'No Shadow': A review of "The Journey" by Omar Perry

There exists an equally very interesting and wonderful moment in the career of every artist who ends up sticking around for any length of time when the initial 'shine' has worn off and it becomes time to add further substance. Whatever it was that originally attracted fans - a big tune, an unusual style, a link to someone else - has ceased to generate interest, for the most part, and fans begin to demand more and more in the way of new material and successes. I also look at artists who may have come up in very unusual circumstances as good instances of this - someone like Aidonia. The DJ has a talent which is pretty much unrivaled. He can throw together words like no one I've ever heard (with the exception of Saïk, someone who might also fit into the same category had his fans not pretty much had the opportunity to watch him up grow as an artist) and all of these years later, while it is impressive, the focus now goes to whether he has a greater and more timeless quality to him and he is in the midst of demonstrating that. For a more fitting and appropriate example of this, we can point to the current status of the career of someone Damian Marley. There have probably been, literally, hundreds of articles written about the career Jr. Gong being "in the shadow" or something like such - of that of his most legendary father, Bob Marley. These days, however, the younger Marley has definitely made his own place, due mostly to the fact that he is not only insanely talented, but also is so clearly identifiable with the music in a very modern style, that it becomes easier for fans to detach (at least superficially), his vibes from the work of his father. Similarly would be someone like a Tarrus Riley who experienced the same thing with his own father, Jimmy Riley, but in a much different way. That initial material coming up with him surely read 'son of Jimmy Riley', but he very quickly distinguished himself and if you look at it today, his lineage is much much less discussed, even in the most casual of circles. Someone whose own situation would follow more along the lines of Riley would be the individual we deal with today, son of Lee 'Scratch' Perry, Omar Perry. Not that he was as prevalent as Riley, but Omar's somewhat nomadic journey to prominence certainly took him away from 'simply' relying on his name quickly and establishing his own name. Still, when your father is who is father, you come from Reggae royalty (the elder Perry would hold a lofty claim to being one of the most talented individuals EVER associated with the genre) and when that becomes known and turned to the public it is ripe for interests.

"Man Free" [2007]

But I think most of that has waned away by album #3 and he never seemed to be too interested in it anyway. The interest in Omar Perry is almost heightened because, superficially, the most attention-grabbing bit of information surrounding him is almost an afterthought now and while he isn't the most popular name in Reggae music, his is a solid one which is added along to many who are plying their trades around the world (particularly in Europe and Africa, in his case). Also, it should be mentioned that Perry has quite a nice following. His work is pretty well discussed and popular amongst fans (at least those who talk to us).

"Can't Stop Us" [2009]

One would hope that to be the case as Omar Perry has just released his third studio album, "The Journey". The project, which comes through Bonfire PR Records, follows 2007's "Man Free" and "Can't Stop Us" from a couple of years later. The first of those, even still, just wasn't very good in my opinion and really exists as an album (somewhat like Chezidek's perplexing "Rising Sun") which I occasionally go back to, expecting to like because I didn't hate it, I just didn't have very much of a response to it at all. "Can't Stop Us", on the other hand, was pretty good and just a solid modern Roots Reggae set from 2009. For me, that was the first time I really took notice of Perry's talents. It wasn't that the album was just so AMAZING, but what it was (and especially when compared to its predecessor), was a very well done and thorough piece of work. For me, that was an INTRODUCTION! That was the way you get someone's attention, musically, and I was happy that the album was very well received by others as well. It was also quite varied (as is this album which I'm about to tell you about) and by its end, I was on board, as loosely as possible, as a fan an thus, pretty curious to see what Perry would bring up next. Well, two years later and I have my answer. The pretty aptly and fascinatingly titled "The Journey" follows a very solid run over the past year or so from Omar Perry. I can't say that I've enjoyed all of his work over that time, but I've been happy to see his name popping up on various projects as of late. Before the last album, I don't recall that being the case, but Perry has since linked up with some fine producers recently, including Necessary Mayhem, The Bombist and Tippa Irie and some of that material is present here. Going into this album I don't know that I was exactly expecting some type of tangible development (although it would be nice, surely) - I was pretty easy! A runback of the previous album would have been good enough and, although it's still pretty early in the 'sit down and think about it' process, I think that's, essentially, what hes done here. Although too long at eighteen tracks, "The Journey" is a very concrete release. Again, it does an excellent job of displaying this very talented and versatile artist and I can't imagined that anyone who came (for whatever reason) will be too disappointed. Let's take a listen!

