not Complaining. . .

Achis | Kingston, JA/Philipsburg, SxM | 08/19/2008

(4 out of 5 stars)

"If you ever find yourself so fortunate as to take a trip or a holiday and come to Jamaica and you just happen to be a big fan of reggae music (particularly of the roots variety), then you may just want to pay special attention to St. Ann Parish. By far the most lovely and the largest of the fourteen parishes on the island (and BEST and MOST WONDERFUL and EVERYTHING GOODEST, more on that in a bit) the parish, which has traditionally been known as the `country' area of the island (although every time I go back I seem to notice more and more structures and buildings where there were previously no structures or buildings) also seems to have a truly divine characteristic which allows it to produce some of the greatest musical minds the island has ever seen. First and foremost, even before speaking musically, one has to mention St. Ann's as the birthplace of the Honourable Marcus Mosiah Garvey and were it to never have birthed another living creature of note, safe to say that solely on the strength of Garvey's achievements, notoriety and contributions to the Afrikan man and woman, St. Ann's could very well be considered hallowed ground. Now musically speaking, were Garvey to have an equal (and he doesn't) it would DEFINITELY be, of course, the Honourable Bob Marley. Perhaps the international face of Jamaica as a whole even more than a quarter century after his own death and the UNDISPUTED face of reggae music, Marley, too, was born in St. Ann's parish fifty-eight years after Garvey. The time during which Garvey's lifetime occurred withstanding, Marley is probably the most famous Jamaican born ANYTHING which has ever lived; musically speaking he is lauded and praised as the undeniable master and genius of reggae that he was and many foreigners who would subsequently come to sight up Rastafari DEFINITELY owe credit to Marley as he, even more so than The King himself, served as a virtual traveling `advertisement' for Rastafari, bringing the knowledge of it's beauty to the masses worldwide. And if that weren't enough (and it is), we also have the case of one the Honourable Mr. Winston Rodney, better known as Burning Spear. While eyes will perhaps never look as brightly on Burning Spear as a whole as they have either Garvey or Marley, one could make the case (and I would) that through his genius and his longevity (although he's still a relatively young man having just turned sixty) Rodney has done every bit for reggae music and for Jamaica as his more well known musical peer (I'm not comparing EITHER musicians to Garvey's incomparable impact). And of course, he too was born in St. Ann's parish, leaving mighty large shoes for newer musicians to fill from the best place on the island (and if you haven`t guessed by now, OF COURSE, I AM FROM ST. ANNZ TOO! So I`m VERY partial.).



Slowly but surely we have seen those artists and musicians are arriving and making their own imprint on today's musical and social scene in Jamaica and some of them have made a rather sizable impact as well. Oddly enough, one who has done the greatest bit of `damage' as there was a brief time, around the turn of the century, when he would have been one of the biggest names altogether on the dancehall scene. But of course, as is its history, the champions produced by St. Ann's are more directly related to the roots arena and one of the names who has definitely been pushing very high vibes and keeping his name swirling in reggae circles has been that of Greg Rose, better known as (Mr.) Perfect. The celebrated Bamboo native established his name and his vibes as one of the new AGGRESSIVE voices on the roots scene with BIG tunes such as Black Marcus, All I've Got, Amerimaka and of course, the divine Handcart Bwoy. Handcart Bwoy was MASSIVE and brought the reggae community's attention to an artist who is quite unusual, which is something that I think has led to his popularity. Perfect's style is MAD and his volcanic personality comes through on just about every tune you can find from the chanter. Besides creating a big following for himself locally, Perfect has also attracted the attention of international eyes as well, which has not only led to a solid schedule on the ever rotating European touring schedules, but also (and most importantly for the sake of this review) album releases. Technically speaking, including this release, Perfect has had four albums to date; the first being an album which I believe was strictly a local release by the name of Rasta Rebel; it would subsequently reach international shores and be re-titled and re-packaged (with a slightly different lineup) under the title Giddimani (so named after his signature call) by European based AHF Records in 2006; the album was re-released yet again by Tad's International the following year for the West. That one album in all of its life forms was OUTSTANDING! A wonderful collection of singles which had previously been unavailable on CD and a very nice introduction to Perfect. Now, apparently set on outdoing himself, Perfect, in his typically eccentric fashion, has once again linked a European label, this time Irievibrations (who, at least to my knowledge and oddly enough, produced the tune Rasta Rebel) from out of Austria, for his latest peace, Born Dead With Life. Based on publicity alone, I have to give credit where its due, Irievibrations has done a FINE job of promoting the album, apparently all over the reggae loving world; to the point where quietly Born Dead With Life has definitely become one of the most anticipated releases of the year. The label (I THINK) even went so far as to release a STACKED mixtape/EP/ALBUM in preview of the coming album and if you peruse the reggae websites you'll literally see it covered EVERYWHERE! The results don't exactly bring forth the coming of the next Exodus album, but the album is VERY solid and downright SPECIAL for a variety of reasons.



