The late 1990s saw the world of dub-style music mutating and dividing, with the emphasis on computerized, digitally-based music. Dubs and overdubs moved from the studio crew splicing tapes in the early hours of the morning to the ‘cut and paste’ technique made possible by the new technology. Although some pursue the art in its original form the majority of artists and producers out there put their faith in Cubase and similar editing tools.
Changes in the nature of the UK's live music scene, and selective media coverage, meant that only a few of the midi-circus crew have received the recognition they deserve. One of that deserving bunch is Lee Digidub, for me one of the true innovators of the digital dub sound since the release of their seminal ''south east of the river thames'' lp in the early 90s
Lee’s outfit, ‘Digidub’, with its heart and roots in the UK underground music and party scene, is a prime example of the genre. I got to know Lee Digidub when we began promoting alternative music in the mid 1990s at Ohm Soundsystem’s live gigs and shows. Lee and his cyberdub mutants were a regular feature of the - then infant - Ohm Sounds with whom I began DJing. Several years along we are all still at it, keeping the faith and the B-line booming wondrous world of Digidub.
digidub - 16 Millionths of an Inch
| 1. Nepturanous |
| 2. Midight Dub - Mashed Potatoes |
| 3. Rice |
| 4. Bankman |
| 5. Nepturanous 200893 |
| 6. Dub Cowboys |
| 7. Madness [Mountains of] |
| 8. Basic |
| 9. Nepturanous 241093 |
| 10. Routemaster |
'the golems of digidub' review by FREQ
The first and best label and/or artists to tackle the melding of Techno and Dub with the right degree of integration and innovation,
Digi-Dub are here remixed by the collective's friends and admirers in appropriate late-Nineties style. As is to be expected, the meeting of eclectic sources on the basis of Reggae and House derived forms that Digi Dub specialized in lends itself particularly to Trance interpretation, but with a twist - or more to the point, as many twists and turns as is possible.
Not many straightforward floorfillers then, but a selection of pulsing, spluttering Concrét-flavoured dubs on the sources - remember this is the label whose
L.S. Diezel and
Launch DAT used a Routemaster bus engine as the source for one memorable track of the same name.
Mashed's "5 Bars" gets a hallucinatory makeover by American DJ
S.P.A.Z., while "Mystry" is up for a low-key Electronica molding by
N(onplace).U(rban).F(ield). & Egon Zo. There do seem to be perennial Digi Dub favorites among the remixes - "Mystry" also appears in a knee-pumping Trance exploration by
Styward, which features a very nice melodica line. Likewise, the two versions of "Beware Of Your Enemies" take
Levi Roots' heartfelt old-school chant and process the track into the Dub & Bass
Mudskipper mix and
Sound-Proof's more militantly stepping neo-Rockers version, which dubs out half way into a warm bath of bass, echo and dropped vocal fragments.
''Donkey Rider" appears twice too, with
Hedonastik emphasizing the low-end possibilities in intricate Digital Roots style with an energizing, Trance - analogue motif, while
The Resonator's more interested in the Electro-Ragga possibilities. "Conquering Lion" is taken by
The Moody Boyz through some unreasonable Ska whistlingDancehall hoops, while
Dodo turns "Zin Zo" into a relaxed, reverberating shimmer, and the 12" guitar cut of purple boy by
Shimmon + Woolfson is present too. It's this song and the highly energetic clatter of
Marc Em's remodeled "Nepturanus" which really mark the tempo up a few notches, both paying considerable attention to structure and breadth of focus, shifting form on the basis of the source material as all good Golems should. As remix albums go, this one adds further permutations to the gloriously convoluted multiple identities which characterize this most plastic and fluid of labels.
digidub-
the golems of digidub
01 L.S. Diezel + Launch DAT - Mystery remixed by N.U.F. & Egon Zo
02 L.S. Diezel + Launch DAT - Mystery remixed by Styward
03 Mashed feat. Levi Roots - Beware Of Your Enemies remixed by MudSkipper
04 Mashed - 5 Bars remixed by S.P.A.Z.
05 Mashed - Conquering Lion remixed by the Moody Boyz
06 Mashed - Zin Zo remixed by Dodo
07 Nepturanus remixed by Marc Em
08 Smart Alec + Trevor Cloggs - Purple Boyz remixed by Shimmon + Woolfson
09 Mashed feat. Levi Roots - Beware Of Your Enemies remixed by SoundProof
10 R.I.P. - Donkey Rider remixed by Hedonastik
11 R.I.P. - Donkey Rider remixed by the Resonator
This compilation of acid folk songs is culled from mostly obscure albums recorded between 1968-1971, just after the death of hippy when the longhairs turned to freaky mysticism for solace as the flower power dream became tinged with the stuff of nightmare.
And what a far out collection of beautiful weirdness, edgy themes and lyrics, the Bonnie Dobson song is a pure piece of acid folk...until you listen more closely to the lyrics ! Christine Harwood's take on the Stills classic is weirdly wonderful with a Donovan sample at the end that just adds a spooky frisson. An achingly beautiful Chimacum Rain byLinda Perhacs and the sublime Sandy Denny singing Autopsy with the Fairports are just a few of the stand outs. 