'Love Inna Mi Heart'

My point in much of that was to detail that this is a very important album for Omar Perry (I know what you're thinking - every album is important - that's wrong. Trust me! They aren't!). With the 'title' he carries having now all but dissipated, and probably totally amongst hardcore fans, this is a great time to create long-lasting fans around the world and I'm sure that's exactly what he wants as an artist. If the first track on his brand new album, "The Journey", is any indication, Perry is sure to put up a big and beautiful sign to attract attention in the form of the album's lovely praising opener, 'Father of Creation'. Fans might be familiar with the track which originates on the UK Flu Riddim, via the aforementioned Tippa Irie, from last year (itself a remake of an old Studio One track). This is a SWEET song and was actually my favourite on the entire release for quite some time and should definitely rank highly for . . . Really anyone with ears. Next is another recognizable tune (on another old riddim), previous single 'Love Inna Mi Heart' from (the also aforementioned) The Bombist. I do like this tune on a certain level, but I think it could've been even better. It's VERY straight forward and I think just thinking outside of the proverbial box could have been very strong here, but nevertheless, it is a nice song and the riddim (which was originally crafted by Perry's father), of course, is absolutely dazzling. Wrapping up the start of "The Journey" is the first of six official combinations on the album and its most high profile as well, 'Change Your Ways', which feature star chanter, Anthony B. REALLY like this tune! The bite missing from the preceding track obviously made its home on this anti-violence piece and it features Anthony B not at his absolute best, but still in a really fine form.

“Badness no pay, badness no pay, badness no pay now
Mi ah warn di youth dem night and even day now
Full times mi seh fi change dem dutty ways now
Too much innocent get take away now
Too much of di ‘popopopopop pi pi’
Man seh dem a shotta, quick fi mek a marrow fly high
Tall up dem quick fi wave inna di sky high
Too much innocent ah die!”

The tune figures to have legs if given an opportunity, but even if it isn't, definitely check it out.

Also joining Omar Perry on this journey is a colourful group of featuring artists, alongside Anthony B. On the top end of the list, in terms of being known, are Kiddus I and Earl 16. The former joins in on the classically vibed 'Life Ain't Easy' which I had to work on quite a bit before declaring a final opinion on. It isn't the best song on the album, but it is strong in its own way (don't just hear it once and continue along). Earl 16, meanwhile, comes in later with the FUN 'Thinking of You', one of the album's changeups. This song exists somewhere in the spectrum where Dancehall and Pop meets and while usually something like such isn't necessarily what I'm going to be interested in, this one works for me a little and its just a delightful and feeling good type of song to bring a higher mood to the vibes: Mission accomplished. Frenchie, Fabrice Boyer helps on 'She Is So Nice' which is another song which will require more than just a couple of spins. In this case, however, it's because the vibes on the tune are pretty strange with the very 'electric' sound of the track being dominant throughout, but it is a decent song at its end. 'Rhythm Runs Deep' features the charming Davanna Sweet and with its HEAVY vibe, it's probably one of the best songs on the entire album. This is smoky room, COOL Reggae with just a hint of R&B mixed in as well. I really liked the mix here and do keep an eye on Ms. Sweet, hopefully she'll have a big 2012. The final combination track on "The Journey", 'Rip Off' is a strong acoustic number featuring Andres Lopez Gomez. I was pretty interested in hearing the motivation of the track and it finds Perry espousing on the state of the world's economic problems. He does so, however, in a very broad way which does cover specifics at times, but is so cleverly put together that after you listen to the entire album, I think it is one of the songs which will be stuck in your mind most, as it now is in mine. Well done.

