Since leaving the underrated
Skadanks
in the late 1990s and striking out on his own,
Rocker-T
has worked with the strictly roots
Version City
crew and with the more
dancehall
-oriented
Stand Out Selector
at the
Positive Sound Massive
label. His latest solo effort splits the difference between those genres, offering some tracks that swing out in a joyful roots-and-culture style (
"Hold On Strong"
) and others that jitter and jump to computer-driven rhythms (
"I'm Gonna,"
"Youth Pan Street"
), along with a few that flirt with
hip-hop
/
fusion (note in particular the slamming
"Could Have Been Gone"
and a spectacular remix of the title track).
"Babylon Need Luv"
is a very fine singer/DJ combination track on which the up-and-coming singer
Jus Goodie
takes turns with
in riding a high-energy steppers rhythm. A couple of tracks, notably the so-so
"Jah Is Amazing"
and the downright tedious
"Who Will Be My Guide,"
fail to hold up the high standard set by the rest of the album, but those are just about the only missteps. Recommended. ~ Rick Anderson