Okay so, a few days ago (actually, yesterday but no way this is going up tonight) they held the Grammy awards and announced, along with everything else, the 2026 winner of the Best Reggae Album Grammy Award. To my surprise, the winner was the least likely of them all as walking away with the bag was Keznamdi for his release, "Blxxd & Fyah". I didn't think Keznamdi would do it but who cares what I though. I'm very happy for him and the biggest of congratulations go in his direction. Also nominated were Vybz Kartel, Mortimer, Jesse Royal and my personal choice, Lila Iké but, again, big respects and congrats to Keznamdi for the win. The Grammy awards have a unique set of circumstances as it isn't ACTUALLY the album of the year because there're cut off dates. They have a committee (I THINK) and it takes awhile to go through all of the potential nominees and to get votes in to count them up so the dates, for example, for this year's awards were limited to anything released between the 31st of August, 2024 and the 30th of August, 2025.
Obviously, the rest of us don't have to deal with such deadlines and constraints, so we're free to count anything from 2025, altogether; including something that may've released on.... the 10th of October, for example.
To the surprise of absolutely no one at all, many outlets have named "Exile" by Chronixx to be either amongst the best or THE best Reggae album of 2025 and while I most surely do disagree (see my review), I'm not writing this to beat up on "Exile" (or anyone who may've enjoyed it). I've already done that. This is more of an observational type of post. Our old friends at Da Ville have named it as their #1 and Reggae Ville doesn't just choose albums; they actually do a poll with some very respected and more knowledgeable people than I (like Angus Taylor, of course Gardy Stein and even John Masouri) (pretty much grew up reading John Masouri) and maybe fifty-ish in all so a very nice mixture of opinions go into their list. Billboard arrived at similar conclusion, calling "Exile" the best album that the Caribbean produced altogether last year (obviously, I disagree with their top spot but Billboard had a very interesting list. It included the likes of Machel Montano, Bad Bunny and even Trilla-G) (Trilla-G's album, "Take Me As I Am: The Album", is fun but it's also kinda brutal. Nearly every song comes in around the same pacing... and it just DOES NOT STOP!). You know what I'm thinking.... nope... I don't get it... but that's fine. As I suspected, I was in the minority in my feelings in regards to "Exile" and the results are demonstrating that. Furthermore, while I expect it'll have some serious competition, I would be pretty surprised if "Exile" isn't nominated for next year's Grammy Award and he'll probably be amongst the favourites to take it home.
I have been surprised by the lack of one album being present on pretty much every single list that I've come across and that's Dezarie's "Guardian". There is a bit of discrepancy as far as that album's official release, with some attributing to it a 2024 date but you find me a review or any press at all from 2024 for "Guardian". If it is to be counted in last year then the album, which was my #2, being absent from such lists is insanity. HOWEVER, with that being said, I said the same thing in 2023 when my literal #1, "Freedom Legacy" by Queen Omega, was nowhere to be found either. Apart from that, my list is a little more obscure (it always is) with only my #1, Lutan Fyah's "Health & Resilience", being even relatively prevalent on many of the ones that I've seen from my top five. Also from my list, I guess it's clear that I've underrated Lila Iké's "Treasure Self Love" as the album that I ranked at #8 charts at #2 and #3, respectively on Reggae Ville's and BB's lists, while Reggae-Vibes.com had her at fourth (their list actually goes twenty albums deep). And I have to say that, although I don't think its omission is on account to its quality, if I were to make a recommendation to others who may've missed it, the one that I would DEFINITELY suggest that I had that no one else did would be the LOVELY "Andromeda: Sign Of The Times" from Sydney Salmon & The Imperial Majestic Band. I get it: Spectacular can be a little harsh and isn't for everyone (although I did just recently get back into his album, "Stay Up", and it is better than ever) ["PLAY NYABINGHI INNA DI MIDDLE OF THE STREEEEEEEEEET! PLAY NYABINGHI BECAUSE IT SOUND SO SWEEEEEEEEEET"] and neither is even Dezarie, honestly; but "Sign Of The Times" was just such a beautifully put together set that I have a hard time seeing how it doesn't stick itself to the tastes of just about any fan of Reggae.
Hopefully 2026 is just as interesting. I'm thinking that we'll have more "traditional" big names making albums (like Buju & Capleton, for example) and... we'll probably be having a similar conversation about it a year from now. Until then, have a nice day.
#10. "Dub Of Serenity" by Marcus Gad & The Zion I Kings [Lustre Kings Productions]
I was debating on whether or not I would slap a review on this album prior to placing it on this list and I ultimately decided against it (although I did start to write it, so you may get it at some point in the first few months of this year) because I thought that it would speak more to the overall quality of it were (like one more entry here) the VERY first time I ever said a word about it declaring it one of the best albums of 2025. "Dub Of Serenity" is a dubbed out version of a five year old album ["Rhythm Of Serenity"] that, to be completely honest, I wasn't thrilled with. It was OKAY but absolutely nothing that I would call special or anywhere near special. HOWEVER, "Dub Of Serenity" STUNNED. Some of the music on this album was flooring and it's gotten to the point for me that "Dub Of Serenity", on the rare occasions when I'm not really listening to anything, is WHAT I'M LISTENING TO. If I need noise - this is it. It shouldn't come as a surprise, given the fact that the music comes via the lock-reliable Zion I Kings (who you'll see again here at a very high position), but what they were able to do here, with Marcus Gad's old album has to be considered some of their finest Dub work to date. You won't see this album on any other such list (and, normally, I exclude dubs and instrumentals from my list as well but I HAD to include this one), of that I'm sure, but I don't give a damn. This thing was gorgeous.