While I definitely like a few of the combinations and they're always interesting (and I would have said something had no one been joining in), "The Journey" gets A LOT better, consistently speaking, when Omar Perry goes solo - in doing so he provides the album with some of its biggest moments. Aside from the opener, I think there're four tunes on the album which really distinguish themselves from the lot in a big way. The first is 'Wicked Affi Leave' (which I think may've been produced by Fabrice Boyer) which is another tune which just gives the listener a bit of an edge in the vibes and something to get you moving just a bit. The message here is pretty self-explanatory from the title - Perry talks about moving negative and nasty people from your life and your presence in a large way. This track is BEAUTIFUL! Next you should have a listen to 'Dem No Recognize' - BIG!

“Well dem nuh recognize

When dem see Jah Jah power just a move

Dem nah recognize

All dem ah scream and a all dem ah shout

Dem seh di fyah keep burnin and you know it nah out

Is like dem inna dream and dem caan get out

Di evil wickedness dem know is dem only route

But when mi si it from the other day

Mi no love how mi si di likkle youth man stay

Dem no waan fi live fi dem old gray

Mi si dat everyday dem get up, dem nah pray!”

Also, the tune just has a powerful and LARGE sound to it which really pushes it high to my opinion. Later we get the knocking 'I & I Rising'. This song, in my opinion, really shows what Omar Perry does well as an artist. It isn't the most well put together and crafted project, but he manages to pull it together so nicely, ultimately for one of the album's finest pieces. Finally (not really), there's my choice as the best song on "The Journey", 'Eat A Food'. Here's the thing: I'm pretty sure I LOVE this song because it sounds a lot like Capleton's crazy tune, 'Death Row', but I don't really care! 'Eat A Food' is GRIMY Roots Reggae - something you'd hear from someone like a Jah Mason and it made a big impression on me. I may be the only one to prefer it over the other seventeen tunes here, but somewhere in the middle of the tune I hear Perry hearing another level, one which is much better than "solid".

Rounding out this trod are a few more tracks which don't rank, for me, near the head, but aren't very far behind in some instances. The swinging 'Ready For The World' is a fine example of this. This is an excellent effort and a highlight for the body of the album and a song which both carries a powerful message and is entertaining at the same time. You might recall 'Those Were The Days' from just last year's Clearly Riddim (biggup Itation) and for some reason, I was somewhat surprised to see it here, but again, it's another fine addition to the album and whoever had the idea to include it definitely did a wonderful thing. Omar Perry (is pissed off and - ) has a thing or two to say to the taxman on the frenetic previous single 'GCT'. I enjoyed this one from the first time I heard it and while maybe not as much these days, the tune still packs a punch and should probably be a favourite of quite a few listeners here. Also check the album's closer, 'Wise Man' which should be another attention-grabber on the album and is so good that I really thought about going back and including it in the previous lot as some of the album's biggest tracks.

The two tunes on "The Journey" which just didn't do anything for me were 'Big Brown Eyes' and the very odd 'World Let Us Down'. The latter almost sounds like something from Cali P's last album, but you keep waiting for this explosion (musical and lyrical) and it never really comes. 'Big Brown Eyes' is just a love song . . . That's it. Nothing special about it at all.

Omar Perry

Overall, there is good material here and a lot of it. However, what I will say is that obviously the album is too long. You can carve out a damn good eleven or twelve track set here, but eighteen is stretching it and I figured it would be even before hearing the album. On the positive side, on the other hand, I hear flashes of absolute brilliance in this album which I don't think that I heard on "Can't Stop Us" which may be showing some type of development or may just be showing a better song or two in specific cases. Regardless, that is definitely a plus for this album. Now, if someday Omar Perry can put all of that together, this Perry may just be able to pull off a FULL project which someone might expect with his name. Until then, even with more solid efforts like "The Journey" - the spotlight will continue to be on Omar and for the right reason - Because his music is pretty good. A decent set.

