Devin spent almost 20 years as singer and songwriter for L.A. based roots-reggae band The Expanders. During that time he helped write/record/release 4 records, backed numerous veteran Jamaican artists at performances throughout California, and toured across the U.S. and Europe. He is also an experienced record selector and collector of Jamaican vinyl. Devin now splits his time between recording/performing solo acoustic reggae, playing guitar for veteran SoCal groups Long Beach Dub Allstars, The Lions, and Hepcat, and editing reggae news for Rootfire.net. You can follow him at @manlikedevin
In honor of the recent Best Reggae Album Grammy nomination of the new Steel Pulse album “Mass Manipulation” released on Rootfire Cooperative, this Rare Record Showcase focuses on my personal favorite Steel Pulse record, and in my opinion one of the most underrated records in Reggae, 1980’s… Read More
Last week, Los Angeles, CA roots-reggae champions Arise Roots released “Come And Get It,” the lead single from their eagerly anticipated new album dropping early next year on Ineffable Music. Aside from being a killer tune in its own right (always the case regarding new music from… Read More
I’ve been a fan of Pressure since the first time I heard him on the tune “Jah In Dem,” a collaboration with Vaughn Benjamin (Midnite/Akae Beka) from the 2003 Midnite Branch-I album Geoman. Shortly after, I saw him perform live at Sierra Nevada World Music Festival (2005 I believe?)…… Read More
“Savanna” is the new single from Jamaican-Canadian artist Jonathan Emile, off his upcoming album Spaces-In-Between (January 24 – Mindpeacelove / Tuff Gong International). The single drops this Friday.
Based in Montreal, Emile is a rapper, singer, producer, activist, and cancer survivor. … Read More
It’s hard to know how to begin talking about a band like Midnite. Even the usually all-encompassing label of “band” feels like an inadequate way to describe the phenomenon of this groundbreaking St. Croix roots unit. So much of the way they operate falls outside of the normal… Read More
Thank you to Carter Van Pelt for his contributions to the Jamaican Living Legends list.
So many of Jamaica’s foundational artist are no longer here on Earth. All too frequently we read that another legendary singer, musician, or producer has passed.… Read More
For this third edition of “Two On The Mic,” I got on the phone with my very good friend Pachy Garcia, who has recently released an insanely good Dub record entitled “Pachyman In Dub.”
This was a special interview for me and one that I was really happy to do.…
I Looovvveee this record. I love Frankie Jones! If my experience means anything, his name is one that often rings no bell for even serious reggae heads. Why? Who knows. I’m sick of asking that question to be honest. Maybe he’s no good and I just like bad music.…… Read More