#9. "Sibusiso [Blessings]" by Perfect Giddimani [GIddimani Records]
Much like the first entry on this list, the MUSIC on "Sibusiso" was fantastic and it, too, would spawn a Dub version (literally, like a couple of weeks later) and with good reason. The Sinky Beatz guided set spoke nearly as much to the power of its producer as it did to the most unusual gifts of its most peculiar star, Perfect Giddimani. The presences of top notch peers, Lutan Fyah (may or may not be hearing from him again, later) & Anthony B only added to the soaring vibes of "Sibusiso", as did Perfect reaching with tunes such as the fantastic opener, 'Another Marcus Garvey', 'Jah We Pray', 'Selassie White Horse', 'Him Presence' and the MAMMOTH, ALL-CONQUERING 'Africa Mother Land' ["Mi chop off di chain but mi nah cut di African link"].
#8. "Treasure Self Love" by Lila Iké [Ineffable Records]
Unless I'm really overlooking something here, Lila Iké's full debut release, "Treasure Self Love" would have been the most purely popular album featured here and that's no surprise. It's star has proven to be a compelling story both in and out of the studio and then there's the matter of the actual music... "Treasure Self Love" GLOWS. Iké's style, inherently is one that makes for a certain beautiful sound (I'm convinced she can probably make pretty much any type of genre and her results would be of high quality. Her singing in the shower is probably better than a few honourable mentions for this list). She did manage to incorporate a few different styles throughout the album but it never drifted too far away from Reggae. A FINE example of this would be 'All Over The World' which featured Protoje (who produces) and 'He Loves Us Both', with H.E.R. They were not alone on the high end. I don't know what the hell 'Sweet' was but it GOLDEN, so was 'Brighter Days' which is probably the best song on this album, 'Scatter' and the delightfully nostalgic 'Romantic' which brought in Masicka and Patra whose 'Romantic Call' was remade sorta/kinda to a towering effect.
#7. "Star Of The East" by Yeza [Rorystonelove + Black Dub]
I semi-alluded to "Star Of The East" previously in talking about "Dub Of Serenity" because I THINK its appearance here will mark the very first time that I've ever mentioned it but the lyrical CLUBBING that Yeza gave to us all on "Star Of The East" was unignorable. Yeza channeled Jah9 (and did so, coincidentally, with Rorystonelove who also helped bring Jah9 to prominence) but turned up the aggression just a little. In doing so, she provided 2025 with its punch in the face. She kicked us all about a bit and we did not complain at all. The fairly straightforward project, basically, served as a platform for which Yeza to display her often devastating talents on and, in that, "Star Of The East" was almost perfect. Yeza SCALDED listeners with the title track, 'Road Runner', 'Ism Schism', 'Piss Up' ["Hotflashes like menopause"], 'Preacher Man' and 'Real Heavyweight' but she also cared for us a bit with 'Edge Control' and, in a strange way, 'Rude'. Yeza announced herself here to stay with "Star Of The East" and it's time we all got used to her being around.
#6. "Just Giving Thanks" by Glen Washington [Tad's Records]
Certified and verifiable VETERAN Mr. Glen Washington essentially did what he always does with "Just Giving Thanks".... he just gave thanks, made some love songs, slapped a cover on it and called it an album and WE LOVED IT! His next album will be exactly the same and so will the one after that. If it ain't broke... "Just Giving Thanks", for as basic and expected as it may have [it was] been did a wonderful job of putting on a full, vibrant display of precisely what Washington does best. You won't find smoke and mirrors on winner such as the title track, 'Heart Attack', 'Dreadlocks Conqueror', 'Square One', 'Seeking Jah Love' and, of course, 'Oh, To Be Like H.I.M.' What you will find instead are quintessential and vintage vibes from one of the greatest to ever do it and someone who has earned their own stripes and, obviously, enough for more than one generation. One of Glen Washington's best albums EVER.
#5. "Worthy 2 B" by Jah Myhrakle [Gold Den Arkc Records]
If Belizean chanter, Jah Myhrakle piqued my interests with his contributions to what turned out to be the second best compilation that I heard last year, "Heart Of One", he full-on made a fan out of me with his album, the weighty "Worthy 2 B". This album, in retrospect, has two very large things in its favour. The first of them is also its most identifiable quality (for me) and that's the fact that it is, EASILY, one of the finest WRITTEN songs of 2025. Myhrakle has a very clever and colourful way of making his points. He takes the proverbial "scenic route" in his writing and absolutely EVERYTHING is available for the sake of analogies so we, as listeners, are best off having some form of knowledge before going in (and he clearly expects that of you, otherwise much of Jah Myhrakle's work probably won't make much sense to you). The other thing that you notice on "Worthy 2 B" that really sets it apart is that there is something SUBTLY and CAREFULLY important sounding about this music. The best of it sounds like exactly what you would think it is: Music for a King.
#4. "Andromeda: Sign Of The Times" by Sydney Salmon & The Imperial Majestic Band [Irie Sounds International + Imperial Majestic Productions]
I'm going to reference #7 on this list in regards to how an album can have such an open and inviting sound to listeners. In that particular case, Lila Iké did combine a few different genres beneath the umbrella of Reggae music. Sydney Salmon & The Imperial Majestic Band, on the other hand, accomplished the same results without stepping a foot 'outside'. On "Andromeda: Sign Of The Times", Salmon & Co. charted a sound which was entirely Roots Reggae of a modern and old school variety - no question about it; but I'd make the case that, as a result, they also made one of the most OPEN and APPEALING albums of the year. Maybe I'm biased (I am, there is no "maybe") but I have a very difficult time imagining how someone is incapable of appreciating something on this album. This is what I would think most people set out to make when they embark on making a Roots album these days: For it to end up sounding like "Andromeda" and being able to find an audience amongst fans of the genre, new and old, and if someone who isn't at all a fan just happened to come into contact with a clip of it in some way, they'd also want to hear more. 'Africans Alive', 'Blessed', 'My Banner', the TWO eponymous tracks... I could go on and on. The entire album is brimming me with BEAUTIFUL 'best case scenario' Roots Reggae music.