Rated: 3.75/5
Bonfire PR Music
2011
CD [I THINK] + Digital
Omar Perry @ Facebook

Review #337

Baby Steps: A Review of Can't Stop Us by Omar Perry

I seem to be starting more and more reviews these days explaining how surprised I’ve been and remain by the quality of releases this year. I’ll spare you the exact details out of fear of being redundant (and because I’m just too tired of referencing the same damn albums over and over), but when you look at some of the material in 2009 which has been impressing me, far away from Tarrus Riley, Queen Ifrica, Buju Banton, Sizzla and the likes, the results, and more so than in any other year in recent memory, are downright astounding. So much so is this the case, in fact, tat I’d be willing to put the likes of NEREUS JOSEPH, Ras Zacharri, Stevie Face and who knows who else is still to come (biggup Lorenzo and Isiah Mentor) in the last two and half months of the year, against those aforementioned big names. They may not have access to the same resources as the big named artists (and I guess I would have to take Stevie Face out of that equation, because he most certainly does), but the quality levels and the results are, in my opinion, UNARGUABLY just as high in many cases. Well, we now have to make a bit of room (and we should be used to it by now) for the one named Omar Perry. Perhaps it shouldn’t be too great of a shock, especially considering that Perry comes ‘armed’ with arguably the GREATEST musical heritage available in Reggae music history as the son of the legendary Upsetter, Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry. The elder Perry is arguably the greatest producer, engineer, arranger and anything else you might need musically in Reggae history, having a history only matched by the likes of Sir Coxsone Dodd (Studio One) and King Tubby (both of whom are now physically deceased). And while I won’t get into the particular details of Scratch’s accomplishments (because as long winded as I undoubtedly am, even I don’t have that kind of time) and the various LEGENDARY careers he has launched, it is definitely noteworthy and terribly interesting to see. Omar Perry came to my attention roughly the same time as another child of a Reggae legend, Kenyatta Hill, son of the late and great Joseph ‘Culture’ Hill, who so impressed me and many others I’m sure with the Pass The Torch, a combination album he did posthumously with his Father from 2007 (big album). Hill managed to hit a very nice level on his first time out. For Omar Perry, on the other hand, things weren’t so immediate as far as my own personal tastes and how I would eventually grow to receive him and his vibes; ROYAL heritage and all.

The first time that I had ever heard Omar Perry’s music, save for some material, I believe, from several years back when I would have been a child was just a couple of years ago (and if you look at official release dates which I found, the album was released just a week before the aforementioned Pass The Torch), when he released what was his debut album, Man Free, for Corner Shop Records. Man Free was about as AVERAGE and MEDIOCRE of an album which I heard in 2007 and it, besides the fact that it was ‘the new album from Scratch Perry’s son’, at least in my opinion, it didn’t (and still doesn’t) have much of anything going for it musically on the whole. Not to say that the album was BAD, it wasn’t, but it was just so unremarkable that I can literally remember sitting down to write a review for it, having listened to every tune on the album several times and having ABSOLUTELY NOTHING TO SAY ABOUT IT, for better or for worse. After the Man Free album, I pretty much assumed (and correctly so, obviously) that I would ‘run into’ Perry again eventually (musically speak, of course) as he was apparently quite active on the French Reggae scene (and, in retrospect, I’m kind of surprised that I didn’t hear much about the then forth coming Man Free album before it was already released), but I held no grand hopes that I would be particularly keen on hearing what he had to deliver in the future. This brings us to Can’t Stop Us. When I heard of this album coming which, incidentally, had quite a bit of fanfare before it came through (biggup Makafresh), I didn’t pay it much attention, as I said I wouldn’t, but curiosity eventually got the best of me and just pulling through the song clips, I was quite impressed. Seemingly gone were the kind of Reggae clichés and quotas that Perry seemed to have been trying to meet on the Man Free album and it was replaced with a familiar, but fresh set of vibes and really something which, at least on the surface, offered me an opportunity to REALLY sink my teeth into the vibes and really take a nice message from it also. Can’t Stop Us (as I alluded to) comes via the well esteemed Afro-French label, Makafresh/Makasound, who are noted for doing their excellent work with French based Afrikan artists, including having released both of the prodigy Takana Zion’s albums and, according to his bio, Perry has also lived in Gambia in his globetrotting life. Such a reputable label, alone, would give me a reason to be interested in Can’t Stop Us, but that alone “can’t” and won’t hold my attention (as evident by the fact that I’m REGRETFULLY not really that into Zion’s newest album, Rappel à l'Ordre) for very long. So, if it weren’t for the fact that Can’t Stop Us is actually quite GOOD, then, even despite it’s rather obtrusive improvements over the Man Free album, I still would have ultimately paid it no mind, or (the more likely scenario), I would have sat down to write this review and had a similar experience as with the first album. So what’s different this time around? Well, at the ‘tender’ of about forty or so, I think Omar Perry has managed to do that which enough musical artists and just people in general tend to say that they’re TRYING to do: He’s gotten BETTER. Teetering dangerously close to the clichéd realm, Perry has established the fact that, at least for him, you never really stop learning as, again, although Man Free was by no means horrible, the sound here, his lyrical approach and his delivery is so more full and vibrant and by album’s end, Can’t Stop Us EASILY stands as the proper introduction to Omar Perry which was so necessary.

