A lot of dubheads adore Paul Fox’s voice and know his works for example with British dub legend Alpha&Omega, but don’t know about his roots. In the half of the 90s, which were amazing for dub, Paul together with Jonah Dan and Julian Ryan set a project Shades of Black. They released 12″ “War and Peace” and an album “Shades of Dub”. Afterwards, without Julian Ryan, they released a classic – “Friend or Enemy/Fight for the Right” together with an album “Sounds of Time” in 2002. In 2008 there was a continuation of the project on a collaborative album with Michael Rose “Great Expectations” and “Dub Expectations”.
It’s been six years since the last release and fortunately we get the next one. “Break Free” contains 18 tracks, part of which are dub versions. Music has been created by Paul Fox, Jonah Dan, Gavin ‘Fullness’ Sant, Moonshine Horns (Kristoes von Hess and Jort Verdick), Stuart ‘Mr Ranking’ Webb and Fellipe ‘SoulJah’ Sobral. There are also a lot of vocalists – Paul Fox, Michael Rose, Saimn-I, Jimmy Ranks and Jahman Dan. The album is opened by “Summer Down” with Paul on the mic and amazing horns by Moonshine Horns, which are in the lead in the dub version. Then, there is the eponymous “Break Free”, where Paul gets to the top with his vocals and lyrics. The musical side is a steppers with a version from Saimn-I. “Lion in the Flag” with Michael Rose is a big surprise for me – 100% anthem, both the rhythm and lyrics. Next we get another brilliant and mysterious tune from Paul Fox – “Full Belly, Empty Heart” and Jimmy Ranks with “Trust in Jahovia”, revealing all of the Shades of Black aces in the dub version. Moonshine Horns in “Roots Rock” is an absolute mastery. Paul again appears on the mic in “Conscious Life” – one of the best tracks on this album. However, it’s hard to point the best one when you hear Jahman Dan in “Leaving the city” or Saimn I in “Repent”.
To sum up – it’s UK dub at its finest, you can hear echoes of the 90s – full of very good and crucial dubs . It’s worth to listen the fantastic, mystical comeback of Shades of Black!