#3. "Stay Up" by Spectacular [Carabeo Records]
When everything is finished and all of the scores have been tabulated, I'm not expecting to see Spectacular's "Stay Up" on too many lists such as this one, despite that I'm ranking it so highly. This album has a large and glaring issue and to ignore it would be irresponsible, AT BEST. "Stay Up" is too damn short. It just is. It's nine track and not even forty minutes long. So by the time you REALLY fall into it... that's about it. You've already heard the entire thing. What it manages to achieve in its brevity, however, is... yeah. It's spectacular. Spectacular's style can be one that's somewhat difficult to adjust to. He can be aggressive to an almost overdone degree at times (I'd reference UT Ras but there is no way in hell you're familiar with UT if you don't know who Spectacular is) (Jah Thunder would be another one). He can be HARSH but when you find a vibe that suits him, like the Forward Ever Band does throughout "Stay Up", you can mine gold! Try the brilliant opener, 'Jump Ina Fyah' or the downright exhausting 'Justice' ["I play Nyabinghi inna di middle of the street. Play Nyabinghi because it sound so sweet!"] (or both of them) as FLAMING examples of this. Want more? 'The System' might do it for you and so might the SMOOTH 'Hardcore'. More still, Lutan Fyah (who dat???) and Lymie Murray show with contributions and I haven't even mentioned 'Bag A Weed', which is the album's single finest tune altogether.... ALL OF THAT IN JUST NINE SONGS. Were it just a bit longer, no position on this list would be outside of the reach of "Stay Up" but that's just my opinion.
#2. "Guardian" by Dezarie [Dezarie]
Dezarie brought her spellbinding and dazzling form of Roots music to 2025 in the form of her brand new album, "Guardian", and accordingly, awakened her legions of most passionate and loyal fans and certainly made some new ones as well. "Guardian" was as THICK and HEAVY as you knew it would be but, despite also being a relatively brisk (and for the sake of comparison, "Guardian" is one song and one minute longer than "Stay Up" and it is rated ONE spot ahead of it), this album has the feel of a much longer release. In my opinion, even scratching the surface of the gifts "Guardian" has to offer requires at least three or four listens, on the lowest of ends. If you want to receive EVERYTHING?... I'm still working on that and I'll let you know if I ever feel like I've accomplished it (I will not). Tunes like 'Back To The Future', 'Criminal', the EPIC 'Immortal Combat', 'Lion Is Lion', the title song and several others (I say "several others" after naming five songs on an album with only ten) (....so pretty much the entire album) develop more and more as you tune in what Dezarie is actually saying. In 2025, Dezarie demanded that we all step up our game and if you did, you realized the absolute GEM that she left for us in "Guardian".
#1. "Strength & Resilience" by Lutan Fyah [I Grade Records]
It's the Zion I Kings who are bookending this list with Marcus Gad at #10 and crowning it with the second album they've done with the great Lutan Fyah, "Strength & Resilience". CLEARLY something is happening here as the first time artist and producers collaborated for an album, on 2017's "Music Is Life", the results were also special (and likely would have been the best album that year from us, were we not on hiatus at the time) but I'd argue that they even outdid themselves there as "Strength & Resilience" reached and IMMEDIATELY headed for the stars. I'm partial and biased in both cases. I've been a fan of Lutan Fyah's from, basically, the first time I heard his music and I've also enjoyed the work of the ZIK, collectively and individually for maybe even longer (coincidentally, the first time I heard the "K", Lustre Kings Productions, was probably on a compilation album by the name of "Culture Dem" and WHO HAD THE VERY FIRST SONG ON "CULTURE DEM"????) ["All man on earth should know, who is King Selassie I!"] (BOOM!) and I don't want to overly-dramatize the matter but years and years of chemistry was crystal clear throughout "Strength & Resilience".
Two guesting artists being two of the greatest of all time for me certainly didn't hurt things either, Queen Omega lent her monstrous talents to 'Days After Summer', while the immortal Vaughn Benjamin added to the infectious BOUNCE of 'Just The Time' ["BUT I CAN FEEL IT NOW!"]. Also present was a gentleman, in a very good form, by the name of Chronixx who delighted on 'Freedom Sound'. The album also featured extremely high caliber instrumentation (DUH!), which goes without saying on a ZIK release but (I have a point I'm making so give me a second. It'll all make sense) I don't know that I can recall a single album where the music was as.... all-encompassing as it is on "Strength & Resilience". There is a genre here. This is truly modern Roots Reggae music; but there isn't a centering sound, necessarily. It covers EVERYTHING. It's moody & brooding ['Pieces of Broken Soul', 'Strength & Resilience', 'Tomorrow From Today'], it's vibrant and lively ['Protect Your Energy', 'African Children'] and it's also everywhere in between ['Drain The Swamp', 'Leader Before Me']. In terms of an actual artist's album and not a Dub album, which they're very fond of making (as we've already established today), "Strength & Resilience", MUSICALLY, may be the single greatest piece of work that I have EVER heard from the ZIK, in retrospect.
For his part, Lutan Fyah meets and matches the might of his maestros with a magnificent lyrical display (DUH AGAIN!) and, again, you have to qualify that because he's ALWAYS in a fine form, lyrically, for me (the standing critique of Lutan Fyah is that he doesn't have the greatest command of melody -- and he does not and he never will -- but his craft with words has long been beyond question for me) (not REALLY, if he started speaking nonsense, I'd say so). What he manages to do on this album, however, as a complete body of work has a seat at the table in the conversation of being his greatest performance as well. "Strength & Resilience" was also THE greatest performance from anyone last year and THE BEST REGGAE ALBUM OF 2025.... and all negativity banish from within.