Hailed as a `concept album' Born Dead With Life is an EXPERIENCE indeed more so than your average release. The first thing you'll notice is DEFINITELY the BEAUTIFUL cover (which is always nice, showing someone spent some money) depicting the Bobo with a baby (life) and a skeleton (dead) surrounded by famous people and moments throughout the Afrikan Diaspora and the actual music here never strays far from supporting the idea of the cover. Born Dead With Life begins with a rather unusual `long intro' style tune Greg Rose. The tune is a full minute shorter than any of the others (with the exception of the one traditional interlude) and essentially Perfect introduces the listener to himself, Greg Rose. It also sheds a bit of light onto his eccentric ways (I would bet the tune is a COMPLETE freestyle) over a simple and basic backing. Its HARMLESS. Musically speaking things come in on the second track, the WONDERFUL This City. If you happen to be a person of Afrikan descent (as I am) you will absolutely LOVE This City as Perfect perfectly paints a picture depicting the literal physical accomplishments of the Afrikan! It really strikes a chord with you and makes you feel so proud as he details that `this city', so many popular and well known across the world were literally BUILT from the ground up by Afrikan men and women. BIG BIG TUNE and one of the album's finest overall definitely. Next up is perhaps an even stronger tune and definitely one which carries an even deeper message, Hanging Day. Hanging Day is a tune which goes, even further than This City in developing the central concept of this `concept album': Slavery. Even further developing on the opener and even the cover as well Hanging Day tells about the hideous and atrocious situations our ancestors had to endure and the severely stressed and capped situations we as a people have arisen from. The tune is one which takes you on a gambit of emotions in its four minutes time and you REALLY need to vibe tit several times to really get the vibe and the messages. Big tune and excellent way to begin the album.



In going even furthering on that idea exploring the concept of slavery, Born Dead With Life reaches its peak on a tune which is the one which has received a great deal of attention prior to its release, the OUTSTANDING 30 Pieces over the World Cry riddim. The tune has been playing for awhile on local stations actually and from the very first time I heard it I IMMEDIATELY placed it near the top of tunes I had heard from Perfect alongside tunes such as Handcart Bwoy and Talk Black Marcus as he essentially explores the idea of literal reparations and being compensated for the hardships endured for so long as not fulfilling enough, because ultimately they cannot undue what has been done. MASSIVE! You need to hear this tune! Definitely the TRUE highlight of the album. If 30 Pieces is the literal highlight of the album (and it is) then definitely the tune here which will attract the most attention strictly based on how it appears on paper is the BIG combination Da Rendition, which features Perfect alongside Gyptian & Turbulence. To be `perfectly' honest: I do not like the tune. It could have been so much more but its on somewhat of an R&B vibes. Perfect, Gyptian and Turbulence on a basic one-drop (ANY ONE-DROP!) is potentially magic but, Irievibrations takes it in a different route. Its not a BAD tune and definitely the message is well heavy, as expected, but the tune could have just been so much more impressive, exceeding possibly 30 Pieces even. It also doesn't exceed the other high-profile combination here, Journey, which features Perfect alongside another current big time artist from out of St. Ann's, the Martian voiced Chezidek. The two are actually good friends and it shows on the tune as they have excellent chemistry making for one of the album's finest efforts altogether. (Again, I'm partial) I LOVE the song which details where we as a people have been and come from and where we're going on just a very heavy vibes over Irievibrations' recent VERY NICE Hit Drop riddim (check Natural Black's tune over the same riddim as well, World in Trouble, big tune). Another big tune here receiving quite a bit of attention (including a video) is the old school style and perfectly vibed Rasta Dubplate. This tune really took awhile to grow on me (I think because I never gave it a proper chance for quite a bit), but not its gorgeous and downright hypnotic, well well big tune and definitely ORIGINAL! Check the wonderfully LUSH and very fitting Catch a Fire later on the album as well. Catch a Fire (not a remake of Marley's classic) is a tune warning the wicked that the fire is definitely waiting if they remain in their oppressive ways. I also have to mention the stirring acoustic piece Unforgivable which, again, comes back to the slavery theme, this time (somewhat reminiscent of 30 Pieces) pushes a message that regardless of which efforts are made to pay atonement, the actions of the oppressors are completely unforgettable, just as they themselves are unforgivable. POWERFUL TUNE. As the album winds down Perfect keeps the listeners on our toes. Check WTC 9/11, a recounting of the terrorist acts as well as many other heinous acts. This tune REALLY picks up through adding nice elements throughout (including very nice backing singers) and definitely grew on me after awhile. The album ends with the title track which is far and away the WORST tune on the album! Its just a heavy acoustic tune which never really picks up and honestly sounds somewhat sappy after awhile, although I can still see clearly why it became the title track here (it is a WONDERFUL album title), definitely don't waste too many times through Born Dead With Life the album with Born Dead With Life the song.



Overall, if Irievibrations' promotions got to you (like it did to me) and you're currently expecting with Born Dead With Life one of the best albums EVER, then you're probably in for a bit of a disappointment with the results. No, its not one of those type of albums. However, what it is, is easily one of the most all-around solid albums that have reached in all of 2008 altogether so far. If you missed Giddimani (and you might have), Born Dead With Life is also a pretty nice way to introduce yourself to Perfect as well (however, in that case, I would probably recommend Giddimani even more as it is, essentially, an early greatest hits album from the artist). However, for you older and far more familiar fans, Born Dead With Life with its HEAVY messages throughout and very nice musicianship by Irievibrations' & co. as well, this one will be near GOLD for you. And for me personally, always love to see more and more artists from home taking their vibes to the next level and Born Dead With Life is another wonderful step for the best parish on the best island in the world.

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