Elevation by Ziggi Recado!

"Elevation" by Ziggi Recado [Oneness Records]

Let's talk about Ziggi Recado for a little while today. I used to consider myself a pretty big fan of the Statian born dynamo. I reviewed a number of his albums and even deemed one, "In Transit", to be a modern classic. I go back in my head now and I'm thinking of crazy records that Ziggi did that are still stuck in my head to this day like 'Need To Tell You This' ["GIRL I NEED TO REALLY TELL YOU THIS!"], 'Cry Murdah' ["SOMEBODY GET GUNNED DOWN IN THE STREET LAST NIGHT!"], 'Mary' ["ME AND HER CONNECT INNA PASSIONATE WAY!"], 'New Day', 'Masquerade', 'I'm Blaak', 'Guide Ova', 'All Obstacles', 'So Much Reasons'... I'm literally going through his albums and recalling just how much fun these songs were and how they went so far in making a fan out of me and this is going back... maybe fifteen, TWENTY years at this point. He started out making more Dancehall/Hip-Hop geared material and, as he matured, Ziggi would become a damn powerhouse of modern Roots to the point where he grabbed the attention of the mighty Zion I Kings, who produced a fantastic album with him by the name of "Therapeutic", a dozen years ago now. 

Somewhere along the line, however, I kind of lost touch with Ziggi's music. He'd made a few singles that I didn't particularly enjoy (which is nothing. You won't like EVERYTHING anyone is making; that's normal) and... I don't know what happened really. Maybe he was a little inactive (maybe not) or maybe I just wasn't doing a good enough of a job in paying attention but Ziggi was making music and I wasn't completely noticing and that's a problem. 

Here's a problem solver. On the third day of the second half of 2026, one of my favourite labels in the entire world, the brilliant Oneness Records from out of Germany has just released a brand new, seven-track EP from Ziggi Recado by the name of "Elevation". Ziggi had been dropping singles for the label earier this year and you figured a full project of some type was forthcoming and here it be! You already know what's going on here but let's take a look at it anyway, mini-review style. 

I'm sitting here thinking what my response would have been, years ago, had you told me that Ziggi was working with Oneness. That would have made my day.... my year, even. That is HUGE news around here even on a single but I get seven of them? THANK YOU! The first is the sublime 'Wheels Keep Turning', featuring the highly interesting Rik Jam with whom I have a bit of indirect history. Rik Jam had an album come out last year by the name of "The Genesis" that I kept meaning to get around to digging into and possibly reviewing but I never did. I've still not written the review for it (thinking about doing it now though, actually) but I have heard quite a bit of "The Genesis" andddddddddd.... it's kinda spectacular. So I was curious as to how Jam might beautify "Elevation" and he does so with an appearance on one its strongest efforts. 'Wheels Keep Turning' is a damn DIAMOND of a tune saying that judgment, whatever it may be, is coming and there's nothing that can be done stop it. Excellent start! Next we have a well recognizable 'Boom Meditation'. I've THOROUGHLY enjoyed this song from the first time that I heard it... but it may be even finer than I was giving it credit for. First of all, the riddim is GORGEOUS; that is next level infectiousness and musical intoxication. Furthermore, am I going too far in declaring it to be, PERHAPS, one of the finest vocal performances of Ziggi's career?? Forgive me for being blasphemous but some of what he does here almost sounds.... Cure-ish?? I'm hesitant to compare anyone to what is probably the single greatest voice ever given to a human being, EVER, but respect goes to where it is due and it is DUE all over 'Boom Meditation'. Oh, and the song is really good too if I haven't said that exactly just yet. 

Remember when I talked about losing touch with Ziggi's music earlier. Well, one of the tunes I fucked up and missed out on was called 'Don't Stay Far'. I'm 99.9% sure I've never heard this song from a couple of years ago at all. Like never! I'm going to call 'better late than never' and give credit to Oneness for bringing it to my attentions here because this thing is CANDY for your ears. What a sweet love-ish kind of tune this is. 'When She Loves' is somewhat similarly themed as 'Don't Stay Far' and not trailing too far behind. This is an older tune that I actually had come across at some point and I remember, largely, on the strength of that RIDICULOUS riddim. That thing is... in the stars somewhere, seriously. The song also has a nice and fairly unique message to it as well and is just solid, all the way around. 

I heard a bit of 'One Step Forward' and didn't get very far into it at all before I knew that I was hearing something special and it hasn't moved at all. This is THE best song altogether on 'Elevation' and I'll leave it at that. It is absolutely fantastic. 'Nice Ting' is the obligatory ganja tune here and it, fittingly, is a slow-burner. You may enjoy this song the first time you hear it -- you probably will -- but the.... fifth or sixth time you go through it should be even better. What changes (at least what changed for me) is the fact that this very subtle but damn lovely melody begins to develop more and more as you listen to it. The chorus, in particular, the first time I heard it, I thought it to be impressive but now.... it'd damn near special and very catchy. Finally, wrapping up "Elevation" is another tune from a few years back that I missed for some reason, 'X Amount' and it is all kinds of fun. 

"X amount ah try keep up but dem can't catch mi speed

X amount nah waan listen when mi proceed

X amount a lyrics, dem ah flow like stream 

X amount ah try stop mi but dem neva succeed

X amount a gal ah run mi dung like stampede

X amount of loving coulda never exceeed

X amount a hungry vampire waan feed

X amount of bloodsuckers, none a dem heart no clean

X amount nah like wi, that's why dem face lean

X amount a power, mi seh x amount a steam

Natural to di music a so wi keep it real 

A so wi keep it real"

"Tell dem call fi assistance 

Cah wi nuh bow down, wi putting up resistance

And if fem fire, then wi fire back in response

Ready fi spark it, ready fi blaze it inna instance

And wi no matta bout di distance

Mi fire travel wid the Almighty guidance

And this a musical fire, mi nah violent

Yes this a musical fire mi nuh....

That's why mi keep badmind in the backa mi

Burn all\ di wicked, no pardon or apology

Nah tune in to none a dem psychology 

Til I'm laid to to rest, i know they'll never get the best of mi

Well nuff a dem no rate mi and mi no rate dem

Through mi deliver nuff musical statement

But nuff love ina mi heart so mi nah hate dem

BUT MUSICALLY NOW MI AHGO TERMINATE DEM"

While 'X Amount' does have substance to it (clearly), it's REALLY just a good time. It's a celebration of music and of an extremely high level of ability. 

Overall, I think it's time I got back in the rotation and starting keeping track of what Ziggi's working on. While not the full Ziggi:Oneness Records link that I would have hoped for, "Elevation" is definitely the next best thing and it's just VERY GOOD. Yes, I took a break in recent years but looooooooooongtime I have been singing the praises of both artist and label in this case and, together, they are everything you expect them to be. Musically, "Elevation" lives up to its name; it's in the stars somewhere up there and add to it someone as capable as Ziggi Recado and I really can't see how anyone who is a fan of Reggae music in its current state won't find something here to enjoy immensely. 2026 has been very impressive so far and here's another big winner. BOOM!