VIBES. In terms of 'supporting' and 'fleshing out' this wonderful music that we listen to, one of the things that I think often goes overlooked is the amount of different but IMPRESSIVE styles that we come across. Music -- and most things -- is often categorized under one umbrella, "genre" in this case, but when you dig into it and wring out that umbrella, what you find, specifically, can be damn different than something else within the same category. Dancehall, for example, may be quite simple on the surface but if you think about.... Elephant Man scoring a hit with the... seemingly endless number of dance tunes he used to make back in da day (and probably still does, it's been a minute since I've caught up with Ele's music) was "Dancehall" (literally); but so was Bounty Killer declaring a full on war with almost every significant and semi-significant peer he had (male, female, violent, peaceful, he didn't give a damn). If that doesn't make sense, you can go even broader, beneath an even larger umbrella, this one called "REGGAE" and, tracing it back a little, you might arrive at a man named Robert (if you don't get there, you've SURELY made a wrong turn somewhere) and, yes, Ele's 'Willie Bounce' and Bounty's 'Mi Nuh Business' were TECHNICALLY the same as what Bob did... if you can explain that. That is one end of the spectrum, on the complete opposite would be Roots Reggae, music which isn't regarded as being nearly as diverse but does have a few disparate facets which're definitely worth taking a look at. What got me into thinking about this is when I heard the material that we're dealing with today, it brought to my mind, fairly quickly, a favourite of mine - Ancient King. There is an undeniably beautifully GRIMY approach to making Roots Reggae. In the hands of someone such as Ancient King or a Jah Rubal, Roots music is... scattered. It's unkempt. It isn't neat. The food is a little burnt and no one's cut the grass in a very long time but it definitely has its appeal and I consider myself to be fortunate because I'm capable of enjoying that type of vibe (trust me, not everyone is). Now, if you go there, and you maybe mop the floor and do a little dusting (not too much though), you end up at Ambush or Jalifa ["Rastafari means Head Creator"]. Mow the lawn, plant some FLOWERS (and I do mean flowers because you know exactly what is growing at Ancient King's house) and now you're on holy ground, you're at Vaughn Benjamin's. Do a bit more and maybe you end up at Norris Man's...
Now, you can tidy up ENTIRELY. You can paint, mow the lawn (and then keep it mowed), get all of that shit out of the garage port so you can actually fit a car in there (biggup my wife) and just de-clutter in general. You can make that piece of land SO NICE that people stop on the road to take pictures of it. In that spectrum, you're talking about the likes of Tarrus Riley, Etana (when she's in form), Chonixx (when he's in form) and I'd even put Mark Wonder in there. These are individuals who making downright GLORIOUS sounding Roots music. It is... immediate (meaning that you instantly know what you're dealing with when you hear it) and it's also 'transferable', to my opinion (more on that later). You could definitely add a few others to that list and I have one, in particular, in mind.
2022
Back in April, we did a vault review ("vault reviews" are of any piece of work that is from before the previous year) of an album from 2022 by the name of "The Ultimate Challenge" by Sydney Salmon & The Imperial Majestic Band. Salmon had a most interesting back story: Having been born in Kingston, where he also began his career as a musician and his later travels would see him to New York City and, later (and currently, still), he would find his way to Ethiopia. You've heard dozens -- if not hundreds -- of Reggae songs speaking about the process of repatriation? Sydney Salmon actually did it (and biggup the Volcano Trumpet, Qshan Deya. Born in St. Vincent, now living and thriving in Ghana) and by the time he got there he had evolved into something well worth listening. "The Ultimate Challenge" was GORGEOUS! It is absolutely lovely and FULL Roots Reggae music which captures elements of both an era gone by also as a more modern sound. In either case, what you hear is this VIBRANT and ALIVE vibes and it was all sorts of captivating throughout "The Ultimate Challenge". A funny thing happened after I wrote that review: We got a message from an ooooooooooold friend of ours, James 'Dr. Seuss' Lord from Irie Sounds International who, himself, had also packed up and moved to Ethiopia and was well aware of Sydney Salmon and co (I'm almost certain that I knew that the good Doctor had moved from a few years ago). Fast-forward to the end of the year and Dr. Seuss got back in touch to tell us of the forthcoming "Andromeda: Sign Of The Times", from Sydney Salmon & The IMB. This time, he was directly involved in the "co-production", with the album coming through on Irie Sounds (and he brings in some HEAVY hitters as well, with the likes of Dean Fraser and Computer Paul, amongst talented others working here) as well as on Imperial Majestic Productions. On top of that, the Irie Sounds Band is actually given a credit on six of the album's thirteen tracks, so Dr. Seuss well has his hands all over this project. "Andromeda" really came as a nice surprise for me at the end of the year. There was another release that I was really looking forward to that released a week on from it (might tell you about that one next week... it ain't good) but when this set popped up, I IMMEDIATELY became interested, particularly given what came before it. You throw Irie Sounds in the mix and, Sydney Salmon - you now have my full attention, what will you do with it??
You will shine. I used the word (perhaps poorly but I'm sticking with it) "transferable" in an attempt to describe what I hear when I listen to music like this and what I meant, specifically, was that I think what you're going to hear on this album works for.... pretty much everyone. More entrenched, longtime fans of the genre only need to be informed of its existence but I can see someone entirely new to Roots music having an appreciation for what they hear here. It's just SO open and very well done and we don't typically apply terms like 'crossover' to Roots Reggae (and I'm not about to now) but while I know that SOMEWHERE out there must be some awful soul who just detests everything Reggae -- minus that poor soul -- virtually everyone else is almost guaranteed to hear something on "Andromeda: Signs Of The Times" that will work for them in some way. If you needed an example, just try the album's first tune, the LOVELY previous single 'My Banner'. I'm thinking that I probably ran into this tune, initially, through doing background for the review for the review for "The Ultimate Challenge" because as soon as I heard it, I recognized it and began humming along with it. This is a beautiful song about pride and Sydney Salmon touches on a variety of different things that he has pride in and that represent very significant things in his life. On top of all of that, THIS SONG WILL MAKE YOU SMILE. If you feel bad, IT WILL CHEER YOU UP! There's a powerful vibe behind 'My Banner' that pulls you in and to the credit of this album and its creators, it isn't the only such tune here. 'Organize & Centralize' is of an different type but it is MAMMOTH and firmly within the conversation of the absolute best that "Andromeda" has to offer altogether.