I had a few minutes of frustration when I was trying to draw a vocal tangent between Omar Perry and a next artist who he may have sound like and I still kind of do. However, if you FORCED me to pick someone, I would probably (CAREFULLY) say Junior Kelly, but I also hear some Determine and even Stephen Marley in his tones as well. Junior Kelly would definitely enjoy the opening lot of Omar Perry’s new album Can’t Stop Us because all three of the tunes are very solid and amongst the album’s absolute finest efforts. First up is the very interesting selection ‘We Wah’, with its big and beautiful sound. Speaking of Kelly, this type of song would be right up his alley and Perry isn’t bad at it either. The tune comes with a very nice and heavy message of unity and the OPPORTUNITY of unity and how important both of those ideas can be. And, again, it just sounds SO NICE. Very large opening there. Neither the type of vibes, nor the quality of tune take a noticeable dip and actually the quality of the tune increases a bit with the second tune on the album, ‘Bless Them’. This tune is also very well nice and at this point, I was up and high stepping and feeling good which, I’m sure, was the point of the tune as Perry calls on His Majesty to bless all of the righteous and innocent people of the world. That song really touches you (or at least it should) and, definitely, it put a wide smile on my face. The title track is up next and I know that riddim (and so will you), but I can’t remember it’s name (and neither will you) (and if you do, let me know what it is) and it’s not really important, because whatever it’s called and whoever made it, it’s NICE and I didn’t sit my ass down a second after Bless Them passed before Can’t Stop Us had me up and stepping again. It’s another tune about unification and praising His Majesty and seeking ultimate unification with HIM, but you’ll have to spin this DYNAMIC tune a few times before you’ll actually get to that wonderful message, just like I did.