This tune caught me! I was listening to it and it hits a moment, relatively early on, where the music TOTALLY comes together and what you get is this.... damn near EXPLOSIVE, golden presentation which highlight The Imperial Majestic Band, arguably, even more than Sydney Salmon, himself! Salmon does more than hold his own with a message centering around the adage of 'if you fail to plan then you plan to fail' ["But some love the silver and some love the gold; and some, them own birthright, dem already sold"] and you HAVE to stick around here because the music on this song does so many wonderful things that is has to be experienced. BOOM! ["Now the truth is before their eyes"] The opener puts a smile on your face. The second song gets you moving a bit. The album's third track, 'Good Life' (biggup Cocoa Tea), is going to glue itself to your memory and long after you're on to the next (and the next one after that), you'll be singing:
"Have a good life!"
Along with its sonic appeal, 'Good Life' does have some substance to it also. The song is a very clever one about UNITY. It's about doing the best you can for yourself and making sure that you do the same for others and allow them the room to do what they want and pursue what they want in their lives. For me that means something as simple as.... not complaining ALLLL the damn time. Having something nice to say to someone ["kind words and good emanation frequency"] (biggup Vaughn Benjamin) and bringing some tiny piece of joy to their day. That can be really powerful stuff and that's something that I felt from 'Good Life': Helping yourself to the good life and others also! Next up is the SWEET 'Africans Alive'. You listen to the nascence of this one and how it begins with this BEAUTIFULLY scattered horn sound before it ascends even higher into the sugary African delight and praise. Salmon reaches on a broad level but also takes things very specifically ["A peculiar people we are yet we never started no war"] at times. He puts things under a spiritual umbrella, thanking The Almighty for what WE, as children of Africa, have been through to arrive where we are today (still here despite.....). There isn't even a hint of aggression in this, until the end of matters (and even then it's in a joyous way) but there's something to 'Africans Alive', despite its 'easiness'. This song has a BACKBONE. It's strong! It's precisely what you would expect the vibes to have at least a sprinkling of on such an offering. The first of two title tracks (I think that may be a first for me), 'Sign Of the Times', taps a classic riddim whose official name I don't feel like looking up (so we're going to call it the Hello Mama Africa Riddim because that's the most well known tune on it) (biggup Garnet Silk) (...of course I looked it up anyway, because I'm a nerd, it's the Smile Riddim) and Salmon well makes the most of it with a beautiful social commentary. This song is SPOTLESS. You know how you have some old piece of clothing that may have a hole in it or a blotch of paint or something that you can never quite wash off but you just love it for some reason? That is not this song. You could wash this one every day and the colour will look exactly like it did when you bought it. It will not fade at all! The riddim here is perfect for Salmon and what results is one of the nicest listens on the entire album. 'Andromeda', the other title track, is something special. This thing is ALIVE!
"The Andromeda is the great constellation
From the beginning of a civilization
To I & I is just a sweet inspiration
Mama Ethiopia: The origination of I & I"
Salmon and the IMB head to the stars and return with a MASSIVE tune which, by the slimmest of margins, is the album's single greatest offering in my opinion. I'm going to save most of this point for closing (even though I've already started building it) but the presence of this tune is really something special. It's almost a live performance in a medium that is COMPLETELY audio. You can't see a damn thing listening to it but it almost feels like you can as they put on a performance befitting The Almighty, Whom it honours. And I might as well mention it here: The song in the unenviable position of having to directly follow 'Andromeda', the curiously familiar 'I'm On A Roll' (I think I know this song from somewhere), gets on like it doesn't even care. 'I'm On A Roll' is... top four-ish on this release. It is SO NICE! What I took from it is that it is a celebration of self but not in an arrogant way. You go through life, you have your proverbial (and actual 'ups and downs') and we lament and cry about it when things aren't going our way, so maybe we should a song when we're feeling good for a stretch of time. It won't last so all the more reason to lift it up and, should you have the talent to make something like this (and you don't) (neither do I), you're able to not only celebrate YOU but maybe pick the rest of us up there as well. 'I'm On A Roll', is delightfully infectious and, again, you won't find much on this album better than it.
Sydney Salmon & The IMB pay a LOVELY tribute to the current (I THINK) president of Burkina Faso on 'Ibrahim Traore'. I really liked this one, in its idea, because Traore is still a relatively young man and it goes to both honour someone who is still with us but also to make others aware of him and the esteem in which Salmon and co. hold him. The song is so SIMPLE in its approach, initially, but as you continue to listen, this thing DEVELOPS into a freight train of a song... whether you realize it or not. There is a stretch of pure instrumentals right in the middle of 'Ibrahim Traore'; when the vocals return, it's leveled up! There are more sounds (you hear a piano) and things have intensified just a touch. What you end up with is a spectacular display of music and with a significant purpose. HOPEFULLY Ibrahim Traore, himself, gets to hear it one day. Maybe he could listen to the entire album. Doing so would also allow him to hear 'Blessed' which is another strong selection. This song almost sounds like a 'vibe' to my ears. I would think it didn't entail much planning and, instead, came about more organically (and I saw that ONLY in comparison to the other work on "Andromeda", which often comes off as being an incredibly meticulous project). 'Blessed' is more scattered and I would think a very good tune to SEE performed as well as, especially in its latter portions, it sounds like everyone is having a very good time. Chasing 'Blessed' is.... an absolute MONSTER of a song in 'Come Away'.
"The Father is calling us
For us to come home
Leave babylon alone
Rastafari calling us
For us to be free
To live in love and inity"
Now, doesn't Sydney Salmon have a very unique perspective on a song about repatriation?! The man speaks from personal experience! This isn't someone talking about the ideal or something that someone else is preaching. It is something he, HIMSELF, has done and he can provide an perspective like so few of his peers are able to. Furthermore, LISTEN TO THIS THING! 'Come Away' sounds like a march right down the middle of the biggest road in your town ["a no stick shift, a strictly automatic"] and it soars! By its end, I'm hearing a flute and beautiful drums making for, arguably, the finest composition in this galaxy of an album. Given that unique perspective that Salmon has, I think it's nice that he has something that is just as distinctly Ethiopian and he offers a couple of such selections in 'Ethiopia Zelalem' and 'Giramawi'. The former is a sterling tribute to Ethiopia (Google tells me that "zelalem" translates into "forever"). featuring Helen Legesse who, I believe, is a member of the IMB; and has a significant part in 'Ethiopia Zelalem'. She has vocals which're downright hypnotic and times and, along with paying homage to the country, Salmon also weaves a more generally socially aware amount of messaging in this one. He is seemingly lifting up Ethiopia while accepting that there remains work to be done ["Take me back to Ethiopia! THERE WAS A TIME WHEN THE PEOPLE WERE PURE NOT POOR"]. 'Giramawi' (which might mean 'Majesty') (you can guess what this is about), may be entirely in Amharic, is delightful! The Ska-fused track well provides the album with a great deal of colour and, again, I can imagine having all sorts of fun seeing a performance of 'Giramawi' as Salmon and the band seem to have had such a great time in recording it. I will make a direct criticism here: 'Giramawi' is the shortest song on this album BY FAR (literally, by more than a minute) and I think it would have been a great touch to just let the riddim play on. I'm not saying you had to give me seven minutes of it (though I wouldn't have complained about it if you did) but just a bit more time to enjoy would have been lovely. Lastly, "Andromeda" continues to churn out surprises with its concluding piece, 'Make A Change [Jah Jah People]'. The vocals here come from a Misganaye Salmon (given her name, you would confidently presume she is of some type of relation to Sydney) and I think that she is going to make a lot of fans with her efforts. With a title like 'Make A Change', you probably know what this song is about ["Jah Jah people stand up and tell babylon 'we're going to take no more"] but only a listen will tell just how nice it is. Misganaye's voice is more on the relaxed end for the most part but she does push it slightly at song's end but for the kind of rumbling riddim behind it, what she does is nearly perfect. It works for what she is saying and the full vibes of the album's closer and the next time Sydney Salmon makes an album, I hope to hear from her again.
There're a couple of things I want to stress here before closing, very briefly. The first is to give a similar credit to Sydney Salmon that I just gave to Misganaye: His voice is EXCELLENT. It works flawlessly for the type of music that he makes and, just in general, he's PLEASANT TO LISTEN TO. I enjoy what he says and I enjoy the way he says it. You will also. The next thing I want to mention is something that I've alluded to a few times in this review: This album sounds spectacular. Just from a purely sonic-appealing point of view - It's gold and it is that house that people stop on the road to take pictures of when they're driving (and not only that but, RIGHT NOW as I write this, I was listening to 'I'm On A Roll' and when it ended 'Africa Arising' from "The Ultimate Challenge" started... LISTEN TO THAT SONG) and it is the type of Roots music, in my opinion, that has a definite chance of drawing in fans who're not typically into the genre. Its PRESENTATION is fantastic and when you see just how much credit the band gets here, it sounds like you'd hope that it would. It sounds like an audio presentation of a live sound, not just artist in studio... on random riddim. Andddd, the artwork here kind of makes you long for the days when physical media for music was actually a thing. Clearly someone has put a lot of time and money into making this set what it is and it was worth it.
Overall, I have a hard time NOT recommending "Andromeda" to... pretty much anyone. Along with being more open for the newer listeners, it is fairly THICK as well. So if you enjoy your Roots heavy on the revolution with a side of spite, you'll be happy too. I do see Sydney Salmon's name pop up occasionally but I am under the belief that, when he's releasing music, an album (somewhere out there) is the goal. Maybe it's still a year or two away but that is where they will end up. I say that because "Andromeda" is seamless. Everything flows so nicely together, including the end where the changeups come in. They sound like they belong here and you're happy they are as well. 2025 has been a very interesting year for Reggae music and a very healthy one on the album side, in my opinion. I had a big, late-year project disappoint me recently (might tell you about that one next week) but "Andromeda: Sign Of The Times" has stepped in its place. At a time of the year where we're all sitting around, thinking about things like 'best of the year' lists, Sydney Salmon & The Imperial Majestic Band have just locked down a spot for themselves. GORGEOUS!
Rated: 4.7/5
Imperial Majestic Productions + Irie Sounds International
The ideal. If you take all of these wonderful themes and messages that we are given in listening to this amazing music -- Roots Reggae -- you'd hope that maybe someone, somewhere is tuning in and actually applying them to their everyday life. Hopefully, at least in some aspects, that "someone, somewhere" is You and I but you'd also hope that such a nice thought has a wider-reaching personal impact with the masses. Furthermore (and, perhaps, even more importantly) it would also be nice if the artists, themselves, actually lived up to the music they made and, though such a thing may be virtually impossible in a total way (because we are all flawed and prone to making massive mistakes) (which is, presumably, where the saying 'follow the message not the messenger' comes from), surely people are capable of implementing certain things within their lives which they make their living teaching to others. We've seen evidence of this throughout the years as well with individuals doing things as simple as speaking out on injustices locally and internationally (outside of musically) to as detailed as others running charitable organizations and foundations, such as Sizzla Kalonji and Bounty Killer most notably, Making music brings in money and fame and (deserved) adulation so it's always refreshing when you see someone who is willing to put those things to work and spend the TIME it takes to do other things which may not bring in much of any of those as it distinguishes them as someone who TRULY does care about their work from... maybe someone who just uses it as a means to make money who just happens to have a musical talent. I'd also, loosely, include in that the work so MANY of them do in terms of bringing forth a younger generation of positive artists. In the most recent review I wrote prior to this one, we dealt with Eesah who was clearly very much influenced, both directly and indirectly, by Chronixx (someone else who has done a great job away from the microphone) and there're literally countless examples of this happening in Reggae music and that is something definitely to be proud of (I did just mention Bounty Killer, after all). Still, with that being said, there are others still who find ways to even further immerse themselves in the music they make and the messages behind it.