There were a few tunes which were quite familiar to my ears on Can’t Stop Us, for one reason or another. The first was the lover’s vibed ‘Woman I Love You’. This one, you may know from outstanding Frenchie producers Bost & Bim’s Soprano riddim (huge tune from several artists on that same riddim, such as ‘Reggae Musik’ from Saïk) and the tune is very well done. ‘Fighting For A Cause’ was very interesting because I’ve never heard it before this album, yet it comes across one of my favourite riddims in recent times, Itation’s World Go Round. The riddim (I THINK) was built by the Tune In Crew from out of France and it was ultimately left off of the riddim’s album, but with very few exceptions it’s about as big as anything that was on that very nice project (definitely well check the lyrics on that one) (“that‘s why we are fighting for a cause, King Selassie I dun show dem flaws“). And that’s not the only time Tune In tunes in for Omar Perry’s Can’t Stop Us album; as later on they also provide their dazzling one-drop, The Little Sista riddim, for the closer, ‘Spiritually’. This tune is pretty good, albeit kind of sappy, but it, like pretty much everything over that lovely composition, ultimately works for me. ‘Tides of The Time’ which features Perry alongside pioneering UK deejay, Tippa Irie, is also quite familiar as it comes through over a very well used old school Dancehall riddim and finds the duo, as you might expect, making a very nice pairing on the social commentary of the youths of today. And then there’re two standout tunes, ‘Beat Down Babylon’ and ‘Save The Earth’. The former, of course, is a remake of an old tune from Junior Byles. The tune is a bonafide CLASSIC and, although Perry doesn’t reach those levels, I’m sure Byles would approve of the remake. As for Save The Earth, you’ll immediately recognize it as bubbling across the same riddim used for Max Romeo’s legendary tune ‘Chase The Devil’. Although not amongst my favourites on the album (unlike Beat Down Babylon, which is), Save The Earth is still very well done. Of course, the irony there being that the original Beat Down Babylon and Chase The Devil were. . . Both produced by Scratch. Still, it is the final familiar tune I’ll mention, ‘Boom Town’ which reigns supreme on Can’t Stop Us to my opinion. This tune is built over a souped up version of the well traveled World Jam riddim (or whatever you want to call it these days) and packs SO MUCH intensity in it that you just can’t shake the vibes. It actually sounds like it was done live and although Perry’s area of expertise appears to be these really LUSHLY vibed Roots tunes, Boom Town is MASSIVE! Of the new stuff, I really liked 911. The tune is (DUH), a comment of 9/11 tragedy, but it also, thankfully, takes things a step further by making a general commentary as far as what resulted from that incident (“when this whole wide world is big enough for us, why do you kill your little brother?”). I also really liked ‘I’m A Rebel’, which is one of my favourite tunes on the album. This tune also sounds a bit familiar to my ears, but even if it isn’t it now forever shall be. This is the type of song I REALLY think (like I said) is more to Perry’s skillset as he literally POURS all across this wonderful riddim and does so in a fashion which is simply not to be missed on this standout tune. The final tune I’ll mention is the HARD ‘Ghostmakers’. This one is an anti-violence tune at its core, but the route it takes in explaining that sure is interesting. This one, like a handful of others (I’m A Rebel and the three opening cuts definitely being amongst them), are really kind of what’s going on now in terms of modern Roots Reggae so if you like such a thing (which means you consistently or semi-consistently read my reviews) and you should, then you’ll definitely like this material because not only is it an example of what’s going on, but it, like most of Can’t Stop Us, is a very strong example of such.

Overall, I certainly don’t want to give the impression that everything’s so rosy on Can’t Stop Us, because it definitely isn’t. Of the tunes I didn’t mention: ‘Right Right Left’ is a decent Dancehall tune on the surface, however after a few spins, it really began to wear thin (and that’s just something that isn’t Omar Perry’s strength in my opinion). ‘Bring Me Joy’, alongside a songstress by the name of Cleo is another Dancehall tune which just isn’t very good AT ALL and neither is ‘Do You Love Me’, which, at least to my ears, features an Omar Perry simply running through the motions (and a BAD chorus). Yet, with only three soft spots out of a very healthy sixteen, I’m still stamping a seal of approval on Can’t Stop Us. The album, I feel should absolutely do wonders for Omar Perry as an artist as (upon further review) I wasn’t the only one who wasn’t feeling the Man Free album. While certainly not perfect or GREAT by any means, Can’t Stop Us is BOTH of those by comparison to Man Free and I’m really hoping that this, far more consistent and just downright BETTER version of the artist is the ‘true’ version. This Omar Perry I’m interested in and unlike two years ago after Man Free dropped, I’m now suddenly very interested in seeing exactly what he may bring next.

Rated 4/5

Makafresh

2009