Reggae music has taken people all over the world in the pursuit of making it, performing it and for a variety of different other reasons. It seems to be almost routinely around these parts that I mention someone who has made their way to the Reggae-starved continent of Europe because there they will find ample audiences (and producers) with whom to ply their trade (most recently there was Mosiah. New album, "I-Frequency", out now). This is a trend which started years ago and has not seemed to diminish much, if at all, over time (and you'll find far more examples of artists who may not have full relocated to Europe, but primarily do their work there). Rarer, however, is the situation we take a look at today as we have someone whose travels have taken them from the birthplace of Reggae music to.... the birthplace of EVERYTHING. When I first saw the name Sydney Salmon -- would have been just a few years ago now -- and took a listen to his music, I just had to learn more about the man behind what I was hearing. There was a certain quality to his work (more on that in just a second) that was SO DAMN impressive and so refined that I was pretty surprised that I hadn't knowingly ran into his work before. It seemed like something I would have remembered. When I did get into his story, it turned out that Salmon was born and raised in Kingston where he began his career in music and, as a young adult, relocated to New York where he furthered it, as well as an interest in Rastafari, before relocating again... this time to Addis Ababa, the capital city of Ethiopia. One of the pillaring tenets behind much of Roots Reggae music is repatriation and returning to live in Africa and Salmon actually did it and, apparently, with him he took a TON of talent.
I don't recall exactly what led me in Salmon's direction, initially, but whatever it was I'm delighted that it caught my attention because when I did actually tune into his work, I heard such a BRIGHT and VIBRANT Roots sound and one that though clearly inspired by older sounds was still fresh and pliable for the current generation. It was just such a full vibes that I took a mental snapshot and knew that one day it would be a fun write-up to tell you wonderful people about what I heard and today is that day. I almost want to say that it feels older, but officially it was just a couple of years ago that Sydney Salmon, along with his Imperial Majestic Band (which, I think, came from New York with him, or at least partially), released a downright dazzling piece of Roots Reggae by the name of "The Ultimate Challenge". The album came via the same Imperial Majestic Productions that handles pretty much all of Salmon's music that I can find note of, with one recent exception. Sydney Salmon has actually mixed with a friend of ours, James Lord [aka Dr. Seuss] of Irie Sounds International just this past December in creating a LOVELY tune by the name of 'My Banner' ["My banner give honour for all the world to see what Rastafari has truly done for me"]. Lord's story is similar to Salmon's as he is someone who spent years of his life making Reggae music before packing up and moving operations to Ethiopia (and what a BEAUTIFUL union those two could make if ever they were inclined to make a full project in my opinion). As far as Sydney Salmon's style, as I said, he's someone who has clearly been captivated by an older and more foundational type of sound which is well reflected in his music. Vocally, you could make several comparisons, because of who I spend my time listening to, I'm going to make one that no one else likely will (they won't), but his delivery reminds me a bit of someone like Tuff Lion. He has a FINE singing and chanting voice (it comes off as being either very strong or nearly pitch-perfect for the type of music that he makes when he does push it to my ear) and he veers back and forth between the two exquisitely. He's also very refined and he HAS to be given the total SOUND of his work. As I alluded to, it is simply.... CANDY to the ears of Roots Reggae fans, to the point where it became hard for me not to pay attention to it in a major way. I don't know if I'm able to do it justice in this way but I am definitely up for this challenge and I'd like to tell you all about it if you're not too busy.
I'd have no idea to whom, directly, I would give such a credit, but whoever put together the cover art for this project has done a great job. Like the music it heads, it is very inviting. Looking at it makes you want to know more about it and hear what's going on. What is going with "The Ultimate Challenge" from Sydney Salmon & The Imperial Majestic Band is absolutely delightful and it gets up and going courtesy of its glowing titling effort (always looking for new and interesting ways to say "title track") ("titling (which may or may not be an actual word) effort" is fantastic and you know it).
"We must first look unto The Almighty God, Who has raised man above the animals
And has endowed us with intelligence and reasoning
We must put our faith in HIM
He'll not permit us nor allow us to destroy humanity
Who were created in HIS own image
Give thanks to The Lord, God, Almighty"
This EPIC opener really touches the listener in every way possible as it shines lyrically and musically when, roughly halfway through, 'The Ultimate Challenge' dashes the vocals for the most part and goes instrumental for a downright dazzling spell (and just a REALLY good idea, in my opinion). When I first heard this song, as I alluded to (or at least tried to), it both impressed me and made me damn curious as to what was to follow that golden first taste. Awesomely (that might not be a word either), the case could be made that what directly chases the title track is an even stronger piece as the sublime 'Africa Arising' is up next. As its title suggests, this track is one for the upliftment of Africa, in general and fully, and Salmon touches on various aspects of the continent to instill some pride in all of its children. It also sounds fantastic. It isn't BIG or terribly intense, but the vibes on 'Africa Arising' quickly find a perfect groove and they OOZE out for your listening enjoyment (those horns!) on, easily, one of the sweetest tracks on "The Ultimate Challenge". I also have to mention how much FUN it seems they had in making 'Africa Arising' as well, which is always a nice touch to hear. 'Lions in Captivity' is charged with keeping the quality levels high and it does not miss a beat at all. This one is a celebration of freedom and liberty and its importance to EVERYONE and how much we lose when we unnecessarily restrict people. What a tune!
From what I gather, the Luciano-esque 'Never Colonized' is both one of the oldest and most popular offerings on the album (apparently it dates all the way back to 2011). It is, essentially, to Ethiopia, specifically, what 'Africa Arising' is to the continent as Salmon and co. set out to make a song that would lift up the nation for all of its beauty historically and currently. I also LOVE the vibe of 'Never Colonized' which is downright exquisite and, again, the fact that Salmon does show love to present day Ethiopia. You rarely hear messages like that: If you really think about it, most Reggae songs about Ethiopia (and there're hundreds) focus almost exclusively on the historical aspect; but as someone actually living there, you would expect a different perspective like the one provided here. Also, because I'm a giant nerd, I simply must mention the fact that though the song is listed as being a very healthy 5:59 in length, it's actually more like 5:12-13 as the final forty-five seconds or so is just void (don't know what happened there). Next up is an absolute scorcher in 'Carry On', that soars alongside some of the best material that "The Ultimate Challenge" has to offer altogether.
"Said the poor man to his son:
'I know my time has come'-
To be moving on, I know that my work is done
And now it's your time, to let your light shine
Pick up the mantle and carry on"
'Carry On' is about progression of a few different ways, but steadily moving forward and it is framed in such an interesting and compelling way that, lyrically it stands out so vividly. The sound is more subtle and laidback and so wonderfully underpins a golden message and delivery. I saw the title 'Show Business' and was somewhat surprised by it because it didn't seem like it fit the direction of "The Ultimate Challenge" and, in listening to it.... Yeah, it is kind of jarring to some extent. The song that follows, surprisingly, doesn't stray far as 'Jams Addis' is, as far as I can tell, Salmon's ode to a Reggae club in Addis Ababa (which Google says has since been closed down). Neither of these tunes are bad (they're both at least above average) and 'Jams Addis', for what it's worth, is pretty strong (with its grander significance than just being a song about a club), but I wasn't expecting either and that is an addition to "The Ultimate Challenge" because we always appreciate versatility when it is done in such a way. This challenge peaks [PROBABLY] next as someone leaves the gate open and in walks the MAMMOTH 'Yakob Rule'. Let me tell you something; If you wanna talk about a tune that has EVERYTHING covered, in terms of the message and the music, you're going to be talking about several from this album, but none from a higher region (biggup JahSolidRock) (be telling you about what they've been up to pretty soon) than 'Yakob Rule'. This one comes off as if Salmon is speaking (in an analogous type of way) about how The Almighty put the inspiration of making music in him and what he's attempted to do with it... then it BLOSSOMS out into this stunning track which keeps you moving and thinking throughout.
As "The Ultimate Challenge" winds down, it serves up another pair of big winners in the closing 'Warriors' and 'Coming Soon'. The flying former is the brightest gem of the two as it STIRS!
"Since I was a boy, I've been a warrior
I was born and raised to bring down barriers
To trample di beast
Warriors from the east
A son of Jahova"
The vibes on 'Warriors' are downright destructive and either Salmon adopts a few different styles or he does pass the mic around a bit to members of the IMB. Were you of the mind that 'Warriors' was the single biggest moment on "The Ultimate Challenge", I wouldn't put up much of a fight at all. It stands am EXCELLENT call to action and one which has the strength to be successful (you literally feel like doing SOMETHING while listening to it). For its part, though a ways more chilled and relaxed, 'Coming Soon' manages to make a big impact as well. On a biblical vibes, Salmon warns all to get ready for the return of The Almighty and it takes him a very appetizing nearly six minutes to get the point across (technically, it's the album's longest selection given the strange ending of 'Never Colonized'). Speaking of biblical compositions, there's also the beautiful 'Psalms 64'. Fairly straight forward, Salmon constructed a piece of music around the passage and did so in such a way that has made it impossible to ignore. YOU LISTEN TO THAT THING! With this HUGE and blaring sound, 'Psalms 64' full on dares you to not give it a proper attention in its time. I'm going to say pretty much the exact same in reference to 'Blood Brothers' as well. It may require a little in the way of a 'gestation period' and it comes on top of a foundation directly from scripture. The sound on that one is... almost Country/Gospel, neither of which are favourites of mine at all, but I do not dislike 'Blood Brothers'. If you do (that's fine, you're entitled to your own opinion. Nothing wrong with that at all), give it a second listen before tapping out completely. Finally, check 'Guardian of Love'. Yes. I know. The title is kind of sappy and you could even say the actual song is a little on the mushy side at times... that's fair; but I'd also tell you to give this one just a bit of extra time to develop and pan out. Maybe it never grows on you at all but it did on me somewhat and a tune that I did not very much at all initially is one which I now look at as being quite solid and a full credit goes to the female singer who joins in and gives the song -- and the entire album -- another very much appreciated texture.
Overall, "The Ultimate Challenge" is something FAR more than "quite solid" to my opinion and I'm recommending it to fans of Roots Reggae both new and old. Given the total sound of the album, I think it appeals to more hardened fans as something they know and love and newer fans with its RICH sound. Also, the uniqueness of such a project as we mentioned, with a Jamaican artist building a vibe in Ethiopia, FOR Ethiopia and with a unique perspective is also something I think that has a backing that is readily enjoyable by many types of fans. EVERYONE (everybody, in the entire world) has a story behind them, but in a genre like Reggae where so many of our artists' background is so wonderfully varied and well-traveled, what Sydney Salmon and The Imperial Majestic Band have going for them is even different in a terrain that breeds originality and that comes roaring through on a wonderful debut album, "The Ultimate Challenge